How to Choose a Food Truck Name + 50 Food Truck Name Ideas to Inspire You

Food Truck Name Ideas

Food trucks have taken off over the past decade, and the industry is booming. You can find food trucks in over 300 cities across the United States. If you’re looking to open one of your own, now is the time to do it. 

One of the first steps in building your food truck is choosing a name. It’s the name that’ll lead people to your business. It will be all over your truck, your branding, your marketing, and maybe even your napkins. That means it has to be a restaurant name you really like, one that represents your business effectively in a memorable and meaningful way. 

Sound like a tall order? No worries. Here are the four major steps of naming a food truck, from brainstorming to consulting with your community, and some ideas to inspire your concept.

How do I choose a food truck name?

Here's a brief overview of how to start brainstorming ideas so that you pick the perfect food truck name for your business. 

• Write down your vision for your food truck, focusing on its mission and core values. 

• Double-check that your food truck name isn’t already taken

• Play around with a name generator to spark new ideas. This tool will also help you rule out the types of names you don’t want! 

• Reach out to your community for food truck name ideas

Now, let’s dive into further detail about each of these steps below (and then get into some cool food truck name examples too!)

What are good food truck names?

A great food truck name should be unique to your business. It should stick in the minds of your first-time patrons, conveying your brand and your personality.

A good food truck name also informs potential patrons of what goods and services you offer. This will make them remember your name, especially if your name is easy to spell. These little details will help drive more business to your truck when customers get hungry.  

With all this in mind, here are some tips to get you on the path to discovering the right name for your new food truck.

1. Write down your vision for your food truck 

Your vision for your food truck is the main driver behind your business. A big part of that is understanding your food truck’s mission and core values. Your food truck’s mission statement describes who you are, why you’re here, and what you plan to accomplish as a member of your community. This should all play a large role in choosing the right name. 

There is, however, much more to a food truck name than just your mission statement. Let’s do a little exercise. Grab a pen and paper and write down the following:

• The type of food or drinks you’ll be offering

• Your food truck’s core values and mission

• The intended personality and vibe of your food truck

• Adjectives you’d use to describe your food truck

• Your name (and the name of your business partners, if any) 

• Any family names that are important to you

• The neighborhood or town where it will be located

The purpose of this exercise is to discover words and phrases that describe your food truck. These words could make up part of (or all of!) your food truck’s name. This list will also come in handy when building out your food truck business plan. 

When you can’t think of anything else to add, read back over your list of descriptors and circle your favorites. These will be building blocks for your food truck name.

2. Choose a name that isn’t already taken

To avoid copyright issues or accidentally sending your customers to another business, make sure your food truck’s name doesn’t already exist. Once you've settled on a handful of contenders, run each name through the following search engines and resources:

• Google search

• Google My Business

• The Yellow Pages 

• The Better Business Bureau

• The United States Patent and Trademark Office’s Trademark database search

To learn more about copyright infringement, visit Copyright.gov.

3. Use a food truck name generator to spark new ideas. 

Name generators can help get you out of writer’s block and inspire you to try different word combinations.

Some of the following generators ask for guidance in the form of keywords, while others just assemble random combinations of words. Either way,  it’s helpful to have your key word shortlist on hand. Just remember that some of the suggested names and combinations you get from the generators will be unusable. But these generators will overall help you narrow down what names or words you like and which ones you don't. You may even find the perfect restaurant name hiding in the results! 

Restaurant Name Generators

• Namelix Restaurant Name Generator 

• Buzztime Restaurant Name Generator

• Fantasy Name Generators' Restaurant Name Generator

• Business Name Generator

• Kopywriting Kourse Restaurant Name Generator

4. Ask your community for food truck name ideas

Most people who start food trucks aspire to build something special for their community. What better way to do so than to  involve your community  from day 1 by asking them for input on your food truck’s name? 

You can simply start by telling friends and family about your concept. By sharing your vision, it will make it easier for them to brainstorm names for your future food truck.

Another effective way to reach your community is through social media. There, you can list your name options and ask your community to vote on which name they like best. You can use your personal account, since you likely won't have a social media page built for your business if you haven't chosen a name yet. 

To build engagement around your social media post, you can offer future discounts or even raffle off a free meal on opening day to all the people who help you with naming your food truck. Or you can name an opening day special after them!

50 real, creative food truck name ideas to inspire you

When choosing a name for your new food truck, there are so many options and ways to approach it that the process can be a little overwhelming. Do you want your name to be funny? Bold? Cute? Clever? No matter what you’re looking for, it can be helpful to look to other food trucks for inspiration. 

Here’s 50 of the best food truck names around the country: 

Cute food truck names

1. The Bubble Tap – New Orleans, LA 

2. Sugar Philly – Philadelphia, PA 

3. The Marshmallow Cart – Portland, ME 

4. Mayo & Mustard – San Francisco, CA 

5. Hey PB&J – Denver, CO 

6. Buttercream Cupcakes – Philadelphia, PA 

7. The Tot Cart – Philadelphia, PA 

8. Bon Bon Buggy – Denver, CO 

Unique food truck names 

1. Luke's Inside Out – Austin, TX 

2. The Vegan Nom – Austin, TX 

3. Lunchbox Food Bus – Charleston, SC 

4. Foolish Waffles – Philadelphia, PA 

5. The Curious Goat – Minneapolis, MN

6. COOLHAUS – Dallas, TX 

7. Sauced – Las Vegas, NV 

8. Waffle Up – Denver, CO 

9. Twisted Mitten – Detroit, MI

10. Hero or Villain – Detroit, MI

Clever food truck names 

1. The Breakfast Jeanie – Atlanta, GA 

2. King of Pops – Atlanta, GA 

3. Basic Kneads – Denver, CO 

4. Crock Spot – Denver, CO 

5. What Up Dough – Detroit, MI

6. Farmer and The Beast – Portland, OR 

Rhyming + alliteration food truck names

1. Krab Kingz – Austin, TX 

2. Churro Co. – Austin, TX 

3. Husky Hog – Chicago, IL 

4. Ruthie's Rolling Cafe – Dallas, TX 

5. Waffle Wagon – Dallas, TX 

6. Concrete Cuisine – Detroit, MI 

7. Bacon Boys – Las Vegas, NV 

8. Shimmy Shack – Detroit, MI

9. Purple People Eatery – Miami, FL 

10. Green + The Grain – Minneapolis, MN

11. Where Ya At Matt – San Francisco, CA 

Funny food truck names

1. Grilldabeast – Atlanta, GA 

2. Flama On Wheels – Washington, D.C. 

3. Cookie Monstah – Boston, MA 

4. Bac'n Me Crazy – Charleston, SC

5. 'Wich, Please – Rockland, ME

6. Magic Carpet – Philadelphia, PA 

7. Stripchezze – Las Vegas, NV 

8. Immortal Lobster – Charleston, SC

9. The Cheezy Rider – Houston, TX

10. Food Drunk – New Orleans, LA

11. Zombie Bob's Pizza – Charleston, SC

12. Doughnut Vault – Chicago, IL 

13. Da Lobsta – Chicago, IL 

14. The Fat Shallot – Chicago, IL 

15. Chocolate Wasted Ice Cream Bus – Houston, TX

Food truck name? Check.

Once you’ve chosen your food truck name, the next steps of food truck ownership are there waiting for you. Time to build out your food truck business plan and plot the way forward. Soon enough, you’ll be on the road!

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