Street food, without the street!

By: Ipacs Tamás Date: 2025. 03. 28. 13:36

Our magazine interviewed Zoltán Horváth, president of the Hungarian Street Food Association. One of the main obstacles to the development of the genre is that mobile street food vendors aren’t allowed to sell on the streets in Hungary.

This article is available for reading in Trade magazin 2025/4.

– Who starts a food truck (FT) business in Hungary?

Zoltán Horváth
president
Hungarian Street Food Association

– First of all, those who have or used to have something to do with catering. Some chefs have spent 20 years in the kitchen and are tired of not meeting the customer. Young people with relatively small capital are also trying their hand at the world of food trucks.

– How many FTs are operating in Hungary today?

– The association has 140-150 members – this number used to be around 200 before Covid. There are about 80 food trucks that have built a strong brand and are doing street food business on an “industrial scale”.

– What does the association give to FT owners?

– We offer free assistance to those who are starting a business and others who have been doing it for years, discussing our experiences at “trade union” level. Anyone is welcome to become a member; the monthly membership fee is HUF 2,000.