ELBERTA — The Baldwin County Heritage Museum held its inaugural Taste of Baldwin Food Truck Battle competition on Saturday, June 13.

Katrina Presswood, events and marketing manager for the museum, said the idea for a food truck competition was part of the museum's efforts to bring events to Elberta for families to enjoy during the summer. Despite some early skepticism, Presswood said she was impressed with the turnout.

"I've had people call me from Georgia, I've had people call me from Florida, Mississippi, wanting to know where the nearest hotel is because they want to come down and experience the first food truck battle, so it's been a whirlwind," Presswood said.

Each food truck vendor provided a condiment-sized sample, with attendees giving a ticket to whichever vendor they liked the most. The food truck with the most tickets was awarded a People's Choice Award. There was also a panel of six judges, all of whom were from the Elberta community, that decided individual awards.

More than a dozen food trucks, mostly local, competed in the weekend's competition, including Burger Box, Tea Topia, The Lucky Lemon, Girly Pop, Ate Up Wok on Wheels, Manders Coffee & Eats, The Coffee Shop, Royal Eats, Dixie Delights, Shaved Ice Paradise, La Fruteria and Holly Jolly Snow Cones.

All profits will go to the Baldwin County Heritage Museum, which is entirely run by a group of volunteers. Presswood and others at the museum said one of the most common things they hear is that people notice the museum when driving by heading to Pensacola but that they haven't had the chance to stop by. Events like the food truck battle help bring more people in to recognize their work and the area's history.

"I can't put it into words because it's like the community is actually recognizing that the museum is here, and we are trying our best to keep the community together on top of our history," Presswood said.

The food truck battle was a new addition to a series of fundraisers held on site throughout the year, which includes a Haunted Trail during the Halloween season in October. The museum also plans to host a Christkindlmarkt event in December, a German-style two-night Christmas festival reminiscent of Elberta's German immigrant roots.

"I just can't wait for next year to see how big it grows, and I'm hoping year after year it grows bigger," Presswood said.