You want to check out food trucks but don’t know how to find them. Or, you saw a truck at a brewery one day and the next day…no truck. What to do, what to do?

Social Media
The best way to find a food truck is to follow them on social media: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. Although many trucks have websites, not many of them update them often or have it linked to update automatically. If a truck breaks down, their website won’t be updated but they will likely let their fans know some other way. Find out where your truck shares news and follow them there.

Seattlefoodtruck.com
If you aren’t likely to follow 100 food trucks on social media, another option is to visit Seattlefoodtruck.com. They do a great job of tracking trucks around town. You can search by cuisine, neighborhood, pods, and well-known locations. They’ll even help you book a truck for your next event!

Mobile Food Rodeo and Seattle Street Food Festival
Aside from putting on large events in Seattle, both promote food trucks all year round. You’ll see pictures of current food on the streets as well as tips on where to find them. Going to any of their events will position you well to try a bunch of trucks at once. I attend just about every event they put on.

Breweries
Beer and food trucks are a perfect match in Seattle. Beer + food = happy customers. Some breweries schedule trucks every day of the week; others just for the weekend. Social media can be a bit spotty but some places, like Chuck’s Hop Shop has a calendar.

Markets
By far, the standard for food trucks is set by Fremont Sunday Market. Food trucks have been readily available here for years, in addition to street vendors. Since this market runs all year round, you have access to trucks every Sunday. In the winter months, the amount of trucks drops down to 1-2. However, during the summer, you can find 1-5 trucks selling food to hungry foodies. Over the last 6 months, they’ve held special monthly Rodeo Round-Ups with up to 20 food vendors, including food trucks. The Round-Ups were recently moved to South Lake Union Saturday Market, another great location for trucks.

Over the years, finding food trucks at farmers markets has been more common. Queen Anne Farmers Market on Thursday night is very popular. You can usually find at least 1 truck at a market. Farmers markets are typically good at social media since their prosperity depends on people knowing what their offerings are ahead of time.

Food Truck Pods
A food truck pod is a collection of food trucks. Westlake Park and Occidental Park are consistent spaces for trucks. Typically, there are 1-4 trucks available for lunch service (11AM to 2PM). South Lake Union changes over time due to construction so pods are not as reliable. Starbucks Corporate has at least 2 trucks for lunch service during the week. Seattlefoodtruck.com is the best source for tracking all these locations.

Street Permit and Stand Alone Locations
Back in the day, street permits were unheard of. Now, they’re more common than before. There are a handful of reliable street permit spots in the downtown shopping and business district. For example, you’ll find trucks on some days in front of the Central Library, 5th and Union, and 7th and Pine. The most reliable way to track these locations is by the trucks that will be there.

Historically, there are locations have food trucks on their private property. Downtown Spirits and the old PI building are some examples.

These are the basic ways to find food trucks in Seattle. Happy hunting and if you see me, please stop to say “hello.” 🙂