Food trucks
in Tennessee.

Tennessee's food-truck scene is anchored by Nashville's white-hot hot-chicken trucks and Memphis's barbecue tradition — both regional dishes that have gone national in the last decade. Nashville's truck culture exploded as the city did, with operators experimenting alongside the hot-chicken explosion to figure out where the form ends. Memphis stays closer to the smokehouse tradition: dry-rubbed ribs, pulled pork shoulders, sticky pit-tomato sauce on the side. Knoxville and Chattanooga add scrappier scenes that pull from both poles. The whole state benefits from a long warm season and a permissive regulatory environment.