Meaty Balls Mobile [Brandon Harris]

When you’re on your lunch hour, you don’t have endless time to wander around in search of a food truck. A new app, TruckSpotting, will do the dirty work for you by tracking the locations of more than two dozen food trucks.

The app, which originally launched in Atlanta, is available in eight cities. TruckSpotting gives out GPS units to truck owners and the truck’s location shows up on the website and the iPhone and Android apps. You’ll see the truck’s real time location, plus their schedule and menu. You can also rate trucks and save your favorites.

Chicago trucks already signed up include 5411 Empanadas, The Fat Shallot, and the Slide Ride.

Download the app here.

http://chicagoist.com/2013/05/19/new_food_truck_tracking_app_launche.php

via twitter

http://www.wickedlocal.com/cambridge/news/x94505088/Food-Truck-Festival-rolls-into-Kendall-June-8#axzz2TDlBXxsv

BlogTO has added a companion iPhone app to its torontofoodtrucks.ca portal. The locally-designed app allows frequenters of Toronto’s now-famous and ubiquitous food trucks to locate their favourite cuisine, be it cupcakes or tacos, across the city.

The interface is sleek and responsive, and the various food trucks are well distinguished from one another with high-resolution images, contact numbers and other important details. You can add favourites to quickly access the location of your ideal take-out, or browse through the growing list of fare.

Because Freshdaily, the curators of BlogTO and creators of the Toronto Food Truck portal, are pushing for the service to be a bit like an independent social network, you can take a photo or your food or the truck itself, add filters to your image and post it to the relevant section. All comments and photos are linked up to your BlogTO account, and you can share photos to Facebook or Twitter.

While it may have a limited audience, it’s a loyal one, and we’d love to see it hit Android sometime soon.

Download Toronto Food Trucks for iPhone.

Via: BlogTO

http://mobilesyrup.com/2013/05/10/blogto-releases-iphone-app-to-track-down-torontos-food-trucks/

Truckily in April launched its public beta with an aim to link food trucks with consumers.

For the fortunate few who can smell the delicious waft of food trucks miles away, you can stop reading. For everyone else, read on to find out about Truckily, your taste buds’ new best friend.

The Kansas City startup’s app—available nationwide—helps foodies find and interact with local food trucks, which have the opportunity to use the app as a location-based marketing tool that can automate social media, send push alerts to app users and create virtual punch cards.

Last month, co-founders Derek Kean (right) and Matthew Berkland launched the public beta for mobile and stationary vendors, working to onboard several in Kansas City, including CoffeeCakeKC, Indios Carbonsitos and TheFunnelCakeTruck, Kean said in an email.

“The big point we reiterated during our private tests and discussions was the idea of a ‘Big Red Button’ that would automate your marketing—both before arriving and once arriving at a new location,” Kean said in a blog post. “Well, we delivered on the functionality, but sadly the button was changed to light blue.”

Truckily is available for free on iOS devices and an Android version will be available soon, Kean said. Food truck owners can sign up for the app’s marketing tools at the registration page.

http://www.siliconprairienews.com/2013/05/truckily-serves-up-food-truck-finder-for-foodies-marketing-tools-for-trucks

The Nashville Food Truck Association has declared May as “Nashville Street Food Month” and is celebrating with the launch of its smartphone app, available in both iPhone and Android formats (powered by ToGoOrder.com). The app includes schedules to help you easily locate participating food trucks anywhere in the Nashville area. Users can look up by vendor name or location and even see the upcoming schedule for individual trucks.

 In addition to the app, NFTA members are celebrating with Nashville Street Food Month food specials and events. Every truck will offer a one-time $1 discount on a purchase of $10 or more to all customers who download the app and mention it at time of purchase. Events start off this weekend with the Food Truck Fiesta this Saturday, May 4, in Centennial Park in conjunction with Musicians Corner, and continue with the Eat the Street food truck competition in downtown Franklin, May 10; the 36th Annual Bellevue Community Picnic, May 18; andBrew at the Zoo at Nashville Zoo, May 31.

You can also find multiple trucks at these ongoing food truck courts/events: Elmington Park, Saturdays and Sundays; Food Truck Tuesday at Nashville Farmers’ Market, Tuesdays; Grubbin’ in the Gulch, Wednesdays; Lunch in the Park at Centennial Park, Thursdays; and East Side Hootenanny in East Nashville, Saturdays.

http://www.nashvillescene.com/bites/archives/2013/05/02/may-is-nashville-street-food-month-find-your-favorites-with-a-new-app

Some of Nashville’s food trucks.
(James Yates).

Gone are the days of relying on social media and individual Web sites to find your favorite food truck. In conjunction with its inaugural Nashville Street Food Month in May, the Nashville Food Truck Association is launching a mobile app that lists the schedule for food truck locations in the greater Nashville area, according to the association.

“Food trucks are alive and well in Nashville,” B.J. Lofback, association president, said in a release. “Our street food culture is growing, and we’re seeing it become an integral part of the Nashville food scene.”

Using the app (search for NFTA), diners can locate trucks by name and view various food truck locations at current and upcoming locations of the more than 30 food trucks in the association. Look for food trucks at “Food Truck Fiesta” at the kickoff of Musicians’ Corner in Centennial Park on May 4, and “Eat the Street” in downtown Franklin on May 10, among other upcoming events.

Every truck will offer a one-time $1 discount on a purchase of $10 or more to all customers who download the app and mention it at time of purchase, according to the release.

http://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/blog/2013/05/hungry-for-a-food-truck-look-to-your.html

Vancouver placed third in North America on a list ranking the best cities for food truck cuisine. (CTV)

Vancouver placed third in North America on a list ranking the best cities for food truck cuisine. There are now 103 licensed food trucks operating in Vancouver, mostly concentrated downtown, and 15 more are awaiting approval.

The list was compiled by Travel and Escape Digital Magazine and looked at the inventive food options available in each city. It praised Vancouver for providing diverse and nutritious offerings. Portland, Oregon, which has approximately 700 food trucks, earned the top spot followed by Austin, Texas.

Food trucks have been on the radar at recent Vancouver city council meetings as the number of food carts grow and permits are reviewed. Council has suggested using Portland as a model as the food cart business continues to gain popularity in Vancouver.

Food Cartology: Rethinking Urban Spaces and People Places was a study done in Portland. It found that food carts facilitate community interaction.

Brent Mansfield, co-chair of the Vancouver Food Policy Council, spoke about the diversity of cuisine available in food carts at a city council meeting earlier this year.

He said the street food industry engages people and contributes to the vibrancy of the city. Since food trucks aren’t franchised they can support local farmers.

“I know there’s interest…to purchase off of local farmers. The flexibility and adaptability that food trucks have is a plus.”

Street food fans can look to the Street Food App for up-to-the-minute information on which carts are open.

New York City came fourth on Travel and Escape’s list while Toronto placed fifth.

http://bc.ctvnews.ca/bc-news-headlines/vancouver-named-third-best-food-truck-city-in-north-america-1.1256364

WESTBROOK — The gourmet food truck craze has been tantalizing foodies everywhere for several years now, but as far as we know, our area has never had an entire weekend festival to celebrate them.

But that’s exactly what’s happening this weekend at the Tanger Outlets. Just think: You can come for your spring wardrobe needs, and stay for a meal, some musical entertainment, and perhaps a cooking demonstration or two.

Tanger is partnering with celebrity chef Curtis Stone to put on an unprecedented Taste & Style Food Truck Festival, with all our favorite snack shacks on wheels (and foods) on hand. The event takes place on Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m.-6 p.m.

On both days, there will be trucks there from such places as Chubby Chickpea, Baja Taco, The Happy Taco, FryBorg, Hog Wild, Cupcake Brake, The Sugar Bakery Cup Cake, The Away Cafe, Boston Shuckin’ Truck, Spud Stud, The Whey Station, Lobster Craft, Food Extrovert, the Munchies Food Truck, and more. On Saturday only, you can also taste the treats of Captain Marden’s and Chicken and Rice. And on Sunday only, you can get yourself some munchies from the Caseus Cheese Truck and High Tide Gourmet.

Music will be provided by the Red Hill Rockers, the Sin Sisters, the Shiny Lapel Trio and more. And there will be demonstrations from CLARKE, Kitchen Aid, Soda Stream, Williams-Sonoma and Chef Kashia.

Want to show off some of your own mad cooking skills? On Saturday, you’re invited to enter a backyard barbecue contest. You need to be one of the first 100 entrants, and you can win cash prizes and awards for the best ribs and wings. Call 860-399-8656, ext. 101 to enter.

There’s also a chowder cook-off, where you can taste the best chowders from local area restaurants, and vote on which is the finest. Proceeds from this contest benefit the Westbrook High School Project Graduation Fund.

As if two days of gourmet food and music isn’t enough, Tanger customers are also eligible to win a three-day, two-night trip to Los Angeles for two, to dine with Curtis Stone at THE Blvd in the Beverly Wilshire Hotel on May 20. The winner will also win a $1,000 shopping spree at Tanger Outlets.

For more information, go to www.tangeroutlets.com. Tanger Outlets is located just off exit 65 on I-95.

http://www.shorelinetimes.com/articles/2013/04/24/life/doc51786cd1070d7541257982.txt

Saturday’s weather forecast looks positively balmy — 75 degrees! — which is very good news for the food trucks that will brake for the season’s first Justice League of Street Food bash. Eight trucks – Pinche Tacos, The Biscuit Bus, Sully’s Slice Truck, the Denver Pie Truck, Biker Jim’s Gourmet Dogs, Quiero Arepas, Yatai Food Cart and Capt’n Crabby – will congregate on the northeast corner of Colfax Avenue and Stuart Street from 2 to 8 p.m., officially ushering in spring food truck mania.

The bash will also include spins from DJ Magic Cyclops; brews from Avery; margaritas courtesy of Republic Tequila; and a Colorado spirits tasting tent, where imbibers can sample various spirits from Breckenridge Distillery, Downslope Distilling and Stranahan’s for a small donation, the proceeds of which will be given to Sloan’s Lake Citizen Group, a local nonprofit.

In addition, Avery will host a complimentary beer/food pairing class at the top of each hour, from 3 to 7 p.m., trumpeting a lineup that includes elk jalapeno sliders from Biker Jim’s paired with Maharaja Imperial IPA; crab meat salad from Capt’n Crabby paired with Salvation Belgian Strong Golden; Quiero Arepas’s vegetarian bean and plantain arepas sidekicked with Reverend Belgian Quadreuple; sushi rolls from Yatai Sushi paired with 3Point5 Pale Ale, an experimental hoppy session beer; and the Denver Pie Truck’s blueberry pie coupled with the cellar-aged nineteenth anniversary Belgian Triple.

Free shuttles will run from the Perry Street light-rail station to the party, and should you decide to pedal, there’s a bicycle valet service, as well as a B-Cycle station at the light-rail stop.

The bash offers free admission, although beverages and food come at a cost, but we’re giving one Cafe Society reader (and a guest) the chance to eat and drink for the bargain-basement price of zero if you can answer our contest question. Here’s what we want to know: How many total ounces of Avery beer will be poured if the Justice League of Street Food event sells out?

The person who comes the closest to the actual number without going over will win the prize. To enter, please submit your name, a valid e-mail address (the absence of an e-mail address automatically disqualifies you from winning) and your guess in the comments section below, and we’ll announce the winner on Friday by 6 p.m.

Good luck!

http://blogs.westword.com/cafesociety/2013/04/justice_league_of_street_food_party_contest_2013.php

via facebook

Park it and they will come. Howard Hsu, co-owner of Sweet Auburn BBQ, had a dream to create a space for food trucks to gather in Atlanta. A year ago, he and partners Brian Harvin and Anita Hsu brought the idea into reality with the opening of Atlanta Food Truck Park & Market on Howell Mill Road. After a bit of a rough start— the park had to close temporarily while trucks resolved permitting issues just a few weeks after opening— things started to move a little more smoothly. Here, Hsu talks about year one.

How was the first year?
It’s definitely been a learning curve. But it has been very rewarding and fun and is actually coming together better than I thought it would.

In what ways has it exceeded your expectations?

http://atlanta.eater.com/archives/2013/04/23/howard-hsu-on-year-one-at-the-atlanta-food-truck-park.php