Back That Thing Up: Food Truck-Friendly Wedding Venues

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The Schnitzel & Things truck at the author’s own wedding last fall at Brooklyn Winery (which no longer accomodates food trucks)

For a foodie wedding, gourmet food trucks offer an opportunity to serve delicious meals in unorthodox locations. For folks from out of town, a food truck’s presence just screams “New York!!” For a couple planning a wedding on a budget, catering from a food truck can represent a huge savings in comparison to a traditional caterer–by 50% or more.

You won’t necessarily get five kinds of hors d’oeuvres or a chocolate fountain, but you’ll balance that with the novelty of a fresh-fried schnitzel served out of a window under the stars. Many event venues are catching on to the growing popularity of the quirky food-mobiles, and are welcoming them with open doors.

It’s still a little hard to find food-truck friendly venues via Google, though, so I went to the sources, and chatted about catering weddings with a handful of the busier trucks: Schnitzel & Things, Wafels and Dinges, Rickshaw Dumpling Truck and the Bistro Truck. Like Rickshaw’s Kenny Lao, food truck owners seem to really like serving at weddings, and are honored to be a part of the special day. “It’s amazing and always really fun,” says Lao.

The extra elbow room we have in Brooklyn and Queens means we have lots of venues that include large outdoor spaces for celebrating, perfect for those meals on wheels.

At the Foundry in Long Island City, trucks can either park out front on the street or drive right into the 19th Century brick-walled courtyard.

The Queens County Farm Museum includes several reasonably-priced pastoral settings, including a barn and a picnic ground in the orchard. They even grow their own pumpkins, chickens and llamas on site!

If you’re feeling a little more rock-and-roll, Gowanus’ Littlefield and the Bell House not only can host food trucks, but they already have P.A.s in place for your reception’s live-band karaoke.

Greenpoint’s t.b.d. is happy to rent out a portion of their humongous space to you, and if the party is outside, a truck can pull into their graveled beer garden out back. You’ll save on furniture rentals too, if you like picnic tables.

The BSEC (Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture) is housed in a Prospect Park mansion that was built in 1900. The spaces inside are intimate (wedding-speak for small), but they are happy to let you park a truck outside to serve food.

With this taco, I thee wed…

Lastly, I can’t help but mention the gorgeous Green Building in Gowanus. BB is hosting the third annual Wedding Crashers fair there on March 4th and the Red Hook Lobster TruckFood FreaksSchnitzel & Things and Frites ‘N’ Meats will all be parked out front, so you can see for yourself how a food truck feels at a big, fun event!–Lee Ann Westover

 

2 Responses

  1. Camille Devaux -

    I really liked that you mentioned larger outdoor venues as the perfect places to hire a food truck. This is a big deal when trying to make sure that you are getting the most for your wedding. My best friend is getting married soon and might like this tip.

    Reply
  2. Stefan Robert -

    Food session is an important part of the wedding. The food truck can be the best choice for a cheaper price and delicious food. Catering from a food truck can represent a huge saving in comparison to a traditional caterer–by 50% or more.

    Reply

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