Photos below: Courtesy Walla Walla Food Truck Association
A feast on four wheels — or more like a 15 or so sets of them — rolls into Pioneer Park for Walla Walla Food Truck Night.
The local foodie tradition brings mobile vendors to the masses in a celebration of lovingly crafted dishes, live music and community. Eat your way through barbecue, tacos, smashburgers, mac-and-cheese, and Polynesian or Trinidadian fare, followed up with an array of desserts from cake pops to bundt cakes under the behemoth canopy of some of the state’s oldest trees at the heart of the city’s park system.
Monday, June 1, is the second of three such events scheduled for 2026. It runs 5-8 p.m. with Spokane-based singer/songwriter Kyle Richard set to perform in the park’s historical bandstand.
A break in July and August will be followed by the final event of the season Sept. 7.
Food Truck Night began as a grassroots movement by the owners of Bacon & Eggs in 2013. It later moved to Burwood Brewing Co., where the community appetite for parking-lot-to-plate dishes has only continued to grow.
This year marks a change of venue and new management. Burwood co-owner Jennifer Marshall has passed the operating torch to the Walla Walla Food Truck Association. The brewery remains a staple of the event, hosting what is believed to be the park’s first ever beer garden with cans and drafts served by members of Walla Walla Sweets Roller Derby.
“I think what makes it so special is it’s about community,” Marshall says. “You can spend as little or no money as you want. You can show up and just listen to the band. You have the option to try all different foods.
“People are looking for something to do outside. They’re looking for something that’s all ages and not just alcohol related.”
She says the new organizers quietly worked behind the scenes with her over the last several years for a seamless transition.
Efrain Reyes of La Monarca and Nicole Morgan of Whitman Acres Lemonade started as regular vendors at Food Truck Night. Reyes has been a vendor since the event’s inception. The two combined forces on the Walla Walla Food Truck Association, a membership trade organization that helps vendors with compliance, advocacy and support. It’s also become the organizational touchstone for event planners in search of food trucks for their festivals, parties and special happenings.
Reyes and Morgan are riding the high of a successful launch this season. May’s Cinco de Mayo-themed Food Truck Night, which included a mariachi concert, drew more than 6,000 people throughout the park, Morgan says.
“Our community loves our vendors,” she says.
At Pioneer Park, the event can meet the needs of a broader group of guests, she says.
“It’s very accessible,” she says. “It’s residential in every direction. There are walking paths. Families can go to the playground if they want to move around.”
It also has space for even more food vendors. May’s culinary convoy included 20 different operators — some on wheels and some under canopies. Monday’s second helping is expected to be just as good.
So, bring your appetite and get ready for a taste of community at Walla Walla Food Truck Night.