Gahanna guitarist Zayne Harshaw at Creekside Blues & Jazz Festival in Gahanna, part 1
Gahanna guitarist Zayne Harshaw performs “Purple Rain” with the band Blue Spectrum on Sept. 18 at the Creekside Blues & Jazz Festival.
Marla K. Kuhlman, ThisWeek
- Over 45 food trucks will be present, offering diverse cuisines.
- Live music performances are scheduled throughout the weekend.
- The festival also features vintage and craft vendors.
The Columbus Food Truck Festival, voted by USA TODAY readers as one of the nation’s best local food festivals, returns to the Franklin County Fairgrounds, 4100 Columbia St., Hilliard, with a two-day lineup of food, music and merch.
After splitting its time in 2024 between the fairgrounds in Hilliard and the Scioto Peninsula in Columbus, the festival will make its home this year at the fairgrounds, where there’s plenty of parking and room to roam. Good thing, too: Attendance is up to about 100,000 people a year now, according to festival organizers.
Here’s all you need to know about the 2025 Columbus Food Truck Festival.
When is the Columbus Food Truck Festival?
The festival’s hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 16 and from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 17.
Tickets are $5 online at columbusfoodtruckfest.com before the first day of the festival and $10 at the door once it all starts. VIP lounge tickets ($30 in advance and $50 after the festival begins) include sample-size offerings from festival food trucks, complimentary Graeter’s ice cream, a credit-card bar and 20-minute sets from MikelParis of O.A.R.
What kind of food is available?
The 45 food trucks lined up for the festival will satisfy just about any craving, from superfood smoothies to melty cheesesteaks.
Among the more tempting items:
- Steak Frites Tower: From Eiffel Street Food of Columbus, it’s an order of loaded fries with thin-sliced ribeye, onion, bell peppers, cheese sauce and a house Eiffel sauce.
- Grilled cheese with pulled pork and peppers: It’s called the Tony Soprano, and it’s served by Grilled Cheese Gangsters of Pataskala. The spicy sandwich is loaded with smoked pulled pork and sauteed jalapeños, green peppers and onions.
- Island Noodles: The signature dish of the food truck with the same name includes soba noodles stir-fried with 21 vegetables. It’s a vegan dish, but it can be ordered with teriyaki chicken.
- Al pastor banh mi: Among the Mexican-Vietnamese fusion dishes from Komodo Loco of Columbus are a banh-mi sandwich of grilled pork al pastor, pickled carrots and daikon, cucumbers, cilantro, jalapeños, pâté and mayo.
- Pineapple Upside Down Funnel Cake: Glaze ‘Em Gourmet Funnel Cakes of Toledo serves 10 perked-up versions of the traditional festival favorite, including one with brown sugar-glazed pineapple.
Some other trucks serving up festival fare include American Mess Hall, Amish Country Donuts, Bada Bing Bada Wing, Big Pappy’s BBQ, Brazilian Grill and Bakery, Ciao Gelato Truck, Cousins Maine Lobster, For the Love of Dough, Frida’s Authentic Mexican, Gourmet Mac Shak, Grateful Griddle, IrieJam Island Grill, La Orangette, Lyle’s Crepes, Mother Mel’s Wholesome Diner, My Folks Kitchen, Sonora Bites, Spanish Bowl, Taqueria Las Costeñas, The Icy Paw, The Lumpia Queen, The Original Steaks and Hoagies, TurkeysRUs BBQ, Zaki Grill and Zapatas Street Food.
Is there entertainment?
There’s a full music lineup both days of the Columbus Food Truck Festival.
On Aug. 16, School of Rock-Dublin kicks things off from noon to 1:30 p.m., followed by Blue Spectrum from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m., A Band Called Dreamland from 4 to 5:15 p.m., Friends of the Dead from 5:45 to 7:30 p.m. and The Liner Notes from 8 to 9:30 p.m.
On Aug. 17, School of Rock-Columbus leads off from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., followed by the Andy Shaw Band from 1 to 2:30 p.m., Angela Perley from 3 to 4:30 p.m. and Lawler from 5 to 6:30 p.m.
What else is part of the weekend?
The Columbus Food Truck Festival includes about 25 vendors of vintage clothing, toys, vinyl records and collectibles that will make up the Columbus Vintage Exchange. There are also about 15 sellers of candles, soaps, stickers and other craft items.
Dining reporter Bob Vitale can be reached at [email protected] or at @dispatchdining on the Instagram social platform.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.dispatch.com ’
