Save The Date: The Mid-South Food Truck Fest
Save The Date: The Mid-South Food Truck Fest
The first ever Mid-South Food Truck Fest is happening on Saturday, April 18, 2015. I'd heard a few murmurs about this, but wasn't clear on the details, so I met up with Fest organizer Stanley Perrin to get the scoop on this new Memphis event. Here's what I found out.
What is it? The Mid-South Food Truck Fest is a gathering of 20 - 30 food trucks from the Mid-South and beyond. Attendees can purchase food from different trucks, vote on their favorite item in the People's Choice awards, shop with craft and mobile retail vendors, and enjoy live music from six bands.
Where is it? Tiger Lane. There will be some parking the lot north of Tiger Lane.
How much does it cost? It's free to enter. Food truck menu items will range from $5 to about $15 (but can vary, depending on the truck). If you want to vote in the People's Choice awards, you must purchase a token for $5.
Who should go? The fest is totally family-friendly.
When is it? Saturday, April 18, 2015 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Hot Mess Food Truck Burrito. Also not yet confirmed to be there, but oh so delicious.
Why a Food Truck Fest? In the words of organizer Stanley: "I saw the opportunities that food trucks have in other cities and thought we deserved something like that here to support our local talent. It's also an opportunity to invite foodies and food truckers from other states to bring their cuisine to Memphians."
Also, this festival is a benefit for two local non-profits, Literacy Mid-South and Southern Friends Animal Society. Sales from the $5 People's Choice tokens, T-shirt sales, raffle tickets, and souvenir cups go towards these two organizations.
The Grind Memphis published an article on the food truck scene in Memphis today, too, with some background info on the "food truck movement". Check that out here.
Is it a competition? Local foodies and personalities will judge food truck items in the categories of "Sweet Treats", "Finger Foods", "Dinner Bell", and "Top Sales", while the general population can purchase a $5 token to vote on their favorite item for the People's Choice Awards. Read more here.
Which bands will be there? The official music lineup of six bands will be released on April 2.
Which food trucks will be there? Here's the lineup, which is subject to change (current as of April 6, 2015). Trucks are local unless otherwise noted.
- Mark's Grill - burgers, Philly cheesesteaks, hot dogs, tacos, and gyros
- A Square Meal on Wheels - burgers, tacos, chicken wings and tenders, catfish
- The Meltdown (St. Louis, Mo.) - gourmet grilled cheese and soup
- Sarah's Cake Stop (St. Louis, Mo.) - cupcakes
- Bionic Grasshopper (Sheridan, Ark.) - meat and vegetarian wraps and sandwiches
- La Cubanita (Jackson, Tenn.) - empanadas, fries, tostones
- Mcknight's European (Atoka, Tenn.)
- Parker's Concession and Italian Ice
- Delish
- Parker's Water Ice
- EZ Water Ice annd Sweet Treats
- Kona Ice of Memphis
- Homestyle Taco Shack
- Millie's Garden
- Memphis Street Food
- Sushi Jimmi
- Jester Catering and Mobile Food ( Shreveport, La.)
- Lets Be Frank
- Mr. Fraziers Fish
- Sandwiches and More
- Hot Wing Express
- Nelchie's Cajun Cuisines and Catering (Leebs, Ala.)
- Eatbox
- The Food Truck by The Confectionery
- Smurfey's Smokehouse
- Le Cole Food Truck
- Royal Flavors
- Polar Tropical Shaved Ice (Nashville, Tenn.)
Steak Kabob from Stick'em Food Truck. They're not confirmed yet to be at the Fest, but they're one of my favorites so I hope they are. Yum.
The Memphis Food Truckers Association will be involved, so expect more of your local food truck favorites. Like I said, the above is just a teaser. I'll post the full list as soon as it's finalized.
Word on the street is that at least two new local food trucks will make their debut at the Mid-South Food Truck Fest, including…drumroll please…a sushi truck. This excites me.
Go there:
Mid-South Food Truck Fest
April 18, 2015
10 a.m. - 6 p.m.
free to enter
Shaneaka Cistrunk
Andi Swatts
Holly Whitfield
Hi Andi! I think part of the fun is showing off Memphis to these folks coming in town, and meeting new people from nearby areas! Supporting local and connecting with our neighbors doesn't have to be mutually exclusive.
Holly Whitfield
Shaneaka, I am pretty sure that the deadline to enter has passed, but you could message the organizers via Facebook and double check.
Eat Memphis
Ken
Andi--all the Memphis food trucks are well aware of this event (I am one) and I can assure you no local truck is being displaced by an out of town truck with a similar menu. Personally I'd like to see more "guest artist" sort of stuff between Memphis and Nashville, etc. But the fact is that many local food trucks will not deploy to a weekend event with 35 other food trucks simply because they can't make any money in a situation like that. It's a cool concept for very early spring, or for weekdays. But if your favorite local truck does not attend, it's probably because he has a more lucrative weekend gig lined up somewhere else--not because he was scared off by a truck from Jackson.
Holly Whitfield
It's a kid-friendly event, but I don't think there will be specific kids activies like crafts or a playground.
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