'Tis the season for some heartfelt homemade Southern cooking, with some character and spice. Tailing behind the teeming trend of food trucks, Shiny Gumbo is pulling up and feeling shiny new. You may have seen the shiny all-chrome truck mirroring its driveby scenery cruising around town and posting up with colorful Christmas lights for the holidays. The family—Patrick and Leigh Spencer, with their children Oliver, Trustin and Gracenne—have been seen at Big Top Brewing Co., at the University Town Center Mall, 50 Paramount Apartment Homes and various local festivals as of late. A fun family affair, their New Orleans-inspired menu features saucy creations like Crawfish Étouffée—a rich, blonde roux, fresh  tomatoes, cajun seasonings, and succulent crawfish tail served over rice, as well as Red Beans n' Rice—slow-cooked red beans, spicy and smoky sausage,  cooked together in a cajun sauce, served over rice. Dive into their signature dish, the Gumbo—a dark, rich roux with cajun seasoned chicken and sausage slow cooked stew. and lastly, what would a jumbo food truck be without Jambayala—a traditional creole rice dish with seasoned shrimp, fresh tomato, onion and green peppers and creole spices. Be sure to welcome the Spencer family to the avid and ethnic food truck scene here, and don't be shy to get down and dirty with more than one of their soulful dishes—lots of napkins are on standby and satisfying Southern helpings are guaranteed. 

Photo courtesy of Shiny Jumbo.