Asheville is an enchanting community that’s nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Carolina’s western corner. This is a growing city that has largely retained its southern, small-town charm and artisan culture. Here, visitors will find a lot of emphasis on homemade items, like artwork but also, naturally, food.
Good food is truly celebrated in Asheville, NC with an exciting array of flavors available for locals and visitors to feast on. Whether you like gourmet cheeseburgers, delicate vegan entrees, or hip coastal cuisine, we’re sure you’ll find something that fits your palette perfectly in Asheville. And it doesn’t even necessarily have to be at a traditional brick-and-mortar establishment!
Take a look at the following outstanding food trucks you’ll find roving this city:
1. Tahini Jar
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828-808-3340
If you love vegetarian things and/or have an adoration for Middle Eastern foods, then make sure to look up the Tahini Jar the next time you are in Asheville. The Tahini Jar is a beloved Asheville food truck that has been around for quite some time now. This is a family-owned and operated business with the chef having been trained in the classical Le Cordon Bleu program. Chef Ron opened up the Tahini Bar in Spring of 2020 with the goal of bringing forth a menu that explores dynamic plant-based cuisine based around Middle Eastern flavors and dining concepts. The result has been a massive success and you will often find Tahini Jar parked and selling out at local breweries and events.
All of the menu items at Tahini Jar are fully vegan, meaning no animal products or even animal byproducts are used (meaning no eggs or milk as well as no beef, lamb, etc.). Popular menu items here include the Mushroom Shwarma Pita, which features a warm pita stuffed with a very unique and delicious mushroom schwarma with tium Israeli salad, pickles, and topped with sauces. Their Schwarma Seasoned Fries are also very popular and come loaded with finger-licking toppings.
2. The Smokin’ Onion
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Another great vegan food truck that cruises around Asheville is The Smokin’ Onion Food Truck. In fact, this food truck was recently voted the third-best food truck in all of Western North Carolina, beating out over one hundred non-vegan food truck entrees. This restaurant on wheels first opened in September 2021 by two industrious locals, Chef Parker Schultz and his partner Kiimia, and is readily found every Tuesday at the New Belgium Brewing location in the city’s River Arts District, and often gets parked and opened up during local events. The group behind The Smokin’ Onion also operates a restaurant under the same name that’s located on Haywood Road.
For the Smokin’ Onion Food Truck, in contrast to the Tahini Jar, the menu focuses primarily on American grilled items, making this a great choice for those who want to be healthy but also want to chow down on some slightly greasy grilled items. One of the most popular items on their menu is The Trashy Burger which features an Impossible burger patty topped with Follow Your Heart American Cheese, all the fixings, and served in a homemade bun. There’s also the Buffalo Cauliflower Wrap which features fried cauliflower that’s been smothered in buffalo sauce, drizzled with their homemade ranch sauce, and stuffed with fixings.
3. Tin Can Pizzeria
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828-337-3647
The Tin Can Pizzeria is one of the more unique food trucks on this best of list because while they pop up at various breweries around town to serve to the general public, they are best known as a catering company. And has been known as such for quite some time! The Tin Can Pizzeria has been in business for an impressive 12 years and is renowned for using only the freshest, locally sourced ingredients in each of their delicious pizzas. They offer three different catering packages for weddings, business events, and other special activities, one of which includes an option for endless pizza slices that are all served crispy and fresh straight out of their specially-built food truck oven.
But remember, you don’t necessarily have to book the Tin Can Pizzeria for a wedding in order to enjoy their crispy pizza pies. You just need to find out which brewery they’re booked at for the week you’re traveling. Places they regularly serve out of include Wedge Brewing and New Belgium Brewing.
4. Root Down Food Truck
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828-808-5312
We can’t make an Asheville food truck list without adding a Southern fare option! This is the type of food that the Root Down Food Truck truly excels at. Here, you will find savory Southern comfort food sourced from all fresh, locally sourced ingredients. In fact, they don’t even have a static menu because what they serve changes every week as well as every season based on what ingredients are in season and which ones they can get freshest, of the highest quality from local sources. That said, one of their most popular reoccurring menu items is the Pimento Cheese Grits which feature creamy grits topped with tangy pimento cheese and bacon fried extra crispy.
5. Gypsy Queen Cuisine
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828-575-2758
Gypsy Queen Cuisine is a tri-fold company that caters, operates a brick-and-mortar restaurant, and features a food truck that goes just about anywhere. Truly, the Gypsy Queen Cusine food truck has been spotted just about everywhere in and around Asheville, including backyard barbecues and massive music festivals. This group specializes in Mediterranean and Lebanese street food with popular menu items including the Lamb & Beef Shawarma Wrap which features thick chunks of meat served within a pita alongside mint cabbage slaw, tomatoes, tarator sauce, garlic aioli, and parsley.
Learn More About the Best Dining Spots in Asheville
Of course, as great as food trucks are, they are a bit less reliable than brick-and-mortar restaurants that don’t have the option to move about or switch locations based on catering calendars. To learn more about some of the best such tried-and-trued, best-of-Asheville restaurants, be sure to check out our other review pages.
