Photo: manulimage/Shutterstock

The 8 Best Food Trucks in Austin

Austin Food + Drink
by Power Couple Life Dec 8, 2016

FRANKLIN BBQ gained a lot of spotlight being featured on Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations, The Food Network’s Best.BBQ.Ever, and On the Road Eats, but is it really worth the wait? To us it’s a lot of hype. Here are our favorite food trucks in Austin.

Editor’s note: These spots are all taken directly from travelstoke®, a new app from Matador that connects you with fellow travelers and locals, and helps you build trip itineraries with spots that integrate seamlessly into Google Maps and Uber. Download the app to add any of the spots below directly to your future trips.

Chi’Lantro

 Chi’LantroAustin, United StatesTheir food is an Korean-Mexican fusion truck with some crazy combinations that are delicious. They serve hybrid tacos, burritos, and bowls that meld Korean tastes and tradition with Texas’ rich Hispanic culture.
What did we order? The Kimchi Fries of course! Who could resist a tower of crispy fries topped with caramelized kimchi, cheddar, monterey jack, cilantro, onions, magic sauce, sriracha, and sesame seeds

La Barbecue

 La BarbecueAustin, United StatesIn this case, “La” is not a definite article referring to “Tex-Mex”, it’s an abbreviation referring to the first name of the co-owner LeAnn Mueller, granddaughter of the founder of Louie Mueller Barbecue. The brisket here is cooked for 12 to 15 hours at about 275 degrees, and has a smoke ring of perfection.
Like most BBQ trucks in Texas, they are open til they sell out. Get there at 11am when they open to guarantee yourself some lunch. Come on the weekend and there is free beer Friday through Sunday! The BBQ is amazing just the way it is, but try a little of their vinegar based sauce as well, icing on the cake!
What did we order? 1 pound of lean brisket, beef ribs, The buttermilk bacon potato salad.

Torchy’s Tacos

 Torchy’s TacosAustin, United StatesThe menu was designed by the customers. Whenever Mike heard his customers holler “damn these tacos are good!” they were added to the menu. Today Torchy’s Tacos operate over 30 stores and a trailer park.
What did we order? The taco of the month, which happened to be The Tipsy Chick : Grilled chicken and corn, green chiles, baby spinach, homemade maple bacon and burbon marmalade, cheddar cheese and chipotle ranch sauce served on a flour tortilla. The Democrat is also a favorite of ours.
Don’t forget the queso and chips, recently voted #1 by locals.

Ms P’s Electric Cock

 Ms P’s Electric CockAustin, United StatesStop giggling at the name and keep reading. This place is cooking up the best fried chicken in Austin. Open at noon daily, they close when they are out of farm fresh chicken. Ms Ps Electric Cock cooks with sustainable, top quality products locally sourced. The fried chicken is fresh (never frozen) and is antibiotic free, hormone free with no additives or preservatives. You might have seen them on Restaurant Startup Season 2, or Food Network’s Eat Street Season 3.
What did we order? The Hen Scratch Slider, boneless tenders with slaw on a sweet roll, and a 2 piece of fried chicken, spicy & juicy,served with roll & jalapeño.

Hey!…You Gonna Eat or What?

 Hey!…You Gonna Eat or What?Austin, United StatesOrder from here and get some snarky attitude on the side, but that’s all part of the experience.
What did we order? The Shiner Bock Monte Cristo, a Shiner Bock beer-battered monte cristo, with pit-smoked ham, mesquite-smoked turkey, cheddar and provalone cheese with a side of homemade cherry and fig jelly.

Gourdough’s Big. Fat. Donuts.

 Gourdough’s Big. Fat. Donuts.Austin, United StatesThey specialize in made to order, decadent, donuts with wild toppings. They have three locations now, but the trailer is our favorite. The line gets long after 10am so get there early. If you perfer a sitdown, indoor location, their other 2 nearby spots have full bars and bigger menus. Head to the location on South Lamar and have a Country Clucker, thank us later.
What did we order? The Mother Clucker and Granny’s Pie are our top 2 choices. They all look delicious and it is hard to choose. The Mother Clucker is a glazed donut, topped with chicken strips and honey butter. Granny’s Pie is a glazed donut topped with caramel, pecans, bananas & graham cracker crumbs.

Cow Tipping Creamery

 Cow Tipping CreamerySunset Valley, United StatesThe menu is huge, and the possiblities are endless. Soft serve goes to another level with the ice cream trailer’s stackers, which layer everything that makes sundaes delicious, including housemade ingredients, including fresh fruit purees.
What did we order? The cara-nutella popcorn stacker.

Bananarchy

 BananarchyAustin, United StatesGoing here reminds us of hot days at the fair, waiting for a hand dipped, chocolate covered, frozen banana. The only choices then were nuts or no nuts? (PS: Always nuts). At Bananarchy, there are endless topping choices on their menu, or you can create your own disater concoction.
What did we order? Double dip chocolate with M&M’s and chocolate dip with nuts and oreos.

Discover Matador

Adventure Travel

Epic Stays

Train Travel

National Parks

Beaches and Islands

Ski and Snow

Wildlife

Road Trips

Wellness