It’s no secret that Memphis is famous for the three S’s: soul, sauce, and sports…
We get our soul from being the home of the blues and birthplace of rock-n-roll, with iconic Beale Street entertainment, star-studded Sun Studios artists, and the latest generation of musicians who continue to bring the heat live from the kitchen… Our sauce is none-other than what makes our Memphis-style barbecue world famous. And yes, you guessed it, for sports, we got the Grizzlies.
The 4th S: Memphis Street-Food
Today we’re delving into the 4th S: street food! Don’t be s—urprised. Mobile dining and street food have been part of American’s dining habits since the late 17th century. Nowadays mobile eateries feature unique offerings of every type— from freshly caught seafood and gourmet burgers to gluten-free and vegan sandwiches, sides, and desserts. And their popularity is growing. The food-truck scene is flourishing and many trucks have menus to rival the city’s best-loved restaurants.
To create our ranking of this year’s Best Food Trucks in Memphis list, we scoured review sites like Yelp, TripAdvisor, UrbanSpoon, and the social media followings of the trucks themselves. So if you’re going to wait in line for a food truck, check out our picks first. Tell us if we got it right, and feel free to name a favorite spot we missed. Let’s work together to keep small, independent businesses with killer food flourishing. #ShopLocalMemphis
The Top 20
- Cousin’s Main Lobster: Get ready to satisfy those lobster cravings with Cousin’s Main Lobster. Proudly serving only premium, wild-caught, sustainably harvested lobster from Maine, these lobster rolls just melt in your mouth.
- El Mero Taco Truck: Fresh tacos and Mexican fare. The top-selling taco features fried chicken, queso, pickled jalapenos, and pickled onions. Don’t forget to stop by their restaurant too!
- Fresh Gulf Shrimp: They make ‘em every which way: fried, steamed, cajun spice, with shrimp boils and poboys. Plus fried oysters and fresh-cut fries. Usually parked at the Oak Court Mall.
- The Fry Guy: Not to be confused with Fries Guys. The Fry Guy serves seasoned, straight cut, or sweet potato fries loaded with toppings.
- Grisanti 9 Dough 1: Made to order in two minutes (yes, really), gourmet eight-inch personal pizzas featuring lobster, buffalo chicken, barbeque chicken, meat lovers, and lots of fresh veggies.
- Memphis Mojo Cafe: One-of-a-kind burger creations using handcrafted patties made from ground Angus, sirloin steak, and brisket.
- MEMPopS: The most delicious pops in town. Flavors vary depending on what’s fresh, with faves including roasted peaches, sweet cherry, lemongrass watermelon, fig and orange cream, fig and goat cheese, and avocado lime. Pops sell for $4 each.
- New Wing Order: Offering traditional or boneless wings with signature sauces (Memphis Buffalo, Grind City Gold, Midtown Masala, Pineapple Habanero, Ring of Fire) and seasonings (lemon pepper, Nikki’s hot). Don’t miss out on the hot wing nachos and buffalo chicken tacos! For vegetarians, they have avocado tacos, several varieties of fries, salad, and chips.
- Pupuseria Anita’s: Parked outside of a convenience store, Pupuseria Anita’s turned the convenience store into a dining room so that customers can sit and enjoy their food. Located at 658 Stratford Road, Pupuseria Anita’s serves a combination of Mexican and Central American food, and as its name suggests is best known for her pupusas—stuffed, thick flatbreads made of cornmeal, filled with your choice of cheese, pork, and beans.
- Raw Girls: Initially launched with raw food home delivery which later expanded to two trucks permanently parked at Eclectic Eye (242 S. Cooper) in Midtown and Hollywood Feed (5502 Poplar) out east. Raw Girls serve farm-to-table gourmet raw foods and cold-pressed juice cleanses.
- Say Cheese: The rotating sandwich menu includes Cluck Me (Buffalo chicken, blue cheese, and pepper jack ), the PCB (pimento cheese and bacon), the spinach artichoke dip on a baguette, and the “Pizza” with pepperoni, cheese, and marinara.
- Soi Number 9: Find this truck serving Authentic Thai street food at various locations on evenings and weekends. Crowd pleasers include rice bowls, noodle bowls, spring rolls, potstickers, fried tofu, sticky rice, and iced Thai coffee.
- StickEm: Chicken, tofu, shrimp, or beef kabobs served up with a side of perfectly seasoned, grilled vegetables make for a healthy, delicious meal.
- Tacos Los Jarochos: Permanently parked at 4900 Summer Avenue. Enjoy your tacos, tortas, and more.
Where to Find Them
Due to the fact that our winters are mild, and our summers are sunny, you can enjoy these top food trucks all year long. I guarantee it won’t take you long to figure out that there is much more to Memphis than just BBQ. Having a hard time choosing where to start? Don’t worry, we’re not done yet. If you’re new the idea of street-food and want to see what’s out there, we recommend checking out one of the following food truck parks. You’ll have a variety of creative dishes at your fingertips…
- Memphis Food Park: Monday – Friday beginning at 1030am #MemphisFoodTruckPark
- Food Truck Thursday: Every Thursday in Court Square Park #FoodTruckThursday
