Food truck

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I was thinking this. My school brought different food trucks (probably at least 6 different kinds) for all of the students (2000 total, they all definitely did not come; maybe closer to 1000 throughout the duration of the event) and the lines were pretty long already. It did help that the food trucks did make a lot of the most popular items so people didn't have to wait too long but I'm not sure what protocol they'd have in place for weddings. Other than that, I don't have any other experience with food trucks at large events.

Based on what previous posters have said, get a quote for 3 food trucks and compare that to other buffet style catering.

Also it just occurred to me. (Sorry can’t edit on my phone) I’ve seen this work at school events but the vibe is more carnival/fair which means people eat when they want. At a wedding guests try to eat at the same time. That’s why food trucks are tricky.

As much as i love food trucks, i find the cost doesn't usually equal the amount of food you're getting. Be careful that the portions are actually large enough to be comparable to a meal.

You need far more than one food truck. I'd get at least four or five, all with different types of food. As for plates and utensils, you'll need to talk with the food trucks. As a guest, I wouldn't be thrilled to have to carry around a flimsy paper plate and eat with cheap plastic forks/knives, especially if I had to cut up whatever food I was eating.

We hired 2 food trucks for our 120 person wedding, they are both very seasoned with weddings and do not allow anyone to stand in line for any longer then they would at a buffet line. We also did hire 4 servers to help the food trucks get our guests fed. I am honestly super excited with the food trucks we hired and I know my guests will have a great/different experience.

**side note : our wedding is at a working farm and will have a more laid back vibe.

I attended a wedding that was catered by a food truck, but they did not set up like your typical food truck and functioned more like a buffet. You didn't go up to a window to order a meal. It was Mexican and they were serving fajitas only. You got in line and right before you hit the truck, you got a plate and were served a tortilla. The line was bright by the back of the truck, where the server offered you a choice of meat, and then the line was sent by a table with all of the toppings for you to serve yourself. The one issue was that they called tables up to join the line way earlier than they should have and you were in line for a while before you got your tortilla and meat, and the sides/toppings table was so far away from the truck that you were waiting in line all over again to finish getting your food.

It was also a much smaller wedding than yours. I don't remember the exact number of guests, but it was well under 100.

Food trucks are great! But expect to need a truck per 50 people if you want timely. Also remember folks will get 2-3 items as most food trucks don't gave larger sizes you may get in a played meal. But this also let's you have different options for folks to try!

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Agree with this. People will likely try to get more than one type of food if you have multiple trucks (which you will need with 200 people) so you will have to prepare to order more than 1 meal pp. I wouldn't do this for meal service at a wedding unless it was a small one (<75ppl). I think it is more appropriate for a late night snack.

I went to a wedding with about 75 people that had one food truck and I stood in line FOR AN HOUR! I was livid. Livid. There were other things that weren’t great about that wedding but that what the number one downfall. Please, PLEASE do not only have one food truck for 200 guests. Ur guests will NOT be happy.

I think it also depends on what type of food trucks you plan to bring. Cook to order vs ready and served does make a difference. When my sister did her wedding, she did a catering from a local chain restaurant and the price turn out to be ~$8 pp, cheaper than food truck ( ~$13 pp++).

I agree with others- definitely hire several food trucks if you're planning on this being the only food. For 200 people, I'd plan on a food truck per 50 people. Also, food trucks are EXPENSIVE. I looked into getting an in n out food truck as a casual cocktail hour idea but to feed my guest list it was going to be super expensive (it would have been cheaper to go to in n out and buy food for all these people). Shop around and get some quotes but I've paid 10-15 bucks per meal at food trucks and if the serving sizes aren't big, your guests may want more.

Talk with the food truck operators. Ask them how many people they can serve within 30 minutes. There was another thread yesterday where a bride thought it was fine for the food truck to take up to 3 hours to serve her guests. That's not OK.

We have lots of food trucks downtown and I have never seen one able to serve a crowd in a decent time window. I am quite sure you are going to need more food trucks.

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Second this.

it sounds like a cool, cute idea, but you would definitely need more than one...

We are doing a bbq buffet dinner but having our food truck as more of a “late night snack” surprise.

We are doing a food truck wedding as well next summer (June 2019). I have learned that they aren't really more cost effective, unless you want your guests to wait in line (which I would NOT be a fan of as a guest). For that amount of people you will definitively need more than one truck. I think the food truck idea is great to do something different and I think guest will love it, if it is done properly!

This is my plan, so far!

We are having one food truck do appetizers. We will have about 5 appetizers, that they will bring servers to pass around and in little stations, but also a charcuterie table.

For dinner we are doing a pizza truck, so people don't really need to order and they will keep turning pizzas around. The pizza truck also comes with salad, gelato and cappuccino for dessert, so it is a plus. I do need to see if they can do gluten crust/vegan pizzas to make sure all guests can enjoy.

However, I have heard that the trucks do need extra time to set up and start their grill/oven so make sure to allocate time.

I also found an awesome "Mobile bar" in our area (CT) that is an older camper trailer turned into a bar.

it goes with the theme and similar to costs as a regular bar service (we are providing all vendors)

I think food is a huge part of a wedding, but the logistics of the trucks can be tricky. Where are they going to park and plug in, can they provide servers to bring food to tables if needed? Also don't forget about trashcans and will there be someone to clean up plates left? Good Luck!

View Quoted Comment I'm just curious how your wedding went? We are starting to plan and are leaning really heavily towards food truck wedding. We are thinking to have about 75 guests 2 food trucks 1 mexican, 1 bbq and 1 mobile food truck bar and serving a "dip bar" (different kinds of dips, hummus, veggies, buffalo ect.) and charcuterie table for apps.

Hi! It went really well!! We did one good trucks for heavy appetizers. That included a cheese and salami table, sliders, fancy hot dogs and things that were a little more hearty my than the normal cocktail hour. Then we did the pizza truck for dinner. Tables were called up but we kept it casual and people basically just went up when they were ready. People were able to take extra pizzas home and everyone loved it! We had about 128 people and no one left hungry. We also did some buckets of candy, chips, nuts, fruit snacks, basically munchie food for people to take with them as they left or to have towards the end of the night!

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Did you pay for the meal?