Roll into summer with Western Mass. food trucksDate: 6/28/2021 WESTERN MASS. – The popularity of the food truck has grown by leaps and bounds and with it the vast array of options offered by the mobile purveyors of culinary delights.
From staples like barbeque and taco to the more exotic, the Pioneer Valley is home to a truly eclectic assortment of food trucks.
Reminder Publishing explored the world of the wheeled kitchen give you a sampling of what could be rolling into your neighborhood. Of course, this is not a complete list of all of the amazing food trucks and Reminder Publishing encourages you to use this list as a springboard into your own delicious deep dive into what the region has to offer.
Thai Chili Food Truck
Based out of Agawam, the Thai Chili Food Truck runs from May to October, according to their Facebook page. The truck offers delicious copious foods such as stir fry chicken green curry over rice, honey sesame cold noodle and a famous Thai dessert that, according to their page, can be found on the streets of Bangkok during mango season: Thai sweet sticky rice and fresh mango.
According to their Facebook page, they will be all over Western Mass. during the 2021 season. On Tuesdays from 12:30 to 6 p.m. they will be at the Forest Park Farmers Market in Springfield, on Thursdays from 12 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. the truck will be at the Westfield Farmers Market and on Fridays from 12:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. they will be at Black Birch Wines in Hatfield. On the weekends, on Saturdays they will be at the Amherst Farmers Market from 7:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., and on Sundays every other week they will be at the Easthampton Farmers Market from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. In addition, they will be serving as a pop up food truck at local breweries and wineries.
For more information on Thai Chili Food Truck, head to their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/thaichili46/
Batch Ice Cream
The Batch Ice Cream food truck recently opened their first storefront shop in Longmeadow. The owners of the food truck Dave and Deb LeRiche began their journey with Batch in May of 2018. The Boston-founded company was created in 2009 by Susie Parish and Veronica Janssens. After becoming a regional and award-winning favorite in the Boston area, the LeRiche’s brought Batch to Western Mass.
While Batch has storefronts across Rhode Island, the Greater Boston area and even Connecticut, Dave and Deb went on to open the first Western Massachusetts store in Longmeadow on June 23.
Batch ice cream is known for flavors such as brown sugar bourbon and pecan; dark chocolate, mexican chile and roasted almonds; salted caramel; ginger; green tea; and caramelized banana and walnuts. While the location of the Batch truck varies they will be at the East Longmeadow fireworks on July 3 from 4:30 p.m. to 11 p.m., at the East Longmeadow parade on July 4 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and at Center Fresh Chicopee on Aug. 19 from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.
More information on the Batch Scoop Truck can be found online at batchicecream.com or on the Batch Facebook page.
Bruiser’s BBQ
Bruiser’s BBQ is known for their smoked meats and barbeque offerings. The food truck, which has an attached area to grill and smoke their food, can be found at events throughout Western Massachusetts, including the Big E and the Three County Fair in Northampton. The truck has also been known to travel to surrounding states for events such as New York and New Hampshire.
Owned by South Hadley resident Scott Moore, the truck offers items such as beef brisket sandwiches, pulled pork sandwiches, pulled pork nachos, pulled pork mac-n-cheese and even their own version of a barbeque sundae. The food uses a variety of homemade rubs and sauces to give it a unique flavor that is popular among Western Mass. residents and fair-goers across New England.
Menu updates and event listings can be found on the Bruiser’s BBQ “It’s All About the Smoke” Facebook page.
Canta Gallo
Canta Gallo food truck opened in April with the intention of serving Western Massachusetts residents’ homemade Hispanic cuisine.
Canta Gallo serves a variety of Puerto Rican, Dominican and Mexican food. Some days, they feature vegan and vegetarian options, and they also post daily specials on their Facebook page.
Canta Gallo doesn’t have a permanent location, but rather moves the truck around to different areas, mainly in Springfield. Owner Denise Reyes said that she always posts where they will be located on their Facebook page.
Canta Gallo’s hours of operations are Thursday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. or 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. depending on their location. Reyes said that she is open to catering private events or parties with no more than 50 people.
Those interested in learning more about Canta Gallo are encouraged to visit their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/denise.lugo.7792.
Rooster’s Roaming Cantina
Rooster’s Roaming Cantina, a cash-only establishment, is host to a perhaps more extensive menu than traditional food trucks. Their menu ranges from various types of street tacos, to “burgers & things” which includes burgers, corn dogs, tenders and a bbq pork sandwich, to cantina cubanos which are described as “extra large pressed sandwich stuffed and grilled to perfection, served with fries,” to several sides and churros.
Though their location varies, as do many food trucks, typical haunts for Rooster’s Roaming Cantina include Echo Hill Orchards and Winery in Monson, Hardwick Vineyard & Winery in Hardwick, the Ludlow Fish & Game Club and next to the Monson Town Offices. To find out more about Rooster’s Roaming Cantina’s location, head to the Rooster’s Roaming Cantina Facebook page or call at 813-8660.
Bistro Bus
Bistro Bus is a local food truck that serves a variety of burgers, hot dogs, quesadillas and weekly chef specials. They also offer “lighter fare” foods such as their sesame noodle salad.
They travel to many local vineyards and breweries around Western Massachusetts including Glendale Ridge Vineyard in Southampton and Fort Hill Brewery in Easthampton.
Bistro Bus posts both their menu and location schedule each week on their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/lc.catering413. They will also post any cancelations due to weather.
Bistro Bus caters private events and those interested in learning more are encouraged to call 552-8699.
Log Rolling
Log Rolling is a food truck by The Log Cabin and Delaney’s Grill. According to their website, the food truck can come to any event or party fully loaded and ready to serve Delaney’s cuisine.
The truck is able to work with guests to customize their menu to include breakfast, burgers, gourmet dinners and more. Examples of pre-set menus include an American BBQ, a Tex-Mex bar, Irish pub style food and a gourmet grilled cheese and soup.
The food truck rental fee is $350 along with a $250 labor fee. Their website states that “pricing is based on 1.5 hours of service within a 15-mile geographical radius of the Log Cabin. Every mile over the 15-mile radius is $3.50 per mile.”
Those interested in learning
more are encouraged to visit https://www.logrollingcatering.com/.
The Laughing Tomato
The Laughing Tomato offers fresh, artisanal pizzas using their wood fire oven, which they say on their Facebook page can bake a pizza at 700 degrees in under two minutes.
The Laughing Tomato can frequently be found at Black Birch Vineyard in Hatfield on the weekends but requires online purchases for pickup. Each weekend they offer a unique specialty pizza, and the most recent offering was “The Aloha” which came topped with red sauce, mozzarella and parmesan cheese, pineapple tidbits, Canadian Bacon, crumbled bacon, and barbeque sauce.
The Laughing Tomato is also available for catering for many events including birthdays, graduations, fundraisers, and many more and can be reached through their website, www.thelaughing
tomato.com.
Local Burgy
In addition to its main location in Northampton, Local Burger also offers a catering and food truck service for various events based out of Haydenville and named Local Burgy.
Along with offering a similar menu to the Northampton location, Local Burgy also offers barbeque food including pulled pork, brisket and barbeque ribs with sides such as mac and cheese, coleslaw and potato salad.
For its catering service, people can order barbecue meat by the pound along with their choice of larger sides which can serve 15 to 20 people. People can also order the food truck to show up in-person to prepare its barbeque or any menu items on location.
Local Burgy is open seasonally at 93 Main St. in Williamsburg and is also available for catering. Anyone interested in finding out more can call 268-8300 or head online to www.localnorthampton.
com/catering.
Little Trúc
Little Trúc is a creative southeast Asian food truck based out of Easthampton.
According to Little Trúc founders Alex Kemper and Katrina Pierson, the food truck sells southeast Asian food that is made up of different countries and cultures including, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, The Philippines, Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos.
They change their menu every week, but on a typical night, people may find a Bánh mì sandwich, Gado gado, a type of Laab, a type of Thai salad, a noodle dish and a curry. For sides, the food truck sells a stir-fry of whatever local vegetable is in season or looks good, as well as some crispy wings with fish sauce or Vietnamese egg rolls.
“We park all over but this summer for our regular spots, you can find us every other Friday night at The Brass Cat in Easthampton, and every other Thursday night at Glendale Ridge in Southampton,” said Pierson. “We also park at some of the breweries in town and do a lot of private events and catering.”
Little Trúc also does a lot of traditional catering without the truck like weddings, rehearsals dinners and birthday parties.
“We have many different catering formats that we offer with tiered menu pricing depending on what a client is looking for from a small, plated sit down get together in a backyard to 150 guests ordering directly from the truck window,” said Pierson.
The food truck also offers products and condiments for people who want to cook at home. With many events cancelled due to the pandemic, Little Trúc began making and selling their various curry pastes and chili condiments via the Sunderland Farm Collaborative. People can expect to find these items in local grocery stores soon, according to Pierson.
“After an absolutely brutal year for restaurants, we are personally looking forward to places being able to get back to some sort of normalcy,” said Pierson. “We are also looking forward to the dining public hopefully gaining a better understanding and appreciation of restaurants and the people who work in them.”
To learn more about the food truck, visit their Facebook listed as Little Trúc.
Ginger Love Cafe
Ginger Love Cafe is a pop up food vendor that is influenced by Filipino street foods which is an eclectic mix of Chinese, Spanish and South East Asian flavors. According to their Facebook, the vendor was created for “the love of healthy food, music and community.”
“The concept is to emulate a night market in the Philippines that caters to the evening crowds and bar goers serving up charcoal grilled barbecues and other traditional Filipino plates,” said Sherryla Diola, owner of Ginger Love.
People can find the pop up vendor on some weekends at the Abandoned Building Brewery, Black Birch Vineyard, Hitchcock Brewing Company and some local music festivals. A complete schedule of events can be found on their Facebook, Instagram and website.
Ginger Love will have a few menu changes in the coming months as the season changes, and they have a few beer dinners and wine dinners in the works.
“It’s our first year with the Filipino Street Food concept and the response has been so tremendous,” said Diola. “I am just excited to feature Filipino food and introduce my culture and food to our community.”
To learn more about their menu and what locations Ginger Love Cafe will be featured at, visit their website, gingerlovecafe413.com.
Caravan Kitchen
Based out of Northampton, Caravan Kitchen is a food truck that has been rollin’ since 2018. Operating from early April until the first few weeks of November, Caravan Kitchen offers paninis made on artisanal bread with over 10 options to choose from.
Along with the standard specialty paninis, Caravan Kitchen has both vegetarian and meat options, vegan paninis, and most always, gluten free bread for customers who ask.
The average price for a panini is $9.50. The most basic grilled cheese costs $5 – when adding toppings, the cost increases. Caravan Kitchen accepts both cash and cards. Sides include pickles and the famous Miss Vickie's Potato Chips. Drinks offered are Snapple, seltzer, or water.
Netania Shapiro, proprietor of the food truck is the one responsible for pressing the paninis, while her children or other employees work the window.
She said the pandemic caused them to shift gears, resulting in more visits to local wineries or breweries such as Hitchcock Brewery in Bernardston. Typically, Caravan Kitchen will travel within a 30 mile radius. For larger events, Shapiro will take the truck further.
Depending on location, the truck’s hours of operation may differ. Caravan Kitchen will be at Forthill Brewery in Easthampton, every Sunday, from 2 to 6 p.m., for the majority of the summer.
Whether Caravan Kitchen is serving 20 people or 200, Shapiro makes sure to work with her customers to ensure they’re consuming the best, most healthy options feasible.
Those interested in learning more about Caravan Kitchen are encouraged to visit their website at www.caravankitchen.com
Murphy’s Mobile
Murphy’s Mobile is a food truck operated by Murphy’s Pub in Agawam. Murphy’s Pub opened in 2012, and a few years later, began operating a food truck.
Presenting as an Irish pub, Murphy’s is most well-known for their Corned Beef Sandwich. As described on their website the sandwich is, “House-made corned beef piled high on toasted rye bread with melted Swiss cheese.”
From the reuben tots to the barbecue options, Murphy’s menu is nothing short of appetizing and offers something for everyone.
Every meal comes with a side of your choice. Non-alcoholic drinks and desserts are also offered. Thomas Murphy, Murphy’s Pub owner said, “We can do most anything!”
The truck operates year round, even though the winter months are slow. Right now, the truck primarily does catered events and paid parties, which picks up during this time of year. From July until September, Murphy’s Mobile has several dates at Tree House Brewing Company.
For catered events, prices generally range between $12 to $18 plus tax per person. Cash and cards are accepted.
While there is no formal schedule due to the catered events, the truck does operate during three time frames. Lunch – 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Dinner – 4 to 7 p.m.; and Late – anything after 7 p.m. (after wedding events, etc).
Murphy’s offers packages for parties and has an extensive brochure of options to choose from on their website. To book Murphy’s Mobile for your next event or to see where they’ll be traveling to, visit https://www.murphyspubagawam.com for additional information.
The Holyoke Hummus Company
The Holyoke Hummus Company was operating a brick and mortar location on High Street in Holyoke for four years when the pandemic forced them to switch exclusively to its two food trucks, appropriately named “The Great Garbanzo” and “The Little Chickpea.”
Rather than having to track down the trucks for a hit of hummus, the Holyoke Hummus Company has a long-term location Tuesday through Saturday, from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m. at 110 Pleasant St., Northampton in the parking lot of Resinate. If a trip to Northampton isn’t in the cards, patrons can order online at holyokehummuscompany.com and delivery is available through Doordash.
While the food truck’s menu isn’t as extensive as the cafe’s, there are still plenty of dishes from which to choose. The trucks offer a falafel plate, with an Israeli salad, pickled turnip, hummus, pita and grape leaves. Falafel also comes in a sandwich, on a skewer or as a slider. An array of sides can be ordered, such as french fries, grapes leaves or hummus. There’s a “pita butter & jelly” for kids and baklava for dessert. Most items are vegetarian and some are gluten free.
More information on The Holyoke Hummus Company food trucks or catering can be found at https://holyokehummuscompany.com or by calling 225-1755.
Crave Food Truck
The Crave Food Truck, a scaled-down version of the restaurant at 285 High St. in Holyoke, offers the same Puerto Rican-inspired flavors as its storefront sibling, but in a mobile format. The menu includes fried tacos and rice bowls, but puts a twist on them with tropical flavors and options like “buffalo cauliflower” and jackfruit. The truck also serves lemonades with gourmet flavors like strawberry mint and blueberry lavender.
The truck’s weekly schedule is available at https://www.cravetruckma.com/food-truck. People can learn more at 504-9204 or by emailing cravefoodtruck413@gmail.com.
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