Navigating Cary’s Food Truck Scene

Cary, NC — To help limit grocery store trips and to also support local business, I’ve enjoyed designating a day of the week to order a take-out dinner, often from Cary’s food truck scene.

It wasn’t long into my quarantine routine before I came across a resource that’s been helpful in tracking down where local food trucks are parked, their hours and what’s on the menu. Here’s the scoop on the mobile app and website platform, Street Food Finder.

Note: This is not sponsored content, just my opinion and a recommendation for finding local street food.

The Features of SFF

Street Food Finder originated in Ohio and is available now in only certain cities across the U.S. Luckily for Cary, we’re included in the mix.

The app/website allows users to search by town, specific addresses, food truck names and local hotspot locations to find nearby eats.

The app also provides menu items and prices along with each truck. With more and more people ordering takeout lately, the app has also expanded to allow real-time and future orders to be placed directly in the app for some trucks who support this method.

On Saturday, I gave this feature a try with the Crispy Gyoza food truck that was parked in downtown Cary at Cotton House Craft Brewers. I did my searching Friday evening, found the truck and its menu and placed my order for a Saturday lunch with a 12:15 pickup time. I’m telling you, there’s nothing like pre-paying for a meal and then getting a notification the next day that it’ll be ready for pickup soon. Compared to my usual mealtime disposition, it felt like Christmas in April.

Finding a Food Truck Near You

I opted for the truck’s traditional pork and vegetable dumplings with edamame.

Finding what trucks are in and around Cary is simple using these steps:

1. Go to the SFF website or download the app on your phone
2. Choose your location preference: Allow only while using app, allow once or don’t allow
3. Begin searching and scrolling through all the local options! These will be categorized by what’s open now, open later today, open tomorrow and so on
4. To view the overall map, hit the tri-fold map symbol in the upper right-hand corner

Story and photos by Ashley Kairis.