A food truck used to be something commonplace, quick food that people bought because it was cheap and easy and usually parked outside their work selling standard fares like hamburgers and hotdogs. That’s in the past. Food truck culture has become advanced, gourmet cuisine on a budget that keeps the city feeling vibrant and lively. Convenience, value, and accessible, it makes sense that these mobile restaurants have become so loved.
Appearing at your favorite breweries, parks, and yes, still sometimes outside your work, the fleet of food trucks in Charlotte is a force for good taste. Here’s a list of trucks to keep on the lookout.
Papi Queso (Resident Culture Brewery/Sycamore Brewery/ Food Truck Friday)
For those torn between paninis and mac n cheese, you don’t have to decide anymore. Papi
Queso combines them into one, and it’s delicious. The classically cheezy flavors of your
childhood mash together with sophisticated taste. You’ll wonder at where the rest of your
sandwich went before you realize you ate it already.
papiquesotruck.com
Tin Kitchen (Odell Plaza/ One Wells Fargo Plaza/ NoDa Brewery)
A staple of the Charlotte Food Truck community, Tin Kitchen normally posts up outside NoDa Brewery. The tacos, quesadillas, and sliders they serve are simple, spicy, and sinful. It’s more than just top of the line drunk food, it’s a sucker punch to the taste buds (though if you’re coming out of NoDa brewing, you’ll probably say “like, this is the best meal of my life, man”).
tinkitchenfoodtruck.com
The Dumpling Lady (Sycamore Brewery/ Resident Culture Brewery/ NoDa Brewery)
Why. Are. Dumplings. So. Delicious. Who’d have thought fried meat pockets were so amazing? Wrap proteins before cooking them, and you create a seal that traps and enhances umami. The Dumpling Lady is a master of, well, dumplings. She’s got the magic touch, and her truck is the closest thing Charlotte has to real deal Dim-Sum.
thedumplinglady.com
Yummy Bahn Mi (Johnson & Wales / Morrocroft South Park/ Odell Plaza)
Yummy Bahn Mi has that crispy, crunchy, meaty goodness you want in your Vietnamese sandwich sensation. With choices like lemongrass beef and pork, bbq, tofu, and veggies, all served on a baguette with daikon jalapenos garlic mayo and pickled carrots. They also do excellent rice bowls and tacos, too.
yummibanhmi.com
