Food trucks are popping up all over the place, and Hollywood is no exception. Grab yourself some popcorn (or just head to your nearest eats on wheels – visit BostonFeed.me to find a live map of your closest) and get ready for our list of the best movies, TV shows and documentaries featuring food trucks.
Chef (2014)
Chef features a star-cast including Jon Favreau, Sofia Vergara, John Leguizamo, Robert Downey Jr. and Dustin Hoffman. Have you ever seen a meltdown due to a bad review? Well, Carl – the main character, played by Favreau – quits his job as a restaurant chef after a reviewer tears him apart in a review.
Carl’s subsequent meltdown goes viral, and his son inspires him to turn terrible publicity into something good: Of course, Carl buys a fixer-upper food truck and they embark on one of the greatest food road trips ever. Favreau had some training to make his part as a chef look authentic.
It’s a sure must-see for any food lovers and chefs. Grab some food before you watch this: You will get hungry watching! The trailer is on YouTube over here.
The Five Year Engagement (2012)
The Five Year Engagement stars Jason Segel (yes, that one) as Tom, a chef who is heavily dissatisfied with his career – that’s been dragging around about as long as his engagement to Violet (played by Emily Blunt). Much like the main character behind Chef, Tom decides to start up a food truck by fixing up an old ambulance. Because why the heck not, right?
You can check out the official trailer on YouTube here.
Masa Revolution (2013)
Patricia Nazario is a veteran journalist whose career spans several decades covering everything from the Rodney King Riots to child labor on farms in Equador. Masa Revolution is a bilingual English-Spanish documentary exploring the history of Mexican food trucks and how their popularity has influenced the people behind them and food culture as a whole.
Visit Patricia Nazario’s official website here, go to MasaRevolution.com or watch the trailer on Vimeo. (Oh, and if you were wondering, ‘masa’ is Spanish for dough!)
The Flying Pink Pig (2011)
Isn’t there just something about food trucks that make you feel kind of sexy and makes you want to take all your clothes off? No? Well, someone did – fortunately or unfortunately depending on your point of view – and came up with a movie called ‘The Flying Pink Pig’ starring adult film star Ron Jeremy. (He was nicknamed the Hedgehog for being exceptionally hairy, which is just one reason you don’t want to see this movie.)
Unfortunately, we’re not kidding: It spawned a sequel and a lawsuit thanks to the real food truck The Flying Pig. The trailer, if you really have to see it, can be seen here.
Food Truck Heroes
Food Truck Heroes is a YouTube web series hosted by Carlos ‘Empanada Guy’ Serrano, and is another must-see for food truck lovers: This is a real inside look into food trucks all over the country and just what’s going on inside them. You can check out the first episode – Meet Empanada Guy – on YouTube and watch from there.
Food on Four Wheels
Speaking of shorts, Food on Food Wheels by documentary filmmaker Docutopia explores the food truck culture in the town of Durham, North Carolina. At 14 minutes you can even check it out on your phone while you’re waiting in line for your order. Are you hungry yet? Check it out on YouTube here.
Happy Endings
If you’re a fan of the TV show Happy Endings, you might have spotted Dave’s attempt at a food truck called “Steak Me Home Tonight”. There’s an actual website for it here.
What’s your favourite food truck appearance in a movie, TV show or doccie? Get in touch and tell us!
Author: Alex J Coyne
