WCCO Viewers' Choice For Best Food Truck In Minnesota

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Midwesterners love their tater tots. The diminutive tot has been a starchy staple for decades, often sitting on the side.

Enter Dan Docken.

"I am the Tot Boss," Docken said.

He literally brought us a truckload of his tot-tastic treats.

He started the TOT BOSS food truck four years ago, and you voted it Best of Minnesota.

"Everything is made with or served with tater tots," Docken said.

And we're talking lots of tater tots.

"In elementary school, we're always served tater tots, and Mom always used to make tater tot hot dish at home," he said.

And you betcha, Mom's hot dish is on the menu today -- along with his many other tot concoctions, like tater tot nachos, chili tots, bacon-wrapped tater tots and tot and beef burritos, just to name a few.

"We have poutine tots, which is a Canadian dish," Docken said. "Typically in Canada, it's done with French fries, but we're the TOT BOSS, so we make ours with tater tots."

There is big flavor coming out of Docken's small truck – and it's even smaller with four people inside.

"We have Tony here frying tots up for us today. He passes the tots off to Sydney down there, she does all the toppings. And Matt … handles the window, taking the orders and passing them out," Docken said.

But Docken wasn't always tossing tots. His tot-mobile was a second career.

"I was a cabinet maker previously for 30 years. I did cabinetry, and I always loved cooking, serving and meeting new people. And what better way than owning a food truck," he said.

And now he's king tot, with a corner on the tot market.

"I got advice from a person that when I was first going to start the food truck that said, 'If you're going to do something, do something that's unique, and when they think of that item, they think of you.' So tater tots from me it had to be," Docken said.

If you want to eat at the TOT BOSS food truck, they will be in Mears Park in St. Paul Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Their schedule is online, but the best way to find them is through social media. Click here for their Facebook page, and here to follow them on Twitter.