Customers line up in front of the Haitian food truck to buy food in downtown Detroit, Michigan, on July 20, 2023. Photo by Dieu-Nalio Chéry for The Haitian Times
Overview:
‘Mr. Creole,’ a food truck in Detroit, serves Haitian and other Caribbean food in the midwestern city.
DETROIT—The gleaming red “Mr. Creole,” a food truck owned by Edens Gaston, has become a regular sight in Detroit’s downtown plaza, festivals and other busy locations. In this midwestern city with a growing Haitian population, Gaston’s flavors transport many back home. They also appeal to the larger population of residents looking for a taste of the tropics.
All photos by Dieu-Nalio Chéry for The Haitian Times.
Mr. Creole, a Haitian food truck, stands alongside other vehicles selling food in downtown Detroit as customers wait in line on July 20, 2023. Photo by Dieu-Nalio Chéry for The Haitian TimesEdens Gaston talks to customers as they line up in front of the Haitian food truck to buy food on July 20, 2023. Photo by Dieu-Nalio Chéry for The Haitian TimesEdens “Mr. Creole” Gaston prepares a dish inside his food truck while his cashier, Day Flower, takes customer orders during a public event in Belleville, Michigan, on July 28, 2023. Photo by Dieu-Nalio Chéry for The Haitian TimesEdens Gaston cooks food in his food truck in Belleville, Michigan on July 28, 2023. Photo by Dieu-Nalio Chéry for The Haitian TimesEdens Gaston, owner of “Mr. Creole” food truck, sits inside the vehicle while waiting for customers in downtown Detroit, Michigan, on August 4, 2023. Photo by Dieu-Nalio Chéry for The Haitian Times
Edens Gaston, 42, watches TV while his mother Marie Carmel Gaston plays with her grandson Edens Junior, 6, at the family’s home in Brownstown, Michigan on August 5, 2023. Photo by Dieu-Nalio Chéry for The Haitian TimesEdens Gaston’s pictures display on a table in the living room with his son Edens Junior 6, in Brownstown Michigan on August 5, 2023. Photo by Dieu-Nalio Chéry for The Haitian TimesEdens Gaston readies an order of oxtail for a customer in his food truck in Belleville, Michigan on July 28, 2023.Photo by Dieu-Nalio Chéry For The Haitian Times
Dieu-Nalio Chery is a fellow at City Of Asylum/Detroit. He is a freelance photojournalist based in Michigan working for The New York Times, Reuters, Washington Post, The Haitian Times, and The Associated Press. He has won numerous awards including the Robert Capa Gold Medal 2019 & 2020 Pulitzer finalist
