Food trucks for Street Food City. Dine Out Vancouver Festival
Vancouver’s rich diversity gets showcased in the many cultural cuisines offered by local food trucks. Paired with Vancouver’s West Coast location, the city’s food trucks enjoy some of the most beautiful surroundings in the world. Plus, the warm weather and the lengthening days make eating al fresco a particularly lovely option at this time of year.
To get you started on your street food feasting in Vancouver, here’s a guide to local food trucks this spring:
Where to Find Food Trucks in Vancouver
Vancouver Art Gallery | Photo: Aura McKay
In addition to visiting the websites and Instagram accounts of specific food trucks, you can consult Street Food Vancouver on their website or app, which maps out where the various food trucks can be found on a given day. While some trucks will be at different locations all the time, others—like the famous Japadog at Burrard Street and Smithe Street)—tend to be at the same spot most days.
You can usually find food trucks at the Vancouver Art Gallery, at Jonathan Rogers Park, and Olympic Village Square, as well as various sites where office workers seek out their lunches during the week (e.g., 200 Granville Street, 555 Granville Street).
Upcoming Food Trucks Events
Especially during the weekends, food trucks tend to be stationed in pods at the various festivals and events happening around the city. Organizers invite a range of different food trucks to ensure that visitors have a wide selection to choose from. For example, food trucks are present at the Vancouver Farmers Markets; at the Trout Lake Farmers Market (Saturdays 9am to 2pm from April 6 to October 26), food trucks that make appearances include Bali Bites, MJ’s Caribbean Cuisine, and Crack On.
Or, if a festival represents a given culture, food trucks will often specialize in that culture’s specialties. For instance, the Sakura Days Japan Fair (April 13-14, VanDusen Botanical Garden) will feature food trucks such as Teriyaki Boys, TAKENAKA, and Tokyo Katsu-sand.
As well, food trucks have their own festivals where you can maximize the number of food trucks you try at a given time. It’s fun attending with friends and family since you’ll be able to each get something from a truck and then have a big sharing picnic.
Food Truck Festival @ UBC (UBC Commons in front of the AMS Nest) takes places April 4 and 5 from 11am to 7pm. Put on by the Greater Vancouver Food Truck Festival, this event features not only an artisan market, but also 24 local food trucks, such as Mom’s Grilled Cheese and Mahshiko Food Truck.
Get set for the ultimate food truck extravaganza at Food Truck Wars, happening April 19-21 at KPU Langley Campus (April 19: 3pm-9pm, April 20: 11am to 9pm; April 21: 11am to 8pm). This Greater Vancouver Food Truck Festival event will be an impressive gathering of over 45 food trucks, representing a wide range of cuisines, including Old Country Pierogi and Cannoli King Vancouver. Local vendors will also be in attendance, as well as beverage selections at a beer garden and entertainers.
Food Truck Festival—Mother’s Day Edition is set for May 11 (11am to 8pm) and 12 (11am to 7pm) at BCIT Burnaby. This festival is all about celebrating mothers, where you can browse for gifts at a local artisan market, enjoy live entertainment, take part in family-friendly activities, and have a great meal together from the offerings sold by over 20 local food trucks.
#VeryVancouver Food Trucks To Try
Shameless Buns; Photo: Tara Lee
Vancouver has an abundance of delectable food truck offerings to check out. Below are five that spotlight Vancouver’s vibrant multiculturalism and its unique commitment to plant-based living:
Chickpea, which also has a brick-and-mortar restaurant on Main Street, started as a truck that specializes in plant-based food inspired by Mediterranean cuisine. They offer pitas, salads, rice bowls, hummus plates, and platters that feature a range of vegetables and proteins, including, of course, falafel, shawarma soy curls, and shnitzelonim (breaded smoked tofu).
If you’ve got a craving for amped up Filipino flavours with a fun contemporary twist, look no further than Shameless Buns. Their pandesal sandwiches are insanely good, such as the Little Sausage with longaniza (Filipino sausages), pickled papaya slaw, banana ketchup, sriracha mayo, green onion, fried garlic, and a fried egg. And make sure to save room for their gigantic spaghetti lumpia (spring roll).
Taco Nori is a mash-up of two vibrant food cultures in Vancouver—Japanese and Mexican—in a way that is incredibly delicious. The taco shells are made of nori, battered, and deep fried, making them oh so crisp. Fillings are fresh and sushi inspired, such as the California with imitation crab, avocado, mayo, and shimchimi togarashi.
Namì Vietnamese has a café but also a popular food truck, which focuses on banh mi and vermicelli bowls. While the truck serves a banh mi with traditional Vietnamese cold cuts, it also has other options like lemongrass turmeric tofu, satay beef, and susu fried chicken.
The concept for Varinicey Pakoras is simple yet tasty: fresh vegetables transformed into golden, crispy pakoras that you can dip into tangy mango chutney. Vegetable options include beets, broccoli, cauliflower, and yams. Order a chai to go with your pakoras!
