Basil Thyme, whose pasta and lasagna trucks are the highest rated food trucks on Yelp, is putting the brakes on its operations.

Owner Brian Farrell says he’ll close the trucks in the next month or two. Basil Thyme was among the first 20 food trucks in D.C. when it launched in June of 2011. But Farrell says his business is no longer sustainable, and he doesn’t want to stick around to be a guinea pig for new food truck regulations.

“This isn’t the life and money that people think it is,” Farrell says. “I’m tired of living like an animal… I can hardly take care of my basic stuff, and I’m supposed to be one of the more successful trucks.”

Farrell also says he’s tired of putting up with the D.C. government, which he says has been super unfriendly to food trucks. “The city of D.C. has been nothing but a series of hurdles and difficulties … They’re just painful to deal with.”

He believes the latest proposed regulations, which would limit the number of food trucks in certain high traffic neighborhoods, could mean more food trucks will face the same fate as his. “I hope that I’m wrong,” Farrell says. “Food trucking as it is, even for one of the highest rated trucks, is an uphill battle. With these regs on top, it’s exponential.”

Farrell says he plans to return to his previous career in IT sales.

Photo by Stephanie Gans