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Mohanad Breaka thinks of Syracuse University students as his second family. His food truck, Ali Baba, is known for its long lines of students waiting for Middle Eastern and Mediterranean food outside Ernie Davis Hall late at night. He used to serve students there until 3 a.m. on weekends.

In September, the SU Department of Public Safety asked him to relocate his truck.

“I was going home, it’s 9 o’clock on a Saturday, and he wasn’t there,” Boone Gross, a junior, said. “He just kind of soaked up a really big chunk of people (there).”

In a Friday statement to The Daily Orange, DPS said Ali Baba’s spot by Ernie was outside the city-permitted zone.

“Locations eligible for food truck permits within City limits are established and managed exclusively by the City of Syracuse, as per the requirements of General Ordinance No. 43-2018,” DPS wrote in the statement. “Ali Baba was operating outside of the city permitted zone. DPS received a complaint and advised the truck operator to park in the permitted area.”

The Ali Baba truck is now located on the corner of Euclid and Ackerman avenues. Freshman Hailey Rook said the new location is inconvenient for those living in dorms to get to since it’s a little farther away.

“As per City Ordinance, any changes or amendments to vending permits must be initiated by the City of Syracuse Commissioner of Finance and approved by the Syracuse Common Council,” DPS said in the statement.

A student named Samantha, whose last name is unknown to Breaka, started a Change.org petition in September to collect signatures so Ali Baba could stay on University Place. As of Tuesday at 7 p.m., it has 390 signatures with a goal of 500.

Students have created a petition to bring Mohanad Breaka’s food truck, Ali Baba, back to its spot on campus. Breaka said he appreciates the effort, and hopes more students will sign.Eli Schwartz | Contributing Photographer

Breaka said he appreciates the students’ efforts to help bring the truck back to campus. Rook and her friends, who have all signed the petition, said they have been going to Ali Baba since their first night out at SU. Rook is Egyptian, so she’s bonded with Breaka over Middle Eastern food. His food feels the most authentic to her in the area.

“(The relocation) was kind of frustrating and upsetting, because not only was his location good, but it definitely attracted a lot of foot traffic for him,” Rook said.

A new truck has been seen serving food on University Place since Ali Baba’s relocation. The City of Syracuse press department said in a Tuesday statement to The D.O. that the truck doesn’t have a permit to operate outside Ernie.

Breaka’s family has been serving food to SU students since 2020; he took over the Ali Baba food truck from his father-in-law. Upperclassmen like Josh Solomon, a junior, and Gross, have been going to Ali Baba since their freshman year while living in nearby dorms like DellPlain Hall. Solomon said he has always appreciated Breaka’s positive demeanor.

“Even if there’s 50 kids outside the truck and things are getting a little hectic, he’ll still be super nice and kind,” Solomon said.

When Solomon lived in DellPlain, he’d go to the truck late at night and strike up a conversation with Breaka. After finding out Ali Baba moved to a different location, Solomon searched up and down side streets until he found Breaka on Euclid Avenue. The new location is actually closer to the off-campus house where Solomon currently lives.

Breaka’s only family in Syracuse is his wife and two sons. Sometimes Breaka feels sad during the summer months; he said it’s because his second family, the students, aren’t in town.

“I need more people, just to talk to them, have a connection with them,” Breaka said.

Breaka has even learned some students’ birthdays and would celebrate with them when they came to his truck. If he knew certain students were coming, like Gross, he’d have their order ready by the time they got to the window.

Mohanad Breaka enjoys building relationships with students through the window of his food truck. He remembers students’ favorite orders and celebrates their birthdays.Eli Schwartz | Contributing Photographer

Gross said Ali Baba’s previous spot on University Place was a crossroads, because so many students live in the area near the dorms, fraternities and sororities on Comstock Avenue.

Breaka said DPS’ request for him to relocate is frustrating, because the officers have been regular customers. Before the move, Breaka said DPS gave him their phone number in case he ever had any issues and needed to call them, which he never did.

Gross thinks the move is surprising, since DPS has always been supportive of Breaka. He added that said it’s safer to have the truck on University Place because it keeps students from going off campus to Marshall Street — sometimes the location of crime incidents — for food.

“People weren’t out being drunk or rowdy, they were there getting halal,” Gross said.

Breaka said there have been fewer students coming to buy food at the new location. Because of this, he’s been closing the truck earlier in the night. Breaka said he usually calculates how much profit he’ll make each week; he estimates he’s now making a third of what he used to make by Ernie.

“It’s not related to money only. I don’t have the same feeling, which I have at University Place,” Breaka said. “It’s not the same.”

During Family Weekend, Breaka said he loves meeting parents of students who frequent the Ali Baba truck. While Breaka expects them to go to a nice restaurant, some parents come to him and order what their students get every night.

This year, he wasn’t able to experience as many of these interactions because fewer parents and students in the Euclid area know him.

Solomon thinks things will work out for Breaka, because the Euclid area could have new students for him to serve. Rook and Gross said they think it’d be better for everyone if Breaka returns to his old location so he can reconnect with the SU community.

“I just need actual students to sign the petition,” Breaka said. “I don’t know what I can do, but I would like to be back.”

Published on October 21, 2025 at 8:21 pm
Contact Mia: mjones58@syr.edu