2 days ago
The spud wars heat up! Welsh sibling duo cooking jacked-up jackets bring hot competition for TikTok-famous baked potato chefs
The UK's jacket potato gurus may have competition as a new on-the-go spud vendor takes the food scene by storm.
Both Spudman and the Spud Bros have made a name for themselves in their respective cities and online, racking up millions of likes and building loyal customer bases.
But now, there's are some new spud connoisseurs on the scene, threatening to steal the carb crown from the TikTok famous potato vendors.
The fresh face of baked potatoes is the Spud Fam, a brother and sister duo slowly building a following online and establishing themselves as the chief potato entrepreneurs in Port Talbot, Wales.
Jordanna and Jude describe themselves as the 'dream team behind your favourite fluffy jacket potatoes'.
They said online: ' We're not just called The Spud Fam… we really are one!
'Working side by side (with only minor sibling squabbles and major laughs), we're bringing the fam energy to every shift.
'From our little kitchen to your hearts (and stomachs), you're part of the family now, too.
'So, if you're popping by for your lunch break or craving comfort food in potato form, welcome to the Fam!'
The impressive pair have their own shop in Aberafan Shopping Centre, and a combined following of more than 30,000 on both Facebook and TikTok.
As well as traditional potato toppings of cheese, beans and sour cream, the crew boast weird and wonderful flavour combinations, including chicken Balti and corned beef hash.
They regularly post snippets of their busy life running the family business, capturing joyous scenes dancing in their spud shop and encouraging customers to try their products.
As the Spud Fam continue to build up their fan base in Wales and around the UK, they are emerging as a new player in the jacket potato business and a competitor to the famed potato vendors; Spudman and Spud Bros.
Tamworth-based Spudman, whose real name is Ben Newman, boasts 4.2 million TikTok followers and a staggering 103 million likes on the platform.
Perhaps the most famous UK potato seller, his trailer regularly prompts three-hour-long queues, and he's even served actors Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds.
Customers come from as far as Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia and the US to try the 40-year-old's viral tattie meals.
Ben has been catapulted to fame, and has even been the subject of wild conspiracy theories.
In an exclusive interview with MailOnline, he addressed bizarre claims that he had got in hot water for making his own gas-powered spud gun and firing it in Tamworth town centre, injuring a member of the public.
He admitted making the gun, saying: 'I did fire it, but it was in an empty car park at 5am and I didn't target anyone, and no one, as far as I am aware, was injured. It was just a bit of fun.
'I made the spud gun, there's a YouTube video of me with it, and on this occasion a police officer did have a little word with me and I got a ticking off. He said, 'It is a bit of a silly thing to do!'
'But the cop loved the gun, saying it was brilliant. He told me to use it on private land and not in public. That was the end of the matter.'
Spudman made headlines after he was forced to temporarily move from his usual trailer spot in St Editha's Square to allow the pedestrianised area to be refurbished by the local council.
He claimed he felt 'destroyed' when he was told that he would have to trade from a side street after the work to the square was completed, and would not be able to return to his old location due to a new flowerbed being put there instead.
And Spudman has long since been compared to his business rivals, the Spud Bros.
The Spud Brothers Jacob and Harley Nelson, both in their twenties, have also shot to fame from the four walls of their food van in Preston, Lancashire, and more recently London's Soho
Brothers Jacob and Harley Nelson, both in their twenties, have also shot to fame from the four walls of their food van in Preston, Lancashire, and more recently London's Soho.
Jacob and Harley have worked alongside Steven Bartlett to discuss their rise to fame, hand-delivered spuds to the Jonas Brothers, and employed Ella Henderson for the day in a bid to raise money for Children in Need.
The siblings have a millions-strong following on Instagram and TikTok and have won over crowds with their Northern charm, having even made television appearances to discuss their business venture.
Behind their rise to fame is an emotional backstory, with the pair taking over the van from a family friend following his death aged just 43.
Last year, the Spud Brothers revealed insight into their success, and they often have to turn customers away due to the high demand.
Jacob said: 'We open at 11.30am and we always have around 30 people in the queue waiting for us to open.
'Then it's constant until 3pm so we have to turn people away because the jacket potatoes take around two hours to cook.
'We hate doing it and disappointing people, but we have to do it. We don't even know how many potatoes we can serve in a day, which is bizarre, because it's constantly busy from open to close.'
But now, the Spud Fam are rising through the ranks of the potato kingdom.
With the legitimisation of baked potato vans as a clearly lucrative business venture, the old-timers may have to work doubly hard to secure their place on the leaderboard.
