Best Food Trucks In Charlotte

Charlotte was a bit late to the nationwide food truck movement, but in the last few years, the street food scene, nurtured by Charlotte's City Center Partners, has become a treasured feature of our urban culture. Some 60 food trucks, many with chef-designed menus, now wander our streets, bringing reasonably priced food to hungry folks at offices, shopping centers, parks, sports events, bars, clubs and especially to patrons of our growing number of craft breweries. Neighborhoods have found food truck rallies to be a great way to attract shoppers, with Historic South End now sponsoring weekly Food Truck Fridays and Sizzlin' Saturdays, both held 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the food truck lot at the corner of Camden Road and Park Avenue. The NoDa Alley Rally, held at the Area 15 micro business incubator at 15th and N. Davidson streets, is a new food truck event scheduled for Thursdays from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. through the summer. The best way to find individual trucks and get run-downs of their daily specials is to follow them on Twitter. The food trucks on our list represent some of the city's most popular, with most dishes priced under $10. For additional suggestions, see our related articles: Best Food Trucks In Charlotte (2013) and Best Food Trucks (2012).

Cupcake Delirium Mobile Cupcakery
(704) 458-9389
www.cupcakedelirium.com

The cupcakes served from the blue truck operated by Shannon Turrell and Russ Falkowski won Charlotte hearts with flavors such as Red Velvet, Death by Chocolate, S'More, Black Bottom and the all-time favorite, the Elvis, a banana cupcake topped with peanut butter cream and slices of candied bacon. Supplies nearly always sell out so call ahead on the Baby Blue Hotline to reserve your cupcakes. If you are looking for a frozen treat, check out the offerings of the King of Pops (@KingofPopsCLT) which serves popsicles in such entrancing flavors as honeydew mint, Thai tea and chocolate sea salt. Or hunt down the Cones Truck operated by Sticks and Cones (@SticksAndCones), named one of the most innovative ice cream trucks in the country by Delish.com.

Related: 10 Best Charlotte Foodies To Follow On Twitter

The Herban Legend Mobile Cafe
(828) 773-7073
www.theherbanlegend.com

Chef Brian Seeley's 2011 entry on the food truck scene takes inspiration from his extensive culinary background which has taken him around the world from serving as head chef at Jackalope's View Restaurant in the North Carolina mountains to developing menus for a new restaurant in the Middle East. The menu served from his Herban Legend food truck reflects international street food influences, with many creations that surprise and delight local tastebuds. Expect dishes like an Arabic-style shawarma wrap, Jamaican jerk chicken, spicy curry inspired by Sri Lankan cuisine, Asian-style duck ramen, Filipino pork belly and pineapple adobo and an all-American fried green tomato grilled cheese. Seeley uses local produce and providers as much as possible to create the authentic flavors in his recipes.

Papi Queso StrEATery Food Truck
(704) 579-1779
www.facebook.com/PapiQuesoTruck

Playing upon the American obsession with cheese, Papi Queso offers all grilled cheese, all of the time. This truck offers a limited menu, but a hugely popular one. Offerings range from the Southern-inspired Pig Mac, with pulled pork atop mac n' cheese inside crispy grilled bread, to gourmet creations such as the leek and mushroom sandwich with gruyere, roasted mushrooms and truffle robiola or the fan-favorite special, lobster mac grilled cheese sandwich with sherry butter sauce. To go with your meal, Papi serves home-cooked truffle kettle chips flavored with rosemary and parmesan, Mexican cokes and Sprecher root beer.

The TIN Kitchen Food Truck
(704) 750-0477
www.tinkitchenfoodtruck.com

Created by a trio of professionals in the food service industry, the TIN Kitchen food truck offers a wide variety of unique fusion-inspired tacos, quesadillas, sliders, salads and nachos. Order a Thai coconut shrimp taco, a chipotle chicken quesadilla, Korean BBQ sliders or a beef brisket salad, or create your own combination to match your taste preferences. Vegetarians have a particularly wide choice at the TIN Kitchen with fillings ranging from coconut curry chickpeas to buffalo cauliflower to spicy kim chi. Single tacos will set you back just $3.25, while combos here are a great value, offering a complete meal with drink for $10. Check Twitter for daily specials, often featuring duck or seafood.

Chef Street Bistro
(704) 449-5141
www.chefstreetbistro.com

A relative newcomer on the food truck scene, the Chef Street Bistro truck is state of the art, with a full gourmet kitchen plus outdoor TVs and speakers on-board. Chef Jonathan Leary, formerly executive chef at Sullivan's Steakhouse, draws upon his experience to create a menu that's proving popular with Charlotte fans. The specialty is slow-roasted prime rib, sliced very thin and served atop fresh local bread or a salad. Offerings range from the Classic, with bacon and horseradish crème, to the Oscar topped with crab meat and asparagus. Sandwiches come with tater tots, also available separately topped with blue cheese, bacon, grilled buffalo chicken or Philly-style with prime rib, cheese sauce and sautéed onions, peppers and mushrooms. There's something for vegetarians as well: a Mediterranean wrap stuffed with polenta parmesan sticks, feta and grilled asparagus.

Related: Best French Fries In Charlotte