GRAND RAPIDS, Mich — The air is thick with smoke these days, and not just from wildfires. Some of it is the good kind – the kind from Saladino's, one of West Michigan's hottest food trucks.

"We like the smell of smoke. We love just grilling," said Anthony Saladino, the pit master behind Saladino Smoke food truck. "There's nothing better. You can smell it through the whole neighborhood."

What started as a father's frustration with teenage takeout has evolved into a cornerstone of West Michigan's food truck scene.

"My dad – we were doing sports all throughout high school. We constantly were getting pizza and pasta," Anthony explained. "He was like, 'These kids need to have a better meal.' So he started just playing around on the grill."

That "playing around" quickly turned serious.

"He

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