TV Restaurants

What Happened to Fojol Bros. of Merlindia: A Traveling Culinary Carnival?

Closed verified

As of September 2026, Fojol Bros. of Merlindia: A Traveling Culinary Carnival has closed — confirmed via washingtoncitypaper.com, March 24, 2014.

Primary source
washingtoncitypaper.com ·
Secondary source
Yelp ·

Last verified

What the source shows: Washington City Paper reported on 2014-03-24 that founder Justin Vitarello shut down the last of the three Fojol Brothers trucks, including Merlindia, after its transmission gave out and costs became unsustainable; a Yelp listing updated 2026-06 still marks the business closed.

Address

Washington, DC

We have not geocoded this record yet, so it is not on the map.

What happened after Food Paradise?

Food Truck Paradise featured Fojol Bros. of Merlindia, one of three trucks run by Fojol Brothers under a 'traveling culinary carnival' concept that served Indian-inspired dishes from a vintage 1950s-60s vehicle in the Washington, D.C. area (the batch record lists the state as WA, but the truck operated in D.C., not Washington state). The company launched in January 2009 and became known as a pioneer of the city's modern food truck scene, alongside sister trucks Benethiopia, serving Ethiopian food, and Volathai, serving Thai food. According to Washington City Paper, published 2014-03-24, founder Justin Vitarello retired the last running truck after its transmission gave out, citing rising maintenance costs that had made the aging vehicles 'just not seeing the return.' A Yelp listing for the business, updated 2026-06, continues to mark it permanently closed.

Featured on Food Paradise

Season / episode
Season 2, Episode 2
Original air date
Not confirmed
Episode title
Food Truck Paradise
What was featured
Fojol Bros.' Merlindia truck's Indian-inspired traveling culinary carnival concept
Role
Featured restaurant
Name on the broadcast
Fojol Bros. of Merlindia: A Traveling Culinary Carnival

Frequently asked questions

Is Fojol Bros. of Merlindia: A Traveling Culinary Carnival still open in 2026?

As of September 2026, Fojol Bros. of Merlindia: A Traveling Culinary Carnival has closed — confirmed via washingtoncitypaper.com, March 24, 2014.

What happened to Fojol Bros. of Merlindia: A Traveling Culinary Carnival after Food Paradise?

Food Truck Paradise featured Fojol Bros. of Merlindia, one of three trucks run by Fojol Brothers under a 'traveling culinary carnival' concept that served Indian-inspired dishes from a vintage 1950s-60s vehicle in the Washington, D.C. area (the batch record lists the state as WA, but the truck operated in D.C., not Washington state). As of September 2026, Fojol Bros. of Merlindia: A Traveling Culinary Carnival has closed — confirmed via washingtoncitypaper.com, March 24, 2014.

Is Fojol Bros. of Merlindia: A Traveling Culinary Carnival permanently closed?

As of September 2026, Fojol Bros. of Merlindia: A Traveling Culinary Carnival has closed — confirmed via washingtoncitypaper.com, March 24, 2014. We publish a closure only with a dated source behind it, and we say plainly when it has not been independently confirmed.

Where is Fojol Bros. of Merlindia: A Traveling Culinary Carnival located?

Washington, DC. That is the address on the record as of September 7, 2026.

What season and episode of Food Paradise featured Fojol Bros. of Merlindia: A Traveling Culinary Carnival?

Season 2, Episode 2 of Food Paradise. The episode is titled “Food Truck Paradise”.

Every status on this site carries a confidence label and a date, and names the source it rests on. Read the Editorial & Corrections Policy for what each label means and how quickly we act on corrections. The questions above are generated from this record's own published fields — we never publish a question we cannot answer from the data.

More from Food Paradise

  • Buffalo & Bergen

    Washington, DC

    Open verified Checked

  • Buttercream Bakeshop

    Washington, DC

    Closed verified Checked

  • Chaia

    Washington, DC

    Open reported Checked

  • Chicken + Whiskey

    Washington, DC

    Open reported Checked

  • ChurchKey

    Washington, DC

    Open reported Checked

  • DCity Smokehouse

    Washington, DC

    Open verified Checked

Every Food Paradise restaurant we track

Other TV restaurants in District of Columbia

All District of Columbia locations

Visit info

Address
Washington, DC
Venue type
truck
Official website
None found

Businesses change fast. Always confirm directly with the restaurant — call ahead, or check its own current website or social media — before making plans around anything on this page.

Sources

  • washingtoncitypaper.com — https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/352081/fojol-brothers-closes-its-food-trucks/
  • Yelp — https://www.yelp.com/biz/fojol-bros-of-merlindia-washington

See something wrong?

We work hard to keep every status accurate and dated, but restaurants change fast and our sources aren't perfect. If something here is wrong — a status, a name, an address, anything — tell us what you're seeing and where you saw it, and we'll check it.

See something wrong? Tell us →

Share this page

Record fp-0135 · last verified .