Family business serving local food at first permanent food truck in Hillsboro
Lead Summary
By
Caitlin Forsha-crforsha@gmail.com
The first permanent food truck in Hillsboro offers a new option for casual outdoor dining in warmer weather, as the locally owned and operated DP Grill is open now and focuses on fresh, local sandwiches, wraps and sides.
DP Grill is open 11 a.m. - 7 p.m. on weekdays, and the truck is set up in a permanent location at 721 South High Street in Hillsboro. The truck is owned by Nick and Nikki Beatty, with the Beattys’ friend Derek Julliard operating the truck during the week.
Both the Beattys and Julliard are from Highland County, with Nick Beatty and Julliard growing up together in Pricetown and graduating from Lynchburg-Clay, and Nikki Beatty grew up in Greenfield and graduated from McClain.
Nick Beatty said that he has been serving food through DP Grill since he was a child, working with his brother on weekends at their original location at the Caesar’s Creek Flea Market in Wilmington. The original owner sold it to one of Beatty’s friends, and Beatty and his wife, Nikki, purchased the business five years ago.
Beatty said that since they already serve fresh food every weekend, they needed an outlet to sell their products during the week, so they purchased an old mail delivery truck, which was repainted by Beatty’s brother.
In addition to Beatty and his brother’s experience with the food side of the business, Nikki Beatty handles the food truck’s accounting. The Beattys’ son, Parker, 4, enjoys helping out by ringing the bell when food is ready, wiping tables or picking up sticks. Daughter Rylee, 6, also helps when she isn’t in school.
“We run it as a family business,” Beatty said. “We’re employee-owned, and I think that’s important because your employees take pride in what they’re serving.”
During the week, the truck is run by Julliard, who said he enjoys coming up with variations on the menu, including specialty wraps and burgers.
“We try to change it up,” Julliard said. “We do different stuff from time to time, playing with the menu and trying something new.”
The menu features a “super steak sandwich” with a half-pound of chopped sirloin; a handmade 10-inch Italian sausage sandwich; and a half-pound grilled chicken sandwich, with your choice of cheese and toppings. Grilled or deep-fried wraps are also offered. All of their meats come fresh from a Dayton butcher every week. The food truck also serves fresh-cut french fries and sweet potato fries, with a variety of topping choices.
In addition to the fresh meat, Beatty said that they hope to utilize even more local products when they are in season.
“As the summer goes on, the idea is to bring in more local vegetables for our toppings,” Beatty said. “Our food is fresh and it’s local, so it doesn’t get much better than that. The bacon we were using today came from a hog my dad raised. It’s awesome.”
“It’s nice knowing where your food comes from,” Nikki Beatty said.
Nick Beatty, who works in health insurance, met the property owner through work and presented the idea to set up the food truck there. The food truck overlooks a large yard, where Beatty said they hope to eventually feature community events.
“We could have small concerts or a movie night, something for families to have fun and not cost a lot of money,” Beatty said. “We know a lot of good vendors at the flea market, and we could bring them in throughout the week to draw people out.”
There are picnic tables for people who would like to sit and eat, and pets are also welcome, Beatty said.
“We’re pet-friendly,” Beatty said. “You can come out with your dogs, hang out, even throw a frisbee.”
Another idea is that when the weather gets colder, customers can drive up to the truck and use their window as a “drive-thru” window.
Beatty said that since food trucks are a “growing trend” nationwide, he hopes that DP Grill’s presence in the community can open up new opportunities for both their business and others. Ideally, he would like to be able to set up in different locations in town.
“If we are allowed to move to different spaces, it opens up a whole other avenue to bring money into town that might otherwise be going to corporations, and it gives us an opportunity to employ local people,” Beatty said.
Julliard said that Hillsboro High School students have responded positively to the food truck, and they are looking into the possibility of setting up at the high school for events if approved by the school administration.
“We have opportunities here to be creative, so we’re taking advantage of whatever we can do,” Beatty said.
Since the food truck is mobile, they are also available to cater events, such as employee appreciation days at local businesses or even graduation parties.
“The menu items are open to everyone,” Beatty said. “Everything is cooked fresh, on demand. It’s hard to beat, so we’re excited to do more catering-type events.”
Call-ahead orders are also accepted and can be made by calling (937) 763-8847. Cash, credit and debit cards are accepted.
DP Grill is open 11 a.m. - 7 p.m. on weekdays, and the truck is set up in a permanent location at 721 South High Street in Hillsboro. The truck is owned by Nick and Nikki Beatty, with the Beattys’ friend Derek Julliard operating the truck during the week.
Both the Beattys and Julliard are from Highland County, with Nick Beatty and Julliard growing up together in Pricetown and graduating from Lynchburg-Clay, and Nikki Beatty grew up in Greenfield and graduated from McClain.
Nick Beatty said that he has been serving food through DP Grill since he was a child, working with his brother on weekends at their original location at the Caesar’s Creek Flea Market in Wilmington. The original owner sold it to one of Beatty’s friends, and Beatty and his wife, Nikki, purchased the business five years ago.
Beatty said that since they already serve fresh food every weekend, they needed an outlet to sell their products during the week, so they purchased an old mail delivery truck, which was repainted by Beatty’s brother.
In addition to Beatty and his brother’s experience with the food side of the business, Nikki Beatty handles the food truck’s accounting. The Beattys’ son, Parker, 4, enjoys helping out by ringing the bell when food is ready, wiping tables or picking up sticks. Daughter Rylee, 6, also helps when she isn’t in school.
“We run it as a family business,” Beatty said. “We’re employee-owned, and I think that’s important because your employees take pride in what they’re serving.”
During the week, the truck is run by Julliard, who said he enjoys coming up with variations on the menu, including specialty wraps and burgers.
“We try to change it up,” Julliard said. “We do different stuff from time to time, playing with the menu and trying something new.”
The menu features a “super steak sandwich” with a half-pound of chopped sirloin; a handmade 10-inch Italian sausage sandwich; and a half-pound grilled chicken sandwich, with your choice of cheese and toppings. Grilled or deep-fried wraps are also offered. All of their meats come fresh from a Dayton butcher every week. The food truck also serves fresh-cut french fries and sweet potato fries, with a variety of topping choices.
In addition to the fresh meat, Beatty said that they hope to utilize even more local products when they are in season.
“As the summer goes on, the idea is to bring in more local vegetables for our toppings,” Beatty said. “Our food is fresh and it’s local, so it doesn’t get much better than that. The bacon we were using today came from a hog my dad raised. It’s awesome.”
“It’s nice knowing where your food comes from,” Nikki Beatty said.
Nick Beatty, who works in health insurance, met the property owner through work and presented the idea to set up the food truck there. The food truck overlooks a large yard, where Beatty said they hope to eventually feature community events.
“We could have small concerts or a movie night, something for families to have fun and not cost a lot of money,” Beatty said. “We know a lot of good vendors at the flea market, and we could bring them in throughout the week to draw people out.”
There are picnic tables for people who would like to sit and eat, and pets are also welcome, Beatty said.
“We’re pet-friendly,” Beatty said. “You can come out with your dogs, hang out, even throw a frisbee.”
Another idea is that when the weather gets colder, customers can drive up to the truck and use their window as a “drive-thru” window.
Beatty said that since food trucks are a “growing trend” nationwide, he hopes that DP Grill’s presence in the community can open up new opportunities for both their business and others. Ideally, he would like to be able to set up in different locations in town.
“If we are allowed to move to different spaces, it opens up a whole other avenue to bring money into town that might otherwise be going to corporations, and it gives us an opportunity to employ local people,” Beatty said.
Julliard said that Hillsboro High School students have responded positively to the food truck, and they are looking into the possibility of setting up at the high school for events if approved by the school administration.
“We have opportunities here to be creative, so we’re taking advantage of whatever we can do,” Beatty said.
Since the food truck is mobile, they are also available to cater events, such as employee appreciation days at local businesses or even graduation parties.
“The menu items are open to everyone,” Beatty said. “Everything is cooked fresh, on demand. It’s hard to beat, so we’re excited to do more catering-type events.”
Call-ahead orders are also accepted and can be made by calling (937) 763-8847. Cash, credit and debit cards are accepted.