Food Carts

One of my favourite summer activities is biking along the seawall, usually followed with a gelato, Blizzard, Slurpee or some other frozen treat. So imagine my utter joy when I found out Vancouver’s newest food cart wasn’t actually a cart but a bike. A bike that was often parked along the seawall – selling artisan popsicles! Forget Popsicle Pete, this is the summer of Johnny’s Pops.

Vancouver’s first and only Australian food truck, Aussie Pie Guy, is opening at W. Georgia and Hamilton Street today, Thursday, June 13^th.

Food Cart fans will be pleased to know that Food Cart Fest is back. The annual gathering of over 20 of Vancouver’s top Food Carts is complemented by community markets, live music and DJs, craft food vendors, kids activities, and lots more. Food Cart Fest starts on Sunday, June 23 and takes place every Sunday from 12 p.m.-6 p.m. until September 22. Admission is $2. Children 13 and under get in free.

Research by Simon Fraser University mathematics students studying the conflict between downtown Vancouver restaurants and popular food trucks suggests the mobile vendors are located too closely together.

Vancouver is not known for its Caribbean food. No chance. While there are some gems to be found, many other regions spring to mind when considering Vancouver’s culinary melting pot. Yet, most Vancouverites know the best place in town to get a taste of the islands is The Reef.

Not many food carts in the world can brag about their built-in wood fire oven (that’s right: there is burning fire inside the truck!). PazzaRella Auto Pizzeria Napoletana proudly drives around with one of its own and sure knows how to use it! Hand stretched dough, fresh ingredients and this baking marvel combine to make authentic Neapoletan pizzas to go. Look for the little red truck with a chimney!

Have you met anyone who doesn’t like grilled cheese sandwiches, lactose intolerant excluded? They’re as rare as the Sasquatch. The ultimate icons of cheesy goodness can be prepared for both the simplest pallette or the most adventurous sandwich connoisseur and while most everyone knows how to make their own grilled cheese sandwich, not everyone carries around a sandwich press. Luckily, Vancouver has two GC specific food carts so it’s possible to have your favourite lunchtime sandwich even when you aren’t in your kitchen. Let’s take a closer look at Mom’s and Taser, Vancouver’s dynamic grilled cheese duo.  

The city’s fifteen new food trucks will offer everything from Belgian waffles to Filipino fusion to French crepes and pastries on Vancouver’s streets this summer. The new vendors will begin operations this month and once fully-operational, will be among the 114 stationary food trucks on Vancouver’s streets.

It’s no secret that Vancouver has a thriving street food scene. It’s been featured numerous times on Eat St. and other television shows and has now been recognized as one of the top street food cities in North America. With the possible arrival of food truck pods, Vancouver’s street food scene is only going to grow.