Fall Food Truck Festival Comes To Osage Beach This Weekend

LAKE OF THE OZARKS, Mo. — One of the Lake area’s favorite festivals returns to Osage Beach this weekend from Sept. 23-24, 2023. Fall officially starts on Saturday, and this year's edition of the Lake of the Ozarks Food Truck Festival adds more businesses along with local favorites.

Baristago Food Truck Festival — courtesy of Vicki Wood

Sponsored by the City of Osage Beach, one new local business that is jumping in for September festival is The Hungry Yeti. It has been operating in a smaller market on the Lake’s West Side for the past year in the communities of Laurie and Stover.

The Hungry Yeti, owned by Dylan and Helen Ward, features hand-breaded fried chicken tenders and sandwiches with house made “Yeti Sauce,” a sweet and spicy concoction. Fans of Chick Fil A are going to be blown away by the crafted quality of The Hungry Yeti, which also sells soft serve ice cream.

Foodie’s favorites Bless This Burger, Shady’s Shack, Shooby Snacks, Fat Dog Burrito and Burger Co., LynFreez Rolled Ice Cream, and BaristaGo Coffee will all return for the fall edition. A few favorites from nearby cities are jumping on the bandwagon this time, including Pizza Kwik Food Truck and Cajun Catfish House Food Truck from Jefferson City.

Bierman Farms Food Truck saw record long lines but had super-fast turnover in the spring. They also never ran out of food, with one of the biggest mobile kitchen staff seen on the food truck scene. They travel the farthest, from Effingham, Ill. George and Squeezy’s Lemon Shake Ups travels from Nixa, Mo. Gino’s Italian Ice comes from Ashland, and The Hillbilly Shack comes from South Missouri and operates all over the Missouri-Arkansas-Tennessee-Texas area.

Organizers Ashley Hays and Brandon Billaci announced that the Camdenton High School FBLA team will hold a face painting fundraising booth at the event.

The singing phenomenon from Climax Springs, 10-year-old Daisy Tavis will kick off the festivities by singing the national anthem. She has won some major talent competitions nationwide. Then she will go work in the LynFreeze Rolled Ice Cream trailer with her parents, concessionaires David and Gabby Tavis.

Lynfreeze Rolled Ice Cream — courtesy of Vicki Wood

Lakeside Inflatables will provide bounce house entertainment, free for kids. For more amusement, Zax Axes returns for some flinging fun. Live free musical entertainment will be brought again by Phillip Twitchell and Pix and Stix LOZ of Camdenton. Mello music will be performed by Twitchell throughout Saturday and Sunday. Other entertainment included is Mr. McMoney, Starla and Scotty, SS Presley, and Brandy Baker.

Old Soul Savage Food Truck Festival — courtesy of Vicki Wood

A vendor village is always included at the Food Truck Festival featuring snacks that are handmade, including the ever-popular Wicked Sugar. They recently opened a brick-and-mortar store on Osage Beach Parkway next to Twisted Tony’s. Sunrise Donuts Bakery and Café is a new vendor, but familiar to those that enjoy their location in Sunrise Beach. Come early for the freeze-dried treats, as they regularly sell out.

New to the festival is Perpetual Wonders jams and jellies and dry goods. Troy’s Flavored Pecans returns for the fall festival, as always, with free samples. Leighton’s at the Lake is a new vendor that has fine cigars to enjoy after a day of feasting. He has a store location on Highway HH in Lake Ozark.

Food Truck Festival vendors — courtesy of Vicki Wood

Food overload and fun begins at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 23. in the Osage Beach City Park soccer fields and closes at 7 p.m. Sunday has the same hours. Saturday, lunch crowds peak at eating time through the festival, and festival goers have come to know that long lines are part of the fun. But more participating food trucks this time hopefully will alleviate some of the wait.

Osage Beach City Parks Director Eric Gregory has anticipated larger numbers than the Spring Food Truck Festival, which brought in 7500 people. He is adding staff and amenities for the growing crowds.

For a full list of trucks and vendors, visit the 5th Lake of the Ozarks Food Truck Festival's Facebook Page.