Caitlin Schumacher, Girl Next Dough (Charleston, SC)

It used to be that food trucks were incubators for emerging talent, but the last few years, with real estate prices skyrocketing and a pandemic rocking everything, that's not always the rule. Caitlin Schumacher isn't an emerging talent -- she's an established powerhouse in the culinary scene. She grew up in Chapel Hill, NC and graduated from UNC with a French degree, but after she started working at Magnolia Grill, she fell in love with the energy of the kitchen and decided to pursue her pastry passion. From there she worked at the beloved 20th Century Cafe in San Fran and most recently 6 years as Executive Pastry Chef at FIG in Charleston, that is, until she got the chance to buy a food truck last summer. She's opened Girl Next Dough, a new business venture on four wheels with her dad John McCormick. She's crafting breakfast and bakery dreams, from country ham and parmesan puffs, to fresh bagels, lemon blueberry danishes, and apple buns.