Austin Food Truck Guide

Some of our food truck favorites for people in Austin for SXSW or F1. I narrowed it down to the ones we think are the very best.

austin food truck guide / loveandlemons.com

South by Southwest starts today, so I thought I’d share some of our food truck favorites for any of you that’ll be passing through town. There are a lot of trucks, so I narrowed it down to  just the ones we think are the very best…


East Side King

Paul Qui’s asian street food trucks will make you feel like you’re not in Texas anymore. Each truck has a different menu so we like to do these food-crawl style (3 of them are all on east 6th). So many of my favorite ingredients… miso, bonito, kewpie. Be still, my heart.

location: many, check out their website
what to order: anything, you can’t really go wrong.
when to go: late night, (or anytime at their brick & mortar South Lamar location)
(picture 4 above: avocado bun with spicy mayo, crispy shallots, cilantro and green onion)

Lulu B’s
Vietnamese sandwich truck. Jack would eat one every day if he could.

location: South Lamar & Oltorf
what to order: Lemongrass Tofu (or Pork), either in the ban mi or on noodles
when to go: lunch

UPDATE – NO LONGER A TRUCK. BRICK AND MORTAR.
3632 S Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78704


Dock & Roll

We initially questioned the idea of lobster from a truck too… but their lobster rolls are amazing. Try it, believe it. We spend quite a few Sunday afternoons here.

location: South 1st and Elizabeth
what to order:
 the “Maine” Event (the lobster roll – pictured above)
when to go: lunch

 

Lucky’s Puccias
Italian flatbread sandwiches. They bake the bread to order in a wood-burning oven inside the truck.

location: near 5th and Lamar, across from Whole Foods, within the Tiniest Bar in Texas
what to order: I get the Puccia Vegetariana which is made with avocado, fontina and artichoke pesto. We haven’t tried the Puccia Nutella… maybe one day when we’ve been extra good.
when to go: lunch or dinner, check hours before you go

UPDATE – NO LONGER A TRUCK. BRICK AND MORTAR.
1611 W 5th St #175, Austin, TX 78703


Kebabalicious

Before food trucks were a thing, this truck was here. I don’t think many things in life are worth waiting in line for, but I waited one whole hour for a falafel wrap last weekend at the kite fest and did not regret it. The bread is fresh baked daily from Phoenicia, and the sauces, including the tzatziki are to die for.

what to order: the Falafel
location: check the website, they move often
when to go: late night, or in the afternoon during festivals.


The Peached Tortilla

Pad Thai taco, Bahn Mi sliders… need I say more? It’s interesting food in fairly small bites so you can try a bunch of things. I just noticed a “pulled” squash bbq taco with roasted spaghetti squash and  peach bbq sauce that’s new(er) on the menu that I’ll have to go try.

location: changes often, check their website
what to order: whatever strikes your fancy
when to go: 11:30am – 2:30am during sxsw


Burro Cheese Kitchen

This one’s technically not a truck, but a shipping container with a nicely designed seating space and good typography. Oh, and the grilled cheeses are good too. Choose your own cheese (choice of 9, most are local), bread, and spread.

location: South Congress
what to order: whatever you want, but our favorite so far was the Redneck Cheddar on beer bread (made fresh from Easy Tiger), with balsamic apricot fig spread.
when to go: lunch

(note that trucks frequently change hours & locations, be sure to check with each before you go. Many only take cash, some only take credit card).

25 comments

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  1. gozhny
    06.11.2020

    it looks tasty guys.

  2. Sam
    12.12.2014

    Do NOT click the link for Nomad Dosa’s website. It’s been hijacked and replaced by an adult site.

    • jeanine
      12.13.2014

      sorry about that!! I just took that whole listing down since they’re not open anymore…

  3. Alison from labarbecue.com
    10.26.2014

    You should check us out!! We are a BBQ Trailer in East Austin!!
    -Ali

  4. Sunny
    06.05.2013

    Great article! Definitely some trucks I have left to try here… can I suggest Chilantro and Coolhaus to be added to a future list? 🙂

    • jeanine
      06.05.2013

      I love both of those… I actually just included Chilantro in one of my citysearch guides 🙂

  5. oh man all those sound so good! Hugh is heading to Austin at the end of the month and I’ll send him this list. SO jealous!

  6. Erika from thepancakeprincess.com
    03.11.2013

    Ooh yay!!! This is so perfect–I’m headed to sxsw next weekend and am so psyched for these recommendations. Last time I went (only for one night), we were at a loss of where to go and ended up at this really oddball, hippie commune type place. Definitely an experience, probably not to be repeated. Nomad Dosa sounds DELISH. And you have me wanting to stand in line for Kebabalicious even though my friend would prooobably kill me 🙂

    • jeanine
      03.12.2013

      oh I should clarify – the line isn’t always that long. (We were at a crowded festival last weekend and they were one of the only trucks). I saw them yesterday with hardly any line.

      hope you have a great time!

  7. Yossy from apt2bbakingco.blogspot.com
    03.10.2013

    Thanks so much for this post! I am headed to Austin in a few days and will definitely be checking out some of these recs.

    • jeanine
      03.11.2013

      oh fun, let me know if you need any more!

  8. Carla from Www.motownsavvy.com
    03.10.2013

    Nothing like this in motown–www.motownsavvy.com

  9. Maria from twopeasandtheirpod.com
    03.09.2013

    Can we do food truck tour in June? 🙂

  10. I’m so happy for this post! We cruised the food truck scene last summer and had no idea which ones were good!!!

    • jeanine
      03.09.2013

      thanks Lori! Looking forward to seeing you in June.

  11. Love this and that first shot! mmm lobster rolls, someday I will make it to Austin and take part in the food truck scene.

  12. Gaby from whatsgabycooking.com
    03.08.2013

    I want to eat at each and every one of these places!! Bummed I’m missing SXSW this year – but I’m putting these all on my list for Blogher Food 🙂

    • jeanine
      03.09.2013

      i’ll see you then!

      • Gaby from whatsgabycooking.com
        03.09.2013

        so excited!! We should do a food truck/bike crawl one day during blogher food with a bunch of us!

  13. Ashley from edibleperspective.com
    03.08.2013

    Loved this recap even though I’m not in the area. Shouldn’t have read it while I’m sitting here hungry, though! 🙂 Everything sounds to die for…especially the dosa!!

    • jeanine
      03.08.2013

      oh you’d die over the dosas (they’re gluten free & vegan too). You should come visit sometime 🙂

A food blog with fresh, zesty recipes.
Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Hello, we're Jeanine and Jack.

We love to eat, travel, cook, and eat some more! We create & photograph vegetarian recipes from our home in Chicago, while our shiba pups eat the kale stems that fall on the kitchen floor.