The Most Popular Food Vans in the UK, Revealed
From Indian street food and Pan-Asian delicacies to traditional fish and chip shops, the UK is a nation of food lovers that wholeheartedly embrace every cuisine.
And, with summer well on its way, more Brits are certain to be looking to eat al fresco while out and about in the sun. That’s where food vans come into the picture, offering a quick bite to eat without the hassle of booking a table or sitting indoors.
But where should you head for your tasty lunch-on-the-go? And how can you tell your bog-standard burger van from an artisan street food vendor?
To help point hungry customers in the right direction, we have conducted research on social media to reveal the UK’s most popular food vans that every foodie needs to visit.
Continue reading, below, to find out more.
Which food vans are most popular on Instagram?
Whether it’s recipes from Gordon Ramsay himself or pictures of your friend’s recent restaurant outing, scrolling through Instagram is a surefire way to get your hunger pangs going.
So, in our bid to find the tastiest and most popular food vans in the UK, we searched for the vendors with the most followers on Instagram. After all, looking longingly at well-photographed dishes is as close as we can get to trying before buying.
And, with over 24,500 followers, Sud Italia in London is at the top of the list. This mouth-watering Italian has become a firm fixture of the iconic Spitalfields Market in recent years, delighting both followers and customers with its array of authentic Neapolitan pizzas.
Next on the list is Taquitos in Belfast, a Mexican street food van with over 14,000 followers on Instagram. Tacos and burritos are the orders of the day here, with pictures that are just begging to be sampled in real life.
We head back to London to round out our top three most Instagrammable food vans, with Anna Mae’s eclectic selection of mac ‘n’ cheese making an impression on social media. This comfort food specialist has racked up over 13,000 followers on Instagram with its amazing mac ‘n’ cheese menu.
To see the other Instagrammable food vans in the top 10, take a look at the table, below.
|
Ranking |
Food van |
Instagram handle |
City |
Instagram following* |
|
#1 |
Sud Italia |
@sud_italia |
London |
24,500 |
|
#2 |
Taquitos |
@taquitosbelfast |
Belfast |
13,900 |
|
#3 |
Anna Mae’s |
@mac_not_crack |
London |
13,000 |
|
#4 |
The Green Grill |
@thegreengrill |
London |
11,100 |
|
#5 |
Icarus & Apollo |
@icarusandapollo_eats |
Sheffield |
6,023 |
|
#6 |
Dim Sum Su |
@dimsumsu |
Manchester |
5,985 |
|
#7 |
The Bournville Waffle Company |
@thebournvillewaffleco |
Birmingham |
5,531 |
|
#8 |
Mrs Falafel |
@mrsfalafelglasgow |
Glasgow |
4,859 |
|
#9 |
Falafel Guys |
@falafelguysuk |
Leeds |
4,146 |
|
#10 |
Dough Man’s Land |
@doughmansland |
Glasgow |
3,679 |
*As of 31st May 2023.
Which food vans are most popular on Facebook?
Instagram isn’t the only social media platform where people spend time pining after delicious dishes – Facebook is also a treasure trove of photogenic food, just waiting to be claimed!
In terms of food vans, it’s Big Bula in Leicester that takes the top spot. This Polish street food vendor has amassed over 14,000 likes on Facebook with eye-popping pictures of huge pittas, tortilla wraps, and hot dogs.
The places on the podium are then filled out with Instagram favourites, Taquitos and Sud Italia, who boast over 10,000 and 8,000 Facebook likes, respectively.
To find out which other food vans are popular on Facebook, see our top 10 table, below.
|
Ranking |
Food van |
City |
Facebook likes* |
|
#1 |
Big Bula |
Leicester |
14,000 |
|
#2 |
Taquitos |
Belfast |
10,042 |
|
#3 |
Sud Italia |
London |
8,635 |
|
#4 |
Cluck Brothers |
Nottingham |
4,833 |
|
#5 |
Dukes Pizza |
Leeds |
4,346 |
|
#6 |
The Bournville Waffle Company |
Birmingham |
3,163 |
|
#7 |
Yu-ca-taco |
Glasgow |
2,858 |
|
#8 |
Anna Mae’s |
London |
2,799 |
|
#9 |
Hatch76 |
Newcastle |
2,797 |
|
#10 |
San Marco Food Truck |
Belfast |
2,510 |
*As of 31st May 2023.
Which city has the most popular food vans on social media?
Planning a culinary-inspired staycation in the UK? Or maybe you just want to learn more about your city’s street food scene?
Well, that’s why we ranked the major cities of the UK according to the popularity of their food vans on social media. We’ve crunched the numbers on both Facebook and Instagram, finding the average number of social media followers per food van for each city.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, London is the hub of the most popular food vans on social media, with the likes of Sud Italia, Anna Mae’s, and the Green Grill averaging over 16,000 followers each.
The research also showed that Belfast’s home to a bustling food van culture too, averaging over 11,000 followers per vendor. Leicester isn’t far behind either, with its mobile eateries averaging over 7,000 social media followers.
To see how your city ranked amongst the most popular on social media, take a look at the table, below.
|
Ranking |
City |
Average social media followers per food van |
|
#1 |
London |
16,415 |
|
#2 |
Belfast |
11,157 |
|
#3 |
Leicester |
7,849 |
|
#4 |
Birmingham |
5,889 |
|
#5 |
Glasgow |
5,610 |
|
#6 |
Newcastle |
4,597 |
|
#7 |
Sheffield |
4,500 |
|
#8 |
Nottingham |
4,415 |
|
#9 |
Manchester |
4,327 |
|
#10 |
Leeds |
4,085 |
|
#11 |
Brighton |
3,050 |
|
#12 |
Liverpool |
1,749 |
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