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Who doesn’t love a block party? Denverites certainly do, and this year, there are community-oriented block parties coming to a neighborhood near you—with a modern, Mile High twist, of course.
On June 2, a fleet of four-wheeled eateries will descend on Five Points for the first in a four-event series called Truck Stop: Food Truck Rally Summer Series. Each gathering will seek to bring together the residents and showcase the vibrant culture of a different Denver community (Aurora on July 4; the Santa Fe Art District on August 3; and RiNo on September 1), utilizing the unifying powers of food, booze, and live music.
Two Parts marketing agency and Mile High Festivals, the organizers of Truck Stop, used the nostalgic summer block party as an inspirational jumping off point for their all-out extravaganza. For the Five Points event, your neighbor’s grill will be replaced by dozens of food trucks serving a wide range of fare, from African-inspired Muzo on Fire to sausage-slinging Billy’s Gourmet Hot Dogs. Coolers of cheap beer will transform into chilled craft brews from Oskar Blues and cocktails featuring Stranahan’s single-malt, served from old shipping containers and Airstream trailers. And your teenage daughter’s garage band (or even worse, the good ol’ communal karaoke machine) will take the form of local musicians such as the the Guestlist and Mile High Soul Club. What won’t change is the sense of community forged from a universal love of good drinks, good food, and good music.
“We wanted to create an incredibly approachable event and build something we would want to take our friends and family to,” said Two Parts co-founder, Casey Berry. “We felt too many events in town are too polarizing or too niche. There is literally something for everyone at Truck Stop.”
Unlike other festivals with a specific theme, the overarching mission of Truck Stop is simply neighborhood exploration. The events will look to connect patrons within the communities that host them: While the party is taking place on the streets, adjacent shops, galleries, and other sites will be open for attendees to explore. “We hope everyone leaves learning how cool each neighborhood we pick is,” Berry said.
The inaugural rally will return Truck Stop to its roots; the party began in Five Points as a one-off event last year. Its success lead the organizers to transform it into a multi-part food truck festival tour. “Truck Stop was always meant to travel, given that all of our trucks and vendors are on wheels. We love the idea of rolling into a new neighborhood each month and hosting a party to celebrate each community’s unique culture and people,” said Two Parts marketing director Keanan Stoner.
The celebration will also give back: A percentage of the proceeds will go to nonprofits or events that serve the individual communities (the Five Points event benefits the Juneteenth Music Festival, which will take place in the neighborhood on June 16)—meaning your summer revelry will not only be fun, but it’ll do good, too.
If you go: Truck Stop: Food Truck Rally, June 2 from 1 – 8 p.m., Welton Street from 25th to 29th