Festival showcases food truck flavors during two-day event
The list of food available from Flathead Valley food trucks is pretty extensive — from corn dogs and tacos to doughnuts and gyros. The offerings are plenty, but it’s rare to have many of those trucks in one location.
But on Friday, June 23 and Saturday, June 24 the fourth annual Flathead Food Truck Festival makes it possible to try as many bites as possible. The festival at Flathead County Fairgrounds runs from noon to 9 p.m. on both days.
Ryan Garnache, who owns KnucklHed BBQ food truck, said the festival is organized by food truck owners. The first festival began in 2020 with roughly a dozen vendors and this year there are more than 45 trucks scheduled.
“Instead of going to a concert where there are food trucks, we wanted to flip that around and create a food event that makes the trucks the focus,” he said. “We’re a family — food truck owners — and we get a chance to do an event or two together, but we rarely see each other so it’s nice to get together to bring so many trucks together.”
In addition to food trucks, the festival includes craft beer and wine, family-friendly games and live music. The Friday live music lineup includes Kelly Diane, Mike Murray, Zachary Christ, Luke Lautaret Project and Luke Dowler. Saturday’s music includes Borderline Lucid, Dan Dubuque, Kenny James Miller Band and FlatBlack.
“I tell people to come hungry and plan to stay longer than you think you will,” Garnache said.
Of the food trucks planned to attend, all but about three are based in the Flathead Valley.
The festival originated in 2020 when many public and private events were being canceled during the pandemic, and thus food trucks weren’t able to operate.
So organizers decided to create an event that would fill the void for the food trucks and attendees. It has since grown to more than 14,000 attending last year, and organizers are looking to improve the event each year.
Garnache says this year more activities have been added for families looking to spend time hanging out at the festival and additional seating is planned. In the future, organizers would like to be able to form a nonprofit organization to begin a scholarship program for students looking to get into the food business.
“We want to be a solid community gathering,” he said. “We’re always looking to get better each year.”
In conjunction with the festival, the Artists and Craftsmen of the Flathead is holding its 42nd annual Start of Summer art show and craft fair at the fairgrounds on Friday and Saturday. The art show runs from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on both days in the Trade Center Building. Admission is free.
General admission, which goes toward organizing the event, for the Food Truck Festival for ages 13 and older is $9. Children 12 and under are free but must be accompanied by an adult.
Discounts will be available leading up to the festival by visiting the Flathead Food Truck Festival page on Facebook and Instagram and at participating food trucks.
For tickets, visit https://tickets.dailyinterlake.com and click on the Flathead Food Truck Festival.
Features Editor Heidi Desch may be reached at 758-4421 or hdesch@dailyinterlake.com.