A food truck rally (also called a food truck festival, food truck rodeo, [1] [2] food truck gathering, or similar names) is an event where a group of food trucks gather in one location.
The events typically feature "modern" food trucks emphasizing food quality and variety, a trend which has grown significantly in popularity in the United States since approximately 2008. Formal gatherings of food trucks as an event in the United States began in 2010. The first LA Food Fest, held in February 2010, appears to have been one of the earliest such events. [3] [4] [5] [6] [7]
Tampa, Florida, which has been a popular area for food trucks and hosted its first food truck event in September 2011, [8] hosted a rally with 121 food trucks in March 2014, said to be a new world record, breaking the prior record of 99 set in Tampa in September 2013. [9] [10] Prior to that, an April 2013 "food truck parade" in Miami, with 62 trucks, was declared the largest to date. [11] In 2018, Chicago Food Truck Festival planned to have over 50 food trucks in Chicago. [12] Also, in 2018 more than 50 food trucks rallied in Meridian Township. [13] Also, in 2018, in Muskeon Michigan a food truck rally of 23 food trucks occurred. [14] In June 2018, over 30 food trucks rallied in Daytona. [15] Furthermore, there are more food truck rallies occurring throughout the US. [16]
The Calgary Stampede is an annual rodeo, exhibition, and festival held every July in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The ten-day event, which bills itself as "The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth", attracts over one million visitors per year and features one of the world's largest rodeos, a parade, midway, stage shows, concerts, agricultural competitions, chuckwagon racing, and First Nations exhibitions. In 2008, the Calgary Stampede was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame.
A Cuban sandwich is a variation of a ham and cheese sandwich that likely originated in cafes catering to Cuban workers in Tampa or Key West, two early Cuban immigrant communities in Florida centered on the cigar industry. Later on, Cuban exiles and expatriates brought it to Miami, where it is also very popular. The sandwich is made with ham, (mojo) roasted pork, Swiss cheese, pickles, mustard, and sometimes salami on Cuban bread. Salami is included in Tampa, where there is a large Italian population, but is not usually included in South Florida.
The Taste of Chicago is the world's largest food festival, held in September in Chicago, Illinois in Grant Park. The event is also the largest festival in Chicago. Non-food-related events include live music on multiple stages, including the Petrillo Music Shell, pavilions, and performances. Musical acts vary from nationally known artists like Carlos Santana, Moby, Kenny Rogers, or Robert Plant to name just a few, to local artists. Since 2008, The Chicago Country Music Festival was held simultaneously with the Taste of Chicago but now has its own two-day festival, typically held in the fall. The Taste of Chicago also has rides present which may include a Ferris wheel and the Jump to Be Fit among others.
A food truck is a large motorized vehicle or trailer, equipped to storage, transport, cook, prepare, serve, and/or sell food. Historical predecessors of food trucks were horse-drawn chuck wagons and lunch wagons. Some, including ice cream trucks, sell frozen or prepackaged food; others have on-board kitchens and prepare food from scratch, or they heat up food that was prepared in a brick-and-mortar commercial kitchen. Sandwiches, hamburgers, french fries, and other regional fast food fare is common. By the early 2010s, amid the pop-up restaurant phenomenon, food trucks offering gourmet cuisine and a variety of specialties and ethnic menus became particularly popular. Food trucks may also sell cold beverages such as soda pop and water. Food trucks, along with food booths and food carts, are major components of the street food industry that serves an estimated 2.5 billion people every day.
The New Hampshire Pumpkin Festival is a pumpkin festival that is held in Laconia, New Hampshire, United States before Halloween. Each year, New Hampshire residents and citizens attempt to amass the largest number of lit jack-o'-lanterns in one place, trying to meet or beat the world record, which the city of Keene, New Hampshire—the festival's venue for its first 24 years—held for many years.
A ute muster is an Australian festival which brings together large numbers of utes and their owners. These events typically include competitions and other side events, occur annually, and normally last several days and are held in rural and regional areas of Australia and New Zealand.
Travis Alan Pastrana is an American professional motorsports competitor and stunt performer who has won championships and X Games gold medals in several disciplines, including supercross, motocross, freestyle motocross, rally racing and offshore powerboat racing. He runs a show called Nitro Circus and the rallycross racing series Nitrocross.
A zombie walk is an organized public gathering of people who dress up in zombie costumes. Participants usually meet in an urban center and make their way around the city streets and public spaces in an orderly fashion. Zombie walks can be organized simply for entertainment or with a purpose, such as setting a world record or promoting a charitable cause. Originating in North America during the 2000s, zombie walks have occurred throughout the world.
Meridian Showground is a multi-purpose entertainment venue in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, United Kingdom. It hosted its first event organised by Solid Entertainments of Grimsby featuring The Zutons and The Proclaimers in August 2009 as part of the Cleethorpes Rocks Music Festival.
A ribfest, sometimes called a rib cook-off, is a type of food festival that occurs throughout the United States and Canada.
The Friday the 13th Motorcycle Rally is a motorcycle rally held every Friday the 13th in Port Dover, Ontario, Canada since 1981. Its typical summer attendance exceeds 100,000 bikers.
Devour! The Food Film Fest is a Canadian Film festival dedicated to films about food and wine culture. The five-day festival takes place annually in late fall in the Wolfville, Kings County, Nova Scotia. In 2020 organizers mounted a hybrid in-person and streamed festival due to Covid-19. Attendance was 1800 in person and 1600 virtual guests. Opening night celebrity host was "Phil Rosenthal" from the "Netflix" hit "Somebody Feed Phil".. Festival Dates for 2021 are October 19–24, 2021.