Food Truck Rodeo heats up in downtown Raleigh
RALEIGH (WTVD) -- The sweltering heat didn't stop thousands of people from flocking to downtown Raleigh for Sunday's Food Truck Rodeo.
It's a wildly popular event that showcases food trucks from the Triangle and beyond.
With roughly 50 food trucks lining Fayetteville Street, there was a little something for everyone.
"All of our cupcakes are named after 50's icons. We have Marilyn Monroe, Johnny Cash, Richie Valence," says the owner of Rockabella's, Emily Kozel.
This was the first appearance in Raleigh for Fayetteville-based Rockabella's.
The Wandering Moose also made their Food Truck Rodeo debut on Sunday.
"About two months up and running and it's fun being the new kid, and you get to learn from a lot of the other trucks around and they're helpful, so it's fun," says owner Anthony Reid.
Meanwhile, another popular truck was back after a big first appearance at Raleigh's last rodeo, which was no surprise given the reception they received.
"Overwhelming, overwhelming. It was exciting, a little 'oh my gosh!" the lines were forever and ever and ever!" shares an excited Deb Keller with Cousins Maine Lobster.
Anticipating the lines, one customer came almost two hours early to get first dibs.
"I was here since 11, but since no one was here, I put myself in the line at 11:30," admits a grinning Alejandro Rojas.
But, since not all foodies might be quite so dedicated, veteran vendors such as The Humble Pig have some advice to combat the long lines.
"Come in with a group of people and spread out, and have people come in and get in different lines and then you can all meet up in some centralized, hopefully shady location on a day like today, and then you can get food from multiple trucks," says Ross McCarthy.
McCarthy also says you can follow his truck and most others online, whether it's on their website or popular social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter.
There, you can find where they might be on any given day, and try them out in a less-crowded location where the lines likely wouldn't be as long.
