For some reason, and believe me I've been sucked in too, food trucks are alllllll the rage. Only lame asses eat at places set inside a building, all the cool kids get their meals from restaurants that can relocate at a moments notice. Because of this new phenomenon events like this last weekend's Truckit Fest are springing up all over. The question for Truckit Fest: can they do a better job than the others? After waking up from my food coma yesterday I decided that they must be doing something right because we stayed for almost 3 hours and ate WAY too much food. Like waaaaay too much, hence why I'll be hitting the spin bike at the gym like a red headed stepchild this week. The huge victory was the lack of long lines I find at every other food truck gathering. The lines here were anywhere from zero people to ten at most, I think the longest I waited from stepping in line to biting into the grub was probably 15 minutes which is pretty damn good. The location was perfect, right inside and around Union Station. The trucks lined up outside on both sides with artisan jewelers and other craftsmen selling their treasures inside. We had food from trucks offering sushi, tacos, sausages, shaved ice, coffee, vintage clothing (yes, clothes trucks), Indian food, and we only tried maybe 15% of the trucks in attendance. They're going to be rocking this fest once a month, I'm curious to see how it progresses. The parking was easy and they had a smart setup for VIP guests: you can order from a booth in the VIP lounge and runners bring you all your food while you relax and wait. We had VIP but the lines weren't long and it was beautiful outside, so we didn't take advantage this time but on a cold day or longer lines I could see that being pretty sweet. They tossed in some live bands and a beer/wine garden for good measure and voila, they had a pretty successful first festival if you ask me. Will this gig pan out, month after month, drumming up enough interest to sell the general admin and VIP spots? I have no idea. All I know for now is I had a terrific time, got a huge sampling of LA's food truck scene, and will definitely spread the word. If you've got the urge to see just what this food truck craze is all about, the Truckit Fest would be a perfect place to have your mobile-food cherry popped for sure. read more

Who doesn't like a great food event especially one that's filled with a plethora of food from various food trucks, live music and scattered with a little shopping. There was about 20 food trucks, give or take, a couple of clothing trucks and some small clothing and trinket stalls. My husband, his cousin and I hopped on the metro to Union Station which was only 3 stops away. There was a long line to get into the event but it moved really fast and after paying the $5 cover, we were in in no time. We were bombarded with sounds and sights and sudden pangs of hunger. What to eat? What to eat? We had a "Chili Cheese French Fry Sandwich" at The Munchie Machine. I had a cup of some Blue Bottle coffee at the Drip Bar...mmmm....We had the "Slumdog Dosa" from the Dosa Truck. We shared a couple of custard and caramel stuffed churros from Mama Churro and wrapped up with another sandwich called the "Victoria Sandwich" from Shrimp Pimp that consists of sautéed shrimp on a toasted French roll with smoked salmon. The event wasn't extravagant or even very big but the cover charge was cheap and it had good energy, the weather was good, the music filled the air, and we had a good time. read more

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This was my first time at the Truckit Fest and I really enjoyed it. I don't tweet and I'm not one willing to drive around town to find a food truck but with 40 food trucks in one place I had to come here. The great thing is if you take the Gold Line to Union Station, like I did, or the bus you get $1 off the admission price by showing them your Metro ticket. So $4 to get in was a great price. After entering I spent about 20 minutes walking around deciding on what food trucks I would focus on. If one wants one could order a full plate of food but I decided on ordering small food items so I could try as many trucks as possible. My decision was to eat ethnic food. First up: The Piaggio argentina truck. I ordered 2 empanadas for $5. One was chicken and the other was a caprese with cheese, tomato and basil. The empanadas came with a dipping sauce made with olive oil and spices. Both empanadas were crispy, slightly flaky and not greasy. Both were tasty but I preferred the chicken. The meat was tender and flavorful. This tasty treat I gave 3 1/2 out of 5 stars. Next up: The middle eastern truck the Gourmet Genie. I had a hard time with my decision until I saw a photo of their "Not-Your-Everyday-Fish-Taco" for $3.50. I quickly gave my order to the happy lady inside and eagerly waited for my taco. The taco came with 2 corn tortillas and 6 good sized portions of very tender, juicy, flaky white fish. Maybe cod fish don't know. The fish was topped with a small cherry tomato, a nice creamy sauce and some pine nuts. I placed some of their homemade hot sauce on top for the finishing touch. There was so much fish in the taco I had a hard time getting my hands around it. This tasty treat I gave 5 out of 5 stars. Well worth coming back for. Next up: India Jones. I love Indian food but most of the food items I saw were full meals about $6 to $8. Next time I'll have to try them but I went for the $2 Khurmi Nan (Tomato & Garlic). The nan bread was nice, warm and fluffy. The tomato sauce was sweet with just a hint of garlic. This tasty treat got 2 1/2 out 5 stars. Next up: The Yummy-One. This is an asian fusion truck. I walked right up and ordered the $2 Spicy BBQ Pork taco. I really enjoyed the flavor of this taco. The sauce was spicy but not too hot. The pork was thinly sliced but I thought that it was slightly over cooked. This tasty treat got 3 out of 5 stars. And finally desert. Yes, I saved room but took it home. I bought a small bag of dark chocolate, caramelized peacans for $3 from Antonia's Nut. This desert got 4 out of 5 stars. Besides all the food trucks they had artist selling art and a band was playing the courtyard. I look forward to returning every 1st Sunday of the month. This is a great place to bring a visitor from out of town, bring a date or just bring your appetite and pig out and have fun in the sun. read more

This was my first food truck event and what a blast! There was a positive, happy-go-lucky crowd, it was organized, there was a "beer garden" and I agree about the lines not being too long. Even if the lines were a little longer, I didn't mind because I was still working off my tasting from another truck. You pay $5 to get in and select from about 35 different food vendors in addition to live music and access to sample sales by clothing designers. Here's what I tried: Rosa's Bella Cucina - #13 - Arancino Siciliano - $5.00 Filled with Fresh Mozzarella, Ragù (tomato meat sauce), and Peas. In lamen terms, this was pretty much one of the most amazing Italian rice balls I've ever had. This menu item gets 5/5. Komodo - I had their Meatballs with Romesco sauce. You get 5 meatballs for $5. The meat was very flavorful and red pepper sauce was complimentary to the meat. I'd give this menu item a 4/5. Dosa Truck - Dosa (for those who aren't familiar) means crepe or pancake. The fermented crepe is usually made from rice batter and black lentils.[1] It is indigenous to and is a staple dish in the South-Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Kerala. I had a vegetarian dosa that was 1/2 sweet potato and 1/2 (??). For about $7, this was my least favorite at 3/5. Truckit Fest was a hit, but I do wish they offered more seating areas. They had one courtyard area with benches out of the 3 different sectioned food truck areas. My 2nd and 3rd round of food, we either sat on a curb or on the ground somewhere. Has anyone noticed that the food trucks are a little overkill on the Mexican/Korean/Asian fusion? There was probably 5+ out of 10 trucks that either had sushi burritos, kimchee tacos, etc. I do wish they had more diversity in that area. I know this is California, but I can imagine some blue-collared redneck from the South freaking out saying, "Fruit on my tacos? Why in the hell you puttin' these lil' mini oranges on top of my taco. California weirdos." Last, once you pay the fee you have in/out privileges to the event. My friend and I went on a walk and discovered Little Mexico adjacent to Union Station that added diversity and a bit of culture into our day. read more

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Even though I'm not one of those who is up for paying to go to a mobile food truck festival, I have to say, this one was organized better than most. The crowds weren't that bad of a cluster f---, the lay out was in a historic place that I always love going to and the food trucks lined up had some new ones I hadn't seen before. And that's really how you have to weigh in on either going to a food truck festival or not. Have I tried most of the trucks there? If so, don't bother wasting your entrance fee But if you haven't tried at least a few trucks on the list, it's worth it for the people watching, the setting and all around enjoyment of the food trucks all in one spot. Really good for big groups so you can divide and conquer on your food truck selections. Not to mention that with more people you can actually try more by sharing the small plates and doing it tapas style. Does parking suck? You bet. But let's face it, parking ALWAYS sucks around this area. I have made it a point to always park a good two or three blocks away. You're going to eat a lot of food, so you might as well get some calorie burning going on when you can. Besides that, you'll save on paying anything for parking. Another suggestion would be to bike ride here.... oh wait, you don't want to get run down on the road. So while I'm typically strong standing on my "No on paying for a food truck festival" given the ease you can find these trucks during art walk or any other cultural centric event, this event I give a three solid stars and say it's A-okay! read more

I am not a big fan of food trucks but this truck festival gathered some of the best food, dessert and even clothing trucks of LA. I first knew about this event for a DTLA Art Walk I went a couple of years ago. There was a line of all kind of food trucks offering different options in food, snacks, drinks and dessert on Spring between 3rd and 6th streets. They were making it big! I recently went again in this month's ArtWalk and there they were all the food trucks I've seen in the past lined up now on a parking lot on Spring & 3rd. They have trucks of sushi, cupcakes, Mexican, Mediterranean, grilled cheese you name it! There was also a clothing truck where you can even try their pieces on the truck. They have music playing on site, games, tables and even samples of some of their goodness. I didn't get to try as many things as I would've liked because my friend and I had eaten earlier that night but we still shared the pumpkin spice cute and yummy mini cupcake from sweet e's bake shop truck; and I took my mom home the jerk quesadilla from street kitchen truck. Both the mini cupcake and the jerk quesadilla were delightful! I can't wait to get a hold of more truck it fest events in DTLA so I can get there starving, earlier and with some friends so we can all get to try some of the many food trucks' amazing offerings. read more

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What a fun event! They had a great variety of food and dessert trucks, so there were plenty of options and cuisines. The food lines werent too long, and thankfully they know how to handle a crowd. The parking was tight, and in the station kind of minimal, but there was parking across the street, thankfully. There were arts and craft stalls, which were entertaining, too, and if you havent been there, Olvera street was just across the street. I had a great time here, though I only needed a couple of hours for the entire event. Five bucks admission, not a bad price. If I wasnt so full I would have tried more food. Will stop here again one of these days! read more

This was my first food truck festival and I really enjoyed it! At first I wasnt sure why I would pay $5 to pay the same price for food that I would have anyways, but then I realized...I didnt have to drive around to 30-something different places to get all this food (so I guess I rationalized it as gas money?). I didnt think I would be here long considering its just getting your food and eating. I was wrong! I stayed for hours! I spent about $35 eating small plates off of 6 or 7 different trucks. The food was amazing and I really enjoyed myself. Cant wait for next month! read more

How great was this! finally a monthly glutton festival! The turn out was soo great! After hiking in Chantry Flats up in the Santa Anita mountains, my friends and I decided to venture here only because- I was driving and I am the biggest foodie of them all! No just kidding, it was the first one and it was great! There was about 20-35 trucks, some clothing vendors, rock walls, the bug lady with all her dead butterfly jewelry...the LA Kings Truck, and of course the Biergarten! (Beer Garden) lol The cover was only $5 which is still really good! We started it off with north Korean tacos, hmm yeah just ok, then to some Korean BBQ tacos, two trucks- different flavors,, not satisfying, Torpedo Potato on a stick- eh waited to long for a weird thingy on a stick, the shrimp pimp, where we tasted the poboy, drunken tacos, and Victorian all were very good, then had something off the Ragin Cajun, a couple of the sushi trucks (don't remember the names, but we tried the Bunny Roll, salmon roll, hmm and some other thing with seared ahi in it... and the finale the Crepes Bonaparte Spicy Apple Bottom Crepe with caramel and whip cream... We got there a little late and only had about 3 hrs left before the end...Their was live music, people brought their dogs (i did), it was a laid back atmosphere, good vibes, all around good juju throughout...plus Olvera street is a hop skip and a jump away! This is a great idea... I'm glad there is an actual event like this every month! I hope that their is a different variety of trucks next month! Grilled Cheese anyone? or maybe Grill em' All? We'll be seeing ya there! Most Definitely! read more

30-40 food trucks in and around union station. Pretty cool concept. $5.00 to get in or $25.00 V.I.P. (total rip-off) it was basically just a room to sit and eat in. They sold beer and wine in there but people were in there without wristbands and there's another bar in union station anyway. Parking was $10.00 (I also saw another lot charging $14.00). It's cool checking out the Truckit Fest (first Sunday of every month) but I would probably just try to find these trucks elsewhere and save a few bucks. read more

Truck It Fest - Truckit Fest @ Union Station - Festivals Near Me - Los Angeles, California

Great selection of trucks but beware, parking is a complete and total nightmare. But c'mon, it's at Union Station, people! Use public transportation! It isn't going to kill you, I promise. Take the train/subway/bus and enjoy a day in such a beautiful part of our great city. But back to the event. Great selection of trucks, a fun little art/craft fair inside Union Station, bands, and a nice mixed crowd. Enjoy! read more

There's something magical about food trucks..anytime food trucks gather it's an amazing time. The only problem is choosing whether to be loyal and stick to your favorite trucks or try something new. The only solution I came up with is to go with several people so that you can eat a bunch of different things. read more

I write a food truck blog, so I decided to check this gathering out a month after it started, figuring they would work out the kinks after the first month. It's always the first Sunday of the month. I drove there & paid $10 to park and I also decided to try the VIP experience for $25 - save your money & pay $5 general admission. It was not a value-added experience for me. The whole point of paying VIP is that you get to sit in an inside lounge and order off the money for all the premium trucks that are parked close by. Unfortunately, a number of premium trucks were left off the menu & I ended up having to go outside & get my own food anyway. Back in the lounge, there's a DJ playing really loud, obnoxious music & you don't even get bottled water included with VIP ticket. Right outside the lounge is a very loud band. I follow alot of these trucks on Twitter & I'd much rather go find them on my own than go back to the Truckit Fest. I spent $35 just to walk in the door & then you still have to pay for your food. How 'bout offering the VIP customers some free small plates from the truck?????? read more

Lots of fun! This event is very well organized and has a great location at Union Station so you can ride the metro down and save on parking. Also this means lots of places to sit and shade even if it's hot out. You have to pay $5 to even get in plus price of food so you can end up spending quite a bit of money depending on how much you indulge-- out of almost 40 trucks, you understand how that could be a distinct possibility. Several bands play live in the middle of the courtyard and there's a fun, if kind of small craft fair inside. We managed to eat at six trucks and favorites include Dankys Doners (doner tacos-- yum!) and A Rockin Ice for huge and delicious rainbow shave ice. Line up changes monthly so check the website before you go-- THE way to be all LA hip and trendy while feeding your foodie fetish. read more

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This great event happens on the third Thursday of every month in connection with the Art Walk taking place in downtown LA. Located in a parking lot on 3rd Street and Spring Street, they even have a beer garden and a DJ set up to make sure everyone feeds their souls in every way possible. I didn't get a chance to try every truck because even though I can handle my own when it comes to food, there were simply just too many options for me to take them all on in one single visit. The good thing about it is that there is a constant rotation of new food to try at every event so there is no way you can get bored by eating the same thing here every single time. read more

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SO disappointed about this food truck fest. 1) THE LACK OF TABLES. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! There was soooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much open and empty space in this lot, and maybe 8 or 9 tables total. It was laughable. They could have fit around 4x more tables and could have made it such a better experience for most of the people there. 2) The music. I absolutely love EDM, so I can't imagine what it was like for people who hate electronic music. This was not a club so I'm extremely confused as to why the DJ had to continuously blast insane bass through the speakers while people were trying to have a nice art-and-food-oriented night out. Seriously WTF. I could not even hold a convo with my friends without us screaming and this on top of not having anywhere to sit made it a real misery, when we were all super excited to check it out. The music was just the completely wrong vibe. I love music and love that they had a dj but it should have been calmer and quieter deep house maybe, disclosure style, not alesso. Aside from that, the food truck assortment was ok, but I've definitely seen better. SHOUT OUT TO THE PHANTOM FOOD TRUCK! They saved my night. PS - I would love to come back if these things were changed! read more

Kind of surprised to see an Italian Festival in Aliso Viejo, but here we are on lazy Sunday afternoon. Pretty slow and mellow, I am sure Saturday night is a better time to be here. You hear Italian Opera song coming from one of the stages, or the songs you heard in all the Italian family theme movies, pretty nice. Nice to have this option for a weekend in Aliso, will go back next year to see how does a busy evening look like. read more

This was awesome! There was a very awesome variety of foods and everyone was super friendly. My main issue was the site doesn't make very clear the location of the event, and if it wasn't for this yelp page we would have never found it. Also the trucks were fairly expensive, so don't go to this expecting values. You're paying for restaurant quality food, just without the restaurant atmosphere. read more

My first truck it festival was last week. I bought a VIP ticket that included a $12 voucher and open bar in the VIP tent. When I got there they refused to give me a meal voucher, claiming they ran out "AFTER I PAID THEM" for it. I could deal with that because I had open bar right! WRONG!!! The VIP tent was about as big as my living room and the line was horrible. I spoke to some people in line that had been waiting over two hours to get in. Phillip Dane the promoter denied any responsibility for it, refused us the vouchers and told us to take it up with thrillist. After another couple dozen people had the same problem he promised VIP tickets to his next event. we sent him emails and never heard anything in response. I think it's a good concept, but i will wait until another food truck promoter lists an event before I give that man one dollar of my money. Some people just don't give a shit how they treat people... he seems to be one of them. GREED Think about community for once! read more

i couldnt give zero stars, so I give one. I am specifically writing about the "Truckit Fest Gourmet Food and Music Carnival"..which had no gourmet food and no carnival but had really unbearable music. This event is managed By a DUDE named Phillip who tried this idea at Dodger stadium, Union Station and now renaming it (as aforementioned) for a different spin? This event was such a disappointment. The entry fee was $12 via online sales plus a $1.50 per ticket charge. What do you get for that? ENTRY. Yes, that's it! If you pay at the gate it's $16.00! Ridiculous! It was advertised as 200 vendors/ There were maybe 15 trucks and maybe 50 vendors- which the vendors were really c class at best. We went to a couple of trucks, they both complained that they were told they had to raise their prices, so we were gouged there, too. You can follow any of the trucks on twitter or on smart phone apps and not have to pay an entrance fee, not get gouged and have the advantage of patronizing the trucks you really like and not be subjected to those that got tricked into this event. Sad cause we were really looking forward to it....big disappointment! read more

The "Me So Hungry" truck is sooo good. Also, "The Melt" truck was there. Little standing tables were provided which was awesome since I ordered the Kali sliders, shoe string fries, and a diet coke :) lol! I stopped by during ArtWalk to grab dinner and they are opened from 6pm-11:30pm. Something about eating food from a truck on a cold night, standing around with your friends makes the food & company even more enjoyable. read more

The trucks were good, but by the time you pay for parking and admission, you are already 20 bucks in the hole before you put anything in your mouth; that's like the cost of a meal. My advice, go once and find a few trucks you like, then follow the trucks individually and save yourself some money. read more

This was my first food truck experience, and it did not disappoint! Initially I was a bit taken aback by the fact that there was a $5 fee to enter, $25 for VIP. My friend and I discussed the pros and cons of VIP vs. regular entry with the staff selling the wrstbands. Finally, being the "ballers" we are we decide to do it big and pay for VIP. Money wasted. Not only did we not take advantage of the so called perks we discover that beer/wine could be purchased either way AND the D.J. was so freakin WHACK and annyoing it was ridicilous. Techno music played nonstop and that is,not good! On to the trucks... The Shrimp Pimp is worthy of its praise. Sashimi tuna tacos, and drunken shrimp tacos are equally awesome! The "Potatoe Tornado" was a cuter idea than anything, but it was okay. The truck with the sliders were out of lobster so I went with the shrimp sliders and they were good. Had some good sushi, sweet potatoe/jack cheese poppers, and another tasty spicy shrimp taco and everything was very good. Can hardly wait for the next truck it fest! No VIP needed this time. read more

hey! i (and several others) wrote reviews after the first fest in march and now they're gone. basically i said that it was pretty good although i thought the trucks should offer smaller tastings for less $$ - i only ate at two trucks cause i was full and it was spendy. that being said, i'm sure i'll be back. read more

The Lobos, rollin burger barns, currywurst, postcards, cousins maine lobster, street kitchen, cj' s wings, dia de los puercos, wafl, paradise ice cream, kabob express, kimbobrex, ychostruck... to name a few =] So cool that it is concurrwntly happenong with artwalk and edm style music everywhere! Just missin the churrp ice cream sandwich today! read more