Photo by spatwei

We’ve been enjoying a rapid growth of food carts and trucks in the D.C. area lately: it seems like they’re the next big food trend after cupcakes and frozen yogurt, and we support that. With new ones announced seemingly every week (mac and cheese and poutine, for example), it can be easy to lose some in the shuffle, even with our Friday food truck tracker.

Now, though, there’s one you can literally help bring to the street: Purveyors of Rolling Cuisine (PORC) is a nascent pork-based cart looking for funding. Instead of getting some investors or asking Mom and Dad, they’re doing it the crowd-sourcing way, using a website called Kickstarter where people pledge money. In return, donators get freebies, like meals, shirts, and charitable donations.

It’s sort of like PBS, but for pork.

The proprietors, sausage maker Josh Saltzman and buddy Trent Allen, originally wanted to open the cart in Ann Arbor, Michigan, but the city’s laws didn’t allow it. They’re aiming for a Fall 2010 launch, and are hoping to be in the $7 price range for a meal with chips and a drink.

The two are hosting a free tasting of their goods on Sunday, August 1 at Duffy’s Irish Pub (2106 Vermont Avenue NW) from 5 to 8 p.m., and the selections sound pretty solid: sandwiches of brisket smoked for 16 hours, pulled pork, BLTs with thick bacon, and homemade veggie burgers. Even if you don’t donate, at least you get some free grub out of it.