Catering Alternative: Food Truck Frenzy

Gourmet food trucks are making a comeback recently on both the foodie scene as well as at weddings and other events. You may have seen these vintage style trucks selling their tasty wares in the parking lots of Nashville. Patrons can find a variety of gourmet delights from caribbean jerk chicken to loaded burgers, scrambled eggs or homebaked goodies. Food trucks are quickly becoming a growing wedding trend as an alternative to the traditional catering company.

What’s behind the rising popularity in these throwbacks to the meals on wheels of the 1950s? The modern day trucks have come a long way from their sometimes sketchy and gut-bomby ancestors. Yes, I think I just used the term “gut-bomby.” These guys have taken all of the quality and flavor of an upscale restaurant and made it work in a mobile kitchen. The trucks can lend a certain unique and whimsical feel to your wedding reception, while delivering high quality food to your guests. Family and friends will be intrigued and charmed by this new spin on the customary reception dinner.

So what is available to a bride looking for the perfect food truck for her wedding? There are a wide variety of options to choose from, depending on the theme and style of your day. The Nashville trucks often team up to offer an array of different choices to customers. Consider hiring two trucks or a truck with main dinner items and a dessert truck. The styles and varieties of food offered on Nashville’s vast selection of food trucks run the full gamut from cheeseburgers and sandwiches to pizza, Mexican and decadent cuisine.

For a classic favorite with a gourmet twist, the Grilled Cheeserie serves up a number of different selections sure to make your taste buds sing. In addition to their regular menu Crystal De Luna-Bogan and her team can customize their menu and offer a special grilled cheese named after or tailored to the event and their clients’ tastes. Mini melts, homemade pudding and vintage sodas are just a few more items that they can provide for an event.

Riffs Fine Street Food focuses on using local foods to craft creative and and delicious dishes which give their customers a restaurant-like experience in a fun and unique atmosphere. Inside the brightly colored truck, owner Carlos Davis takes care to design menus that showcase local products and flavors.

Photo by Rachel E Downey Photography

For dessert, you could schedule a cupcake buffet compliments of the Cupcake Collection’s Cupcake Bus. The Germantown based cupcake shop can load up all their flavors into their school bus turned mobile bakery. Mignon and her team can create all different kinds of custom flavors and fillings for their delicious treats. Currently, the bus is not available on Saturdays, but can serve all different types of events throughout the week and on Sundays.

Having a hot summer wedding? Serve guests homemade ice cream sandwiches and confections from The Sugar Wagon. Owners Jane and Tracy use high quality, natural ingredients in their baking and also specialize in delicious vegan items. And I’m telling you, their peanut butter ganache cups are addicting. I mean – really. Service generally includes 2 hours with the cart and all its yummy goodness.

So, if you’re ready to jump on the truck…er…bandwagon, and hire one of Nashville’s food trucks for your wedding, you can get a list of the local offerings on the Nashville Food Trucks blog. The blog contains updates on where the trucks will be parked throughout the week, as well as links to each truck’s website or twitter feed. As for me, I’m headed to the parking lot to get some grub.

Featured Food Trucks:

The Grilled Cheeserie

Contact: Crystal De Luna-Bogan at 615.491.9640 or grilledcheeserie@gmail.com

Twitter: @grlldcheeserie

Minimum: $1,000

Most Unique Custom Grilled Cheese So Far: Salted Caramel Apple Melt – with brie, salted apples and brioche bread (i’m drooling)

Riffs Fine Street Food

Contact: Carlos Davis at (615) 473-1390

Twitter: @riffstruck

Minimum: $300 Catering starts at about $14 p/person

Most Popular Items: Shrimp & Grits or Caribbean Jerk Chicken

The Cupcake Collection

Contact: Mignon Francois at 615-244-2900

Twitter: @cupcaketweets

Minimum: $250 worth of cupcakes or bus fee (cupcakes are $2 each)

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