BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Most food vendors arrive in a trailer.
George Awad taxied in with an airplane.
He isn't preparing for takeoff in the retired MD-90 fuselage parked outside the Wooden Match at Matchplatz through Aug. 9; he's prepping 150 cases of mangos to feed a hungry crowd.
The converted aircraft – now known as Sook Airways – is the Lehigh Valley entrepreneur's latest attempt to turn an unconventional idea into an unforgettable customer experience.
"I wanted to create something people would remember before they even tried the food," Awad said.
The airplane food trailer is the next chapter for Awad's business, which launched in 2024 as Aroi Mango, a pop-up specializing in the traditional Thai dessert of sweet sticky rice, fresh mango and coconut milk.
"I wanted to create something people would remember before they even tried the food."
– George Awad
After two years at festivals and farmers markets, the Lehigh University graduate traded a tent for a fuselage in hopes of inspiring customers to step outside their comfort zones.
For Awad, the airplane is more than a marketing gimmick.
The concept traces back to a four-month backpacking trip through Thailand and Laos, where he discovered mango sticky rice and fell in love with the region's street food culture.
"I'm Arab, I'm Syrian, but I'm cooking a Thai dessert," Awad said. "The whole brand was inspired by taking a step outside your comfort zone and trying something new."
When he began looking for a permanent mobile home for the business, a traditional food truck never felt right.
Instead, Awad found a retired airplane fuselage in an Arkansas salvage yard after meeting its owner at a conference. The aircraft section had already been stripped and cut apart, originally intended for another project.
Awad immediately saw something different.
"I was like, 'What do you think about a food truck?'" he said. "Once I saw it, I thought it would be a great food truck."
The fuselage traveled from Arkansas to Florida, where it was mounted to a trailer frame and transformed into a commercial kitchen before making its way to Pennsylvania. The build started in January and wrapped up just days before its debut this week.
Building the trailer pushed Awad well outside his expertise, despite earning a physics degree from Lehigh University.
"I realized I actually don't know anything about what's happening," he said with a laugh. "I had to learn every single thing."
His father helped complete much of the interior electrical work, while contractors and the salvage yard owner brought the exterior vision to life.
Awad's entrepreneurial path has been equally unconventional.
Before launching Aroi Mango, he had no professional culinary experience. He learned everything from peeling mangoes to managing kitchen workflows with help from his parents and mentors at Jay's Local in Allentown, where the business first operated from a small pop-up space.
At the same time, he completed a master's degree in technical entrepreneurship at Lehigh University, and the school's Startup Lehigh Valley competition helped propel the business forward.
Since, Aroi Mango has built a loyal following by introducing customers to a dessert many had never tried before. Awad estimated the business has handed out about 16,000 samples over the past two years.
"The worst thing that happens is, you tried a new food and you didn't like it," he said. "The best thing that can happen is, it's your new favorite food."
The airplane's new name, Sook Airways, reflects a broader lifestyle brand built around curiosity, travel and trying new experiences. The name combines inspirations from the Arabic word "souk," meaning "marketplace," and the Thai word "suk," which is associated with happiness.
"The worst thing that happens is, you tried a new food and you didn't like it. The best thing that can happen is, it's your new favorite food."
– George Awad
The trailer's exterior features colorful artwork and the brand's motto, "Live Sweeter," while customers are encouraged to add travel stickers to the fuselage to help create the look of a well-traveled aircraft.
Awad said he hopes the trailer becomes more than a place to grab dessert.
"If people see it and think they can make some crazy project work in their own lives," he said, "then that's exactly what I want."