Cloverdale hosts battle for the tastiest food truck in town
Metro Vancouver’s largest food truck festival offered live performances, vendors, and tasty treats
The annual Food Truck Wars festival took place on April 8 to April 10 in Cloverdale. (Brylian Marin)
Cloverdale played host to an appetizing battle royal during the “Food Truck Wars” festival that took place between April 8-10, where 40 food trucks competed to be the tastiest truck in town.
Some of the food trucks were judged in various categories, such as “Between the Buns,” “International,” “Sweets,” “Fusion,” “Classic,” and “Plant-Based.” There was also live music and local vendors at the festival for attendees to have a good time dancing or shopping.
Food Truck Wars organizer Meghan Rooney says Jason Faria and Kat King, co-owners of the Greater Vancouver Food Truck Festival, wanted to create a place for people to enjoy themselves.
“They decided that they wanted to create festivals and a place for the community to really get together and enjoy really good food,” Rooney says.
There was plenty of food for folks to enjoy, ranging from donairs, bubble tea, donuts, and karaage Japanese fried chicken. The event also helped introduce attendees to a number of food trucks they may not have heard of before, such as Sirius Craving.
Sirius Craving is a food truck business that started over a year ago, focusing on homemade food.
“We reached out and inquired and thought it would be a fun idea to be a part of something like this,” says Brockton Lane, one of the business partners of Sirius Craving. “I think we built a solid following through attending this festival, so I think it was good for all parties involved.”
One of the reasons Lane enjoys attending food truck events is because he gets to meet other vendors and have the opportunity to promote his truck to a new demographic.
There were other attractions at the event as well.
Live performances took place on the main stage throughout the weekend, including music by DJ H2O. Acoustic performances were also held at a separate spot in the festival.
The Food Truck Wars also included local vendors, each selling different products. One of the vendors at the event was Sunshine Pup Co., a dog accessory business created in 2018 and owned by Kaitlyn Newton.
Her shop sells dog bandanas, harness sets, collars, and phone cases. Newton says she sews everything by hand. She got started with the business when she bought her first dog and began creating accessories for her.
“I got involved with this specific festival because I do a lot of markets and you kind of gain connections from there,” she says. “I thought it would be a great opportunity because it’s really fun and it’s really great for our businesses.”
Newton attended the event last year, and says this year was much busier and says it’s probably because more people were comfortable getting out.
“What I enjoy about these types of events is I get to interact with my customers and new people. A lot of my business is online, so I love getting to meet people face-to-face,” she says. “I get to meet a lot of dogs as well, which is great for my business.”
The next Greater Vancouver Food Truck Festival will be presented at a community block party series in Richmond from April 29 to May 1.
