First Friday

So many people! Long lines for the food trucks. It would be nice if they included live music. The amount of people was off-​putting. But they did have a huge variety of food trucks which was really nice. I probably won’t be back

Culture, good food and friends. That’s what we always find when we stop by Abbot Kinney on a first Friday night. We recently went by on a fairly cold evening in hopes that it wouldn’t be as packed and it wasn’t. We found parking within the first 10 minutes of getting there with no need to drive around in circles. (however we have had to do that in the past depending on the night). We often walk and up and down the streets scoping out the food trucks until we find the one we want. Then we wait in line (or not depending on the night). The list of trucks is endless and always changing. You have to follow them on either twitter or FB to get the latest info.

This is a fun event that basically bring all kinds of food trucks to Venice along Abbott Kinney so people can walk around, grab food, people watch, go into the regular bars and restaurants. Reviews of this probably vary because there’s so many things that First Friday encompasses but its a cool event overall i think.
Parking is super skimp because spots are taken up by the food trucks.

Such as shame this isn’t what it use to be. I remember the days where the food trucks were lined up from end to end on both sides. I understand there was a food truck fire, but in all reality that could easily be considered a freak accident and shouldn’t be allowed to affect such a community staple. I wish there were more options.

It was so much fun! So glad my friend who lives in Venice invited me. We had drank a little much before making an appearance. It was a blast. There were so many people and many food joints. Can’t way to try this again! We had hit up so many food joints and I even ran into a random friend who I normally randomly run into everywhere lol

Oh my god! Either the universe was kind to me or I’m the luckiest person in California! No lines at the any of the food trucks I went to. That include the Grilled Cheese Truck the holy grail of life! I highly recommend First Friday to any tourist and foodie out there. Yes it’s packed, yes its hard to find parking but that’s the whole First Friday adventure! The vibe the people, the atmosphere was short of amazing. So many beautiful people and cool people. This was my first time and certainly not my last. See you all at first Friday April 4^th

Always fun! love my hood… I can go on and on, but you get the picture.

Parking is ridiculous, and honestly the crowds are too much sometimes. It’s a great congregation of lots of different food trucks, but sometimes the lack of parking and the wait times and the crowds are just too much to bear.
I go with friends from out of town sometimes when they want to check it out, but as a local, I tend to stay away from it. Take a Lyft or Über to get there if you can. I’m not kidding about the parking struggles. And getting there early doesn’t help.

Imagine 3 to 5 small blocks filled with food trucks. Grill cheese, tacos, buns, boba, you name it, it might be here. Food truck food isn’t GREAT, but the convenience of bringing a small restaurant to any part of town is a big plus.
Some people go here to actually eat the food; others come to bar hop. Either way, it’s a great time to spend with your friends. The event is pretty packed and parking can be hectic. For the more popular trunks, the wait time can be pretty lengthy (15+ mins). For the unknown trunks, there usually isn’t any wait. If you come here later into the night, maybe after 9:30 pm, food might run out, especially for the popular trunks.
Bring cash! Some trunks charge extra for credit card transactions.

Go early to avoid the crowds. I suggest biking there and locking up the bikes and walk Abbott Kinney to avoid the hassle of parking. It’s a cluster, one and done.

We were on our way to Shima and we ran into First Friday. It’s ridiculous to get a parking and its only 6PM. I wanted to cancel my reservation because the food trucks look so exciting.
After dinner at Shima we walk around and search for a food truck dessert. We found a truck that sold ice cream sandwiches. It was so crazy busy, I didn’t look at the name of the truck. It’s a lot fun with high energy I definitely have to go back and try all of the trucks.

For some reason, i remember this being a lot more fun the last time i came. i remember a lot of art galleries and drinking in bars and shopping. but now it’s like a madhouse of lines (dangerous if you ask me!) on the sidewalk so that you can barely walk, just to stand in line for a lot of food trucks. dont get me wrong, i like food trucks. but if the sole focus is on the trucks these days, why not just move to a more spacious location? like a giant field with lots of parking? cause $ 20 just to park for food trucks is ridiculous!!! otherwise, good energy all around, and if you learn to cross the street and walk on the opposite side of the crowds, walking can be more manageable.