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La Casserole sees the same pattern in food truck enquiries, whether it is a small gathering of fewer than 25 guests or a much larger event: you cannot fairly sum up the cost of a food truck with one simple price per person. For most events, the cost usually falls somewhere between €15 and €40 per guest, while a fully catered food truck hire in Eindhoven with freshly prepared street food often starts at around €30 per person. The gap comes down to the menu, the number of guests, and the level of service. That is why it pays to look beyond the headline rate:

• Per person: usually €15 to €40, depending on the concept and group size
• For fewer than 25 guests, you will often pay a minimum spend instead of a per person rate
• Common extra charges: travel, power supply, staff, and refundable deposits for tableware
• Food safety: a HACCP plan is required for anyone preparing and selling food several times a year
• In Eindhoven, the zero emission zone has also affected food truck access since 2025

Introduction (Services)

When people contact La Casserole about hiring a food truck, they almost always start with the same question: what does it cost per person? In reality, the answer is rarely one neat number, because the final price depends on choices that often only come up later in the planning process.

Say you book a food truck for a staff party with 60 guests. On paper, €18 per person sounds like a great deal. Then you find out that travel, a generator, and service staff are all charged separately, and suddenly you are at €27 per guest. That difference is not about hidden tricks. It is simply because food truck pricing is made up of separate cost components.

The catering market is still growing. According to the Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (CBS), turnover for canteens and catering rose by 2.6 percent in the first quarter of 2026 compared with a year earlier. More demand also means more suppliers, and that usually leads to wider price differences. This article breaks down the cost per guest, highlights the line items that often surprise clients, and explains the permit and food safety rules that can indirectly affect your total budget.

The challenge: why a “price per person” is almost never the full story

The food truck price you see online usually covers the food only. In practice, the final bill tends to have four separate layers, and they are rarely included in one all in figure.

The first is the menu itself. A pizza or burger from a mobile kitchen usually costs less per portion than a premium live cooking concept, but more than a simple buffet tray, because everything is freshly prepared on site. The second layer is transport and setup. A food truck has to travel to your venue, be set up, and be cleared away afterwards. That time is built into the cost, and it has the biggest impact on smaller groups.

Fixed costs hit small groups the hardest

This is the main reason smaller events often end up looking relatively expensive. If you hire a food truck for 25 people, the travel time, setup, and at least one chef cost the same as they would for 100 guests, but those fixed costs are spread across far fewer people. As a rule of thumb, for groups under 25 to 30 people, it makes more sense to think in terms of a minimum spend than a per person rate. Once you get above 60 guests, the cost per person usually drops noticeably because those fixed costs are spread more efficiently.

Service level is the third key factor

The third layer is the service package. Do you want just the truck and chef, or also waiting staff, tableware, high tables, and waste collection? Every extra service pushes up the price per guest. The fourth layer is your venue setup, especially practical matters like electricity and water, which we cover later on. If you ask about these four layers upfront, you are far less likely to see your cost jump from €18 to €27 afterwards.

How much does it really cost to hire a food truck in Eindhoven per person?

For a fully catered street food truck, expect pricing to start at around €30 per guest, with a typical range of €15 to €40 depending on your choices. That price point is not random. It reflects freshly cooked food prepared on location, rather than pre portioned catering delivered in trays.

At the lower end of that range, you are usually looking at simple concepts and larger groups, such as a fries truck or a single pizza oven serving 150 guests at a summer drinks event. The higher end is more common for premium dishes, multiple trucks, or smaller groups where fixed costs have a much bigger effect. La Casserole arranges food trucks as part of a complete event concept, which makes the cost per guest much clearer than piecing together separate quotes from multiple suppliers. If you want to compare this with other catering formats, this guide on what catering costs per person in Brabant is a useful reference point.

A practical starting point is simple: first work out your guest count and the level of service you want, then ask for a quote that includes travel and staffing. A price without those elements is not really a full quote, it is just a starting lure.

The best way to lock in your price upfront

The most reliable way to price a food truck is to build the quote in a fixed order. In practice, four steps work well before you sign anything.

1. Confirm your guest numbers and service duration. A food truck serving continuously for three hours costs more in staffing than one handling a single peak moment.
2. Choose your service level. Is it food only, or do you also need staff, tableware, and high tables? Make sure this is clearly listed.
3. Check your venue for power and space. If there is no suitable power connection, you may need a generator, which is usually charged separately.
4. Ask for an all in price per guest. Make sure it includes travel, setup, staff, and waste removal, so you have one figure you can actually compare.

Why one event partner often works out cheaper

If you book the truck, tableware, high tables, and staff from four separate suppliers, you often end up paying travel and coordination costs four times over, and there is more chance of things slipping through the cracks. La Casserole combines catering, technical support, furniture, and project management under one lead, which helps avoid duplicate charges and makes sure the food truck fits smoothly into the wider event setup. That is exactly why hiring a food truck in Eindhoven through one event partner is usually simpler and easier to manage than booking everything separately.

Checklist:

• Always ask whether travel and staffing are included in the per person rate or charged separately
• Check whether a minimum spend applies to your guest numbers, usually below 25 to 30 guests
• Confirm who is arranging tableware, high tables, and waste removal, the truck supplier or the event partner
• Check whether your venue has power on site, and if not, ask separately for generator costs
• Confirm the service duration in hours, because staffing is usually priced around that

What does a food truck cost for 25 people?

Small groups are usually the hardest to price well. For 25 guests, you are unlikely to get a low per person rate, because travel, setup, and at least one chef cost just as much as they do for a much larger group.

That is why suppliers often work with a minimum spend for smaller bookings. You pay a fixed total, whether 22 or 28 guests actually attend. For 25 people, expect the cost per guest to sit near the top of the range, often close to €40, or a minimum booking amount that works out to a similar figure. If you want to bring the cost per head down, it can help to combine the booking with a second catering moment, for example drinks with a food truck followed by a walking dinner or buffet, so the fixed costs are spread over a longer event and more serving moments.

The table shows why the same truck can cost nearly half as much per person for 150 guests as it does for 25. The food itself is not cheaper. The fixed costs simply matter less.

Food safety and permits: the costs you do not immediately see

A food truck may feel more informal than a traditional kitchen, but the rules are not any looser. If you are selling food and drinks at an event, the same legal requirements apply as they do for a restaurant.

According to the Nederlandse Voedsel- en Warenautoriteit (NVWA), anyone selling food and drinks at markets and events must prepare, store, and sell them safely and hygienically, in line with food law requirements. This applies to both businesses and private sellers. A HACCP food safety plan is also mandatory for anyone preparing and selling food several times a year, setting out what must be monitored during preparation, packaging, and storage.

Permit rules vary by municipality

The cost and admin involved can vary by location. To operate a food truck, you generally need a pitch permit from the municipality where you want to trade, plus registration with the NVWA to meet hygiene rules. That is also explained by the Kamer van Koophandel (KVK) in its guidance on starting a food truck business. In Eindhoven, the situation is slightly different. According to Ondernemend Eindhoven, entrepreneurs starting a food truck do not need to apply for a separate permit but can register instead, while other exemptions, such as those for alcohol or noise, are handled through the business desk.

For private events on your own premises, those public pitch rules often do not apply, but food safety rules always do. A professional supplier will already have HACCP procedures in place, which is not something you should ever assume with a casual or one off operator.

Practical example: when fixed costs caught a company out

Practical example: an illustrative scenario from a mid sized company

Imagine an office manager at a manufacturing company with around 45 employees planning a summer drinks event with a food truck. She asks for three quotes and focuses mainly on the price per guest, which appears to be around €18.

What she only discovers later is that the €18 covered the food only. Travel, a generator because the site had no suitable power supply, and two extra hours of service were all added separately. The real cost per guest moved much closer to the top end of the range, because 45 people sits just below the point where fixed costs start to spread more efficiently.

The real takeaway is not the exact number, but the approach. Once she turned the question around and asked for one all in price per guest, including travel, power, and staffing, the three quotes suddenly became genuinely comparable. The cheapest looking option on paper turned out to be the most expensive overall. By extending the event with a second serving moment, the fixed costs were spread more effectively and the price per guest dropped noticeably. It is a familiar pattern: if you focus on one layer of the quote, you often pay more in the other three.

The benefits of agreeing a clear price upfront

If you break down the cost per guest instead of accepting one headline number, you stay in control of the budget and avoid nasty surprises later on. That gives you three clear advantages.

First, it makes quotes easier to compare fairly. Second, it gives you more budget certainty, because the costs that most often push events over budget, travel, power, and extra service time, are already included. Third, it saves time. Having one point of contact for the truck, tableware, furniture, and staffing means less coordination between multiple suppliers, and fewer duplicate charges.

This kind of joined up setup is especially useful for business events. A food truck can work well as an informal afternoon food moment, followed by a more formal dinner later on, making use of the same venue setup twice. La Casserole delivers these layered events from concept to execution, so the food truck becomes part of a wider event plan rather than a standalone cost that runs away with the budget.

Key takeaways

A food truck price per person means very little without context. Guest numbers determine how heavily fixed costs weigh on the final figure, and those fixed costs, more than the food itself, explain most price differences.

For fewer than 25 to 30 guests, expect a minimum spend. Above 60 guests, the cost per head usually drops quite noticeably. The items most likely to stretch your budget are travel, power supply, and service duration. And food safety and permit rules are not just admin details. A HACCP plan is mandatory for anyone preparing and selling food several times a year. If you want to place food truck catering in the context of a wider event budget, this guide to the costs and tax rules for off site catering in Brabant is a helpful place to start.

Checklist:

• Start with your guest count, because that determines whether you are looking at per person pricing or a minimum spend
• Always ask for an all in quote that includes travel, power, staffing, and waste removal
• Check that the supplier has HACCP procedures in place and is registered with the NVWA
• Review local municipal rules, and remember that Eindhoven’s zero emission zone has been a factor since 2025
• Consider combining the food truck with a second serving moment to spread fixed costs more efficiently

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to hire a food truck?

Hiring a food truck usually costs between €15 and €40 per guest, with a fully catered street food truck often starting at around €30 per person. The exact cost depends on the menu, the number of guests, and whether travel, power, and staffing are included. Always ask for an all in rate, because a food only price rarely tells the full story.

What does it cost to hire a food truck for 25 people?

For 25 people, you will usually pay a minimum spend rather than a low per person rate. Travel, setup, and one chef cost the same for 25 guests as they do for 100, which is why the cost per guest tends to sit near the top of the range, often close to €40. If possible, add a second serving moment to spread those fixed costs more efficiently.

How much does a small food truck cost?

A small food truck still comes with many of the same fixed costs as a larger one, so the price per guest can be relatively high for smaller groups. The size of the truck matters less than the number of guests sharing the travel and staffing costs. That is why groups below 25 to 30 people are usually priced with a minimum booking amount.

How much does a food truck cost per person?

Expect to pay between €15 and €40 per person, depending on the concept and group size. Larger groups and simpler menus are usually at the lower end, while smaller groups and premium dishes sit at the higher end. Most of the difference comes from how efficiently fixed costs like travel and staffing can be spread.

What permits and rules apply to a food truck at my event?

Food safety rules always apply: according to the NVWA, a HACCP plan is required for anyone preparing and selling food several times a year. For public trading locations, a municipal permit is usually required, although in Eindhoven businesses can register without applying for a separate permit. On private premises, public pitch rules usually do not apply, but hygiene rules still do, and a professional supplier will already have this covered.

Conclusion

The question “what does a food truck cost per person?” does not have one simple standalone answer. It has a structure. As a guide, expect to pay between €15 and €40 per guest, remember that fixed costs are what really drive the difference, and always ask for an all in quote that includes travel, power, and staffing. For small groups, assume there will be a minimum booking amount. For larger groups, the cost per head naturally comes down.

So do not start with the price alone. Start with your guest count, service duration, and venue setup. Once those three points are clear, you can compare quotes properly and avoid that unpleasant jump from €18 to €27 later on. For hiring a food truck in Eindhoven, La Casserole positions the truck as part of a complete event concept, with one team overseeing catering, technical support, and furniture, keeping the price per guest transparent and avoiding duplicate travel costs from separate bookings. That way, you know upfront what you are paying for, and why.

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