Photos by Nina Lea Photography.
Food truck season is in full swing, with your next suburban opportunity to taste-test the area’s finest mobile kitchens at Phoenixville Food Festival, unfolding May 3, noon–6 p.m.
At the second downtown Phoenixville food truck festival, street eat fanatics can expect 13 up-and-coming trucks rolling into town this weekend. Curious who is rounding out the food truck troops? Our recommendations for the top 8 food trucks to hit are below.
Cheese lovers from far and wide will line up around the block for a basket of Rob Mitchell’s fried cheese curds. Specializing in beer-battered, deep-fried nuggets of Wisconsin cheddar—a state fair-inspired idea courtesy of Mitchell’s wife, a Midwest native, you’ll swoon over their velvety smooth interior and lightly crunchy exterior. Take it to the next level with the dipping sauces—the Sriracha aioli and smoked ketchup come highly recommended.
Sung-Yoon Kang and his wife, Dawn Kang, arrive slinging a high-quality, innovative attack on Korean street food. Signatures include: overstuffed kimchi sliders with crispy Spam bits and fluffy Seoul rice bowls topped with caramelized onions, fried egg and your choice of protein (short ribs, ginger soy chicken, spicy pork and tofu included). Take note: the homemade hot sauces are worth the kick and the option stands to “kimchify” any order for an extra $1.
This Philly-based, super-premium ice cream purveyor is for the open-minded, swirling up small-batch blends that will be enlighten your creamy ice-loving palate and introduce you to a brand-new frozen treat experience. Ice cream is crafted with 16% butterfat-content dairy, as sourced from Trickling Springs Creamery in Chambersburg, Pa. The Earl Grey Sriracha variety is our utmost favorite.
Owner Issa Ostrander is our local pop pioneer, peddling his hand-crafted, farm-to-freezer popsicles all around Chester County and Philadelphia. Expect locally sourced, creative flavors, including crowd-pleasers like Chocolate Sea Salt, Strawberry Lemonade and Raspberry Banana Cream.
George Bieber hit the road in 2012, as an expansion of his popular brick-and-mortar restaurant, Shorty’s Sunflower Cafe. Specializing in fresh creations infused with seasonal ingredients, you’ll always be impressed by the latest special this culinary crusader is inventing. We’re faithful to the sweet potato quesadilla with quinoa and pumpkin seeds and obsess over the crab dip grilled cheese sandwich with cheddar, gouda, spinach and artichoke. Other highlights for Saturday include: grilled beef brisket and cheese with caramelized Sriracha mustard onions; chickpea pierogies with brown butter and caper sour cream; and bacon salad with chunks of peppercorn bacon tossed with red pepper ranch, local greens and cashews.
Like the name presumes, these meat-smoking champs are the local road kings of pork—typically slow-roasted for over 12 hours and sandwiches in rustic buns with interesting sauces like strawberry-infused BBQ. They also impress food lovers with what they dub as “fancier things,” like Heineken-steeped Gulf shrimp and Cajun jambalaya. Consider the Warminster-based four-wheeler’s nacho nirvana, available in a buffalo chicken rendition or So. Cal-infused with “fire slaw” (read: spicy!).
Just celebrating its first anniversary, this seaside-inspired lobster-packed truck is parked at Sea Watch Beach in Manasquan, New Jersey all summer, but before then, they’re roaming the greater Philadelphia region, elevating the popular crustacean with unique flavors. From innovative options like uber-fresh lobster tacos with kale and strawberry vinaigrette, to classic, buttery rolls, this lobster king takes the New England staple to gourmet levels. What’s in store for Saturday? Bacon, lobster and sun-dried tomato rolls topped with truffle oil; chilled lobster rolls; warm lobster rolls with chilled mango and minced jalapeno; and rosemary marinated steak sandwiches.
Executive chef Bob Rifkin and his on-the-road team are taking doughnut-eating to the Nth level with their ultra-fresh specialty truck. It’s up to you if you want to dip, dunk or swirl your fried dough, but no matter your pick, the innovative flavor combinations will rock your sweets-loving world. From combinations like the Cinnamon Challenge (vanilla dunk with Red Hots and cinnamon-sugar coating), to the Captain Kranky (strawberry drunk with Captain Crunch topping) and the Camping Out (chocolate dunk with graham cracker and marshmallow fluff), we suspect you’ll be hanging out at this yellow truck. Warning: you can’t try just one!
Additional food trucks you can’t miss at Phoenixville Food Festival include Lulu’s Cafe On the Go, Hillbilly BBQ, Jimmie’s Cupcake Company, GiGi & Big R and Pbon’s Fresh Phood.
Phoenixville’s Food Truck Festival will unfold in downtown Phoenixville, along the Bridge and Main streets. The food truck event is also the kickoff of Phoenixville bi-annual Restaurant Week, which runs May 4–8. Restaurant week specials include $10–$35 prix fixe options. More details available at www.phoenixvillefoodfestival.com
