Eat Healthier at Food Trucks with These Choices

Dr. Angela Seabright
Alexandria Iacobelli

| 4 min read

Food trucks are a popular place to eat around Michigan and the trend is here to stay. These trucks are a fast way to answer your hunger pangs and allow you to get back to your busy schedules. The best part about street eats is that they tend to be inexpensive and you definitely won’t leave hungry.
While many trucks serve up heavy comfort foods, others won’t do as much damage to your waistline. These healthier trucks use fresh ingredients, with some straight from the farm. While some of these food creations may stray from what you would normally eat, the selections are delicious. Next time you’re planning to eat out, look for these awesome traveling locations near you.

Metro Detroit

A hot spot in the metro Detroit area is this popular food truck park known as Detroit Fleat in Ferndale. The following two options can be found parked here on certain days.
  • Instead of going for a food truck offering greasy burgers and fries, try lighter fare from The Pita Post. This Mediterranean option serves up natural and fresh ingredients. Lucky for us, The Pita Post travels around to various locations in Michigan to give everyone a taste of their great food.
  • Another option serving up healthy choices is SOUPDIVE. SOUPDIVE started out as a café and now owns a truck that parks in locations around metro Detroit. They offer a wide variety of seasonal salads, seafood, flatbreads, smoothies and more.

Grand Rapids

There are plenty of opportunities to satisfy your food truck cravings in Grand Rapids. Head downtown for lunch at Calder Plaza on Tuesdays or at Rosa Parks Circle on Thursdays or enjoy a Friday night feast at Riverside Park. Each food truck gathering has different vehicles on different days, so check out the lineup before you go. Look for these healthier options:
  • The Blue Spoon food truck is actually operated by Goodwill and offers up healthier Tex-Mex and kabob-style dishes.
  • A Moveable Feast uses locally-sourced ingredients and changes their menu depending on the produce local farmers have available. Try their vegetarian tacos or Jerk chicken burrito for a light lunch.

Lansing

Michigan’s state capital, Lansing, is a hot spot for food on wheels. Trucks gather around Lansing’s capital lawn during lunch hours and set up shop at different hours that can be found on their websites.
  • Michigan’s first farm-to-truck food stand, known as The Purple Carrot, uses the tagline, “Eat Fresh, Eat Local.” See for yourself by checking out their high-quality menu.
  • A newer truck around Lansing is From Scratch, which is family-owned and operated. From Scratch is another Mediterranean option, as the owner wanted to create a menu based off the food she ate growing up in Lebanon.

Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor is known as a foodie town, with almost every kind of food represented around the city.
  • Mark’s Carts, is another food truck courtyard with each truck owned by the vendor. The park is open every day from the start of April through the end of October. From super healthy Indian fare at Hut-K to traditional Spanish food at Simply Spanish, you can eat around the world while still at home.

Kalamazoo

Kalamazoo has an event in Bronson Park every Friday through September 29 during lunch time serving up tasty cuisine with live music. The two trucks below are some of the longest-standing stations and are guaranteed to have you coming back again.
  • One of Kalamazoo’s oldest food trucks is Gorilla Gourmet. They only keep a couple options on their menu and are known for their tacos.
  • The Organic Gypsy makes everything from scratch, with fresh and organic ingredients. The Organic Gypsy has many vegetarian and vegan-friendly options, and even their to-go containers are made from renewable resources. The menu changes daily based off what their farmers have available.

Traverse City

Traverse City’s food truck market has rapidly increased in past years. This has contributed to Traverse City having a reputation as one of the country’s up-and-coming foodie towns.
  • Found on the corner of Front and Wellington streets downtown, The Little Fleet is Traverse City’s only food truck lot. The Little Fleet offers up a perfect spot to stop to eat when exploring the area. There are plenty of fresh food choices in this food truck park. If you are in the mood for sushi, White on Rice is the spot you want to visit. The Japanese food menu options are great when looking for something to eat. For more healthy food on the go, Daily Blend carries hot bowls, salads, smoothies and coffee drinks for a mid-day pick-me-up.
If you enjoyed reading this, you might also like:
Photo Credit: Mack Male

A Healthier Michigan is sponsored by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, a nonprofit, independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association.
No Personal Healthcare Advice or Other Advice
This Web site provides general educational information on health-related issues and provides access to health-related resources for the convenience of our users. This site and its health-related information and resources are not a substitute for professional medical advice or for the care that patients receive from their physicians or other health care providers.
This site and its health-related information resources are not meant to be the practice of medicine, the practice of nursing, or to carry out any professional health care advice or service in the state where you live. Nothing in this Web site is to be used for medical or nursing diagnosis or professional treatment.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other licensed health care provider. Always consult your health care provider before beginning any new treatment, or if you have any questions regarding a health condition. You should not disregard medical advice, or delay seeking medical advice, because of something you read in this site.