Snowplough is turned into a food truck

A former snowplough is cleaning up at the La Mongie ski station in the Pyrénées – after being turned into a burger bar food truck.

Sacha Abadie and her family run the Snowtasty truck which has been attracting skiers with its homemade food menu and DJ set.

Inspired by this American concept, Sacha and her family bought a used snow clearer and decided to turn it into a food truck.

“We modified it in a way that allowed us to fit a small kitchen, meaning that we kept all the technical characteristics but strengthened the back area for the kitchen setting. But we made sure that the truck could still work.”

One of the key additions as well as the new kitchen was to install a sound system and a DJ set on top of the truck so that DJs could come and set a cheerful atmosphere for the visitors.

She also told The Connexion that when people see them, they immediately take out their smartphones and take pictures of the truck. “Once the pictures are taken, they come over and chat with us about the truck and the food”.

The Snowtasty menu gives the choice between burgers, bruschettas, pancakes and tapas, and all the products used are made by the Abadie family. It can also cater for evening parties for special occasions, during ski events, or for private occasions such as birthdays or so.

“I think this concept will continue to grow in ski stations all around the world,” said Sacha. “For us, we’re aiming for a bigger buzz, as we’re hoping to set our truck on the beach on the Atlantic coast this summer!’

Meanwhile, a good fall of snow at the end of last week gave ski stations in the Pyrénées and southern Alps another fresh coating and gave skiers a welcome bonus. Some, however, have been feeling the heat with Pyrénées weather reports putting temperatures at a summer-like 15C, which quickly thins out the snow.

Some ski stations have already closed for the season, including Ascou and Guzet in Ariège and Valberg and Cians-Var in the Mercantour but others will stay open until the season closing on April 2. Skiing is planned to continue until May in the northern Alps, the end of April in the southern Alps - find a full list at the Skiinfo website