‘Burger Bus’ to Gauge Viability of Milo’s Restaurant in Northport

The Milo's "Burger Bus" food truck will be in Northport Friday to give residents there the opportunity to earn their own brick-and-mortar Milo's restaurant.

District 5 city councilman Jeff Hogg said as chairman of the council's retail committee, he has been trying to attract Milo's to the city for months because there is not one in Northport yet.

Hogg said his work laying that foundation has paid off, and leadership at Milo's has expressed interest in building their next restaurant somewhere near County High School. There's just one catch -- Northport has to prove they'll support it first.

To gauge the viability of a Northport Milo's, the Birmingham hamburger chain will park their Burger Bus food truck in the parking lot of the old Hardee's at the intersection of Highway 43 and Mitt Lary Road this Friday from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Northport residents can stop by to grab burgers or chicken tenders and fries for lunch and demonstrate to Milo's their interest in bringing a physical restaurant to that area.

Hogg said if the test run goes well Friday, Milo's will bring the Burger Bus back to Northport for a dinner shift sometime in 2021. With another good experience then, the Birmingham hamburger chain will commit to building its next location in Northport.

"After meeting with Milo's it was very apparent that they love our City and think Northport will be a great market for their expansion, but just like all businesses, they want to be sure that the interest is mutual so they would like to test the area to gauge our citizens' interest," Hogg told the Tuscaloosa Thread. "Basically, it comes down to, 'Do our citizens want this business?' If they do, they control their own fate and I have a feeling that Milo's will be pleasantly surprised at our citizen's reactions."