Charlotte Chef Wins $171K in Lottery, Plans Food Truck Venture

Jose Naranjo won $171,315. A chef working in Charlotte, he hit the Cash 5 jackpot on Feb. 11 and will put his winnings toward a food truck. The N.C. Education Lottery made the announcement Friday.

He spent just $1 on his ticket at the QuikTrip on South Central Avenue in Locust, Stanly County. Wednesday arrived, and Naranjo claimed his prize at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. After state and federal taxes took their cut, he walked away with $123,364.

Naranjo didn't let a machine pick his numbers.

"I chose my numbers based on the number of days in a week, the number of weeks in February, and a two for the month of February," he said, according to NC Lottery. "And the other numbers were birthdays."

His odds? One in 962,598. Late one night, he checked results and discovered he'd matched all five balls.

"I thought it was a dream," Jose Naranjo recalled. "I was speechless. I couldn't believe it was reality."

Naranjo has cooked professionally for years. Now he wants to shift gears and run a mobile business, bringing his creations to events throughout the region.

"I'm going to start a food truck," Jose Naranjo said. "I can take it to festivals."

Getting a mobile restaurant off the ground costs between $50,000 and $300,000, according to Best Food Trucks. That price depends on whether you buy a truck or a trailer, and whether it's new or used.

Cash 5 is one of six lottery games in North Carolina where players can buy tickets at stores or online through the lottery's website or the NC Lottery Official Mobile App. Last year, education programs in Mecklenburg County got $60 million in support from lottery funds.

Locust sits about 25 miles northeast of Charlotte in Stanly County. The town has 5,992 residents.