Meet Your Finalists
The biggest street food competition in the world is turning ten. And the pressure has never been higher.
Europe’s best street food traders have battled their way through 13 national Street Food Awards – cooking for more than 100,000 people – to earn their place in the 2026 European Street Food Awards final at Burgerpark in Saarbrücken, 18–20 September.
Now the winners of Judges’ Choice and People’s Choice awards are coming together for one almighty cook-off. They’re travelling by truck, plane and ferry — across mountains and over water — bringing the food that got them here.
Jamaican goat curry, Welsh lamb biryani, low-and-slow American barbecue, carrot cake with bacon, walnut and maple syrup, pani puri with fresh mint, Icelandic flat iron steak, Norwegian smash burgers, organic sourdough langos with Swedish nettles, Japanese egg roll with Scottish langoustine and Polish paczek.
And that’s just the start.
For ten years, the European Street Food Awards has been the Oscars of the street food world — but with more smoke, more seasoning and considerably more chance of someone crying.
Now the winners have to cook for YOU – the public. And for an extraordinary jury of chefs, critics and food obsessives. The prize? The title of European Street Food Champion 2026.
The menus will be revealed soon. Until then, meet the lineup.
Eat. Drink. Vote.
BABI KRAKOW
Poland 2026 Finalist
Making pampuchy cool again. For those not in the know, a pampuch is a traditional Polish dumpling – steamed rather than deep-fried like paczki doughnuts. They have a soft, pillowy and cloud-like texture with no outer crust, and in the hands of Babi deliver wonderful sweet – or savoury – fillings. Whether it’s pampuch with pulled goose or almond crumble, respect your Babi.
LE PACZEK
Poland 2026 Champion
Not every doughnut has to be a dessert. And not every doughnut comes with a hole. At Le Paczek, they make traditional Polish paczki – richer and denser than your standard doughnuts – stuffed with very avant garde fillings. Hence the ‘le’ in the name. Ambiguous combinations. Seasonal flavours. Because it’s what’s inside that really matters.
JOY & GLADNESS
Britain 2026 People’s Choice
Joy & Gladness and Chef Bigga bring Jamaican flavour, huge personality and serious comfort food to the table. Chef Bigga is a larger-than-life character, and his food has the same warmth and energy. His Jamaican heritage runs deep — his Jamaican grandfather had six jerk pans — and that family connection to food is at the heart of what he does.
His Jamaican goat curry is the kind of dish that demands attention: slow-cooked, deeply seasoned and packed with layers of warming Caribbean spice. Tender goat absorbs all those rich flavours as it cooks, creating a deeply savoury curry with the perfect balance of spice and richness. It’s the sort of dish that rewards slow cooking and patience, delivering the depth and comfort that makes Jamaican curry so special.
SMOKED TAMAGO
Scotland 2025 Champion
Smoked Tamago started from a tiny shop in Hong Kong. But, when the couple relocated to Scotland, they took things onto the streets. This is a story of two cultures meeting. They are reinterpreting Tamagoyaki, a traditional Japanese egg roll, using modern smoking techniques. And for the European final, they’re filling it with Scottish langoustine, bringing together Japanese tradition, modern technique and one of Scotland’s finest ingredients. “It’s our way of showcasing the best of the place we now call home, while giving a traditional dish our own identity.”
TEXAS SMOKE GUERILLA
Germany 2026 Champion
There’s something refreshingly authentic about Texas Smoke Guerilla. The food truck was built by hand, and their modular setup means they can take the BBQ to the people — while keeping that direct connection with the crowd that makes street food so special. And then there are the ribs. Smoked low and slow over beechwood, they develop a deep, unmistakable smoke before being brushed with their signature sauce. Not once, but twice. The result? Sticky, glossy and smoky with a beautiful balance of char, sweetness and depth.
BORDERLESS KITCHEN
Switzerland 2026 Champion
Everything by hand, from scratch, in a vintage Peugeot J7 – originally an emergency services vehicle that patrolled the French Alps. “Everything means everything” says Reena. “Our chutneys are made from fresh herbs and spices ourselves. Our spice mixes are hand-roasted from our own mixed whole spices. This is important to deliver real authentic bold flavours to our street-food just like it is eaten by locals around the world. And because we care about where our food comes from, we love to grow a lot of it ourselves. Our coriander, fenugreek, chilli, even our Sichuan pepper — they all come from our own little allotment. Whatever raw food scraps are left behind go straight back into our compost heap, so the soil keeps giving back to us too. We run a zero-waste kitchen, and have an online pre-ordering system so we can cook to demand what’s actually needed — reducing waste. In summer at many events a good part of our power comes from the sun: our fridge, lights, menu board and light kitchen equipment all run off our solar-charged batteries. And in all our years, we’ve never once served a meal on single-use plastic. Not once.
ROCK BURGER
Italy 2026 Champion
Ronnie Pizzo always loved hamburgers. But the rock drummer wanted to create something different – to give his burgers a rebel soul. “I played all over the world with my band and, for years, I got people dancing with distorted guitars and maximum volume! I wanted people to feel the same way when they tasted one of my burgers. I also wanted to combine the American burger tradition with the quality of Italian food.” Finally, in 2014, the idea took shape. And Rock Burger was born! Appearing at the European Street Food Awards for a record FIFTH time, winning Best Burger (and Entrepreneur of the Year) clearly isn’t enough for this guy. He wants the European title.
TRAVELING TACO
Sweden 2026 People’s Choice
Oscar Gobec is a trained car mechanic. But his passion was always food. “After graduating in 2018” says Oscar, “I dreamed of one day starting my own business. After a few years of consideration, I decided to follow my dream. I sold everything I owned, quit my job, and fully invested in my own food project.” Taste his Birria Tacos – slow-cooked beef, gently braised in a rich broth of chilies (from Mexico), tomatoes and spices until it falls apart – and you’ll know he made the right choice. The authentic taco experience; no shortcuts.
NENNA’S FOOD TRUCK
Sweden 2026 Champion
It used to be a mobile library. But today (thanks to Nenna’s welder husband) it’s a food truck, selling Nennas organic sourdough Lángos – a unique take on the Hungarian classic. By combining the deep flavour and texture of long-fermented sourdough with carefully sourced organic Swedish ingredients, Nennas have created a street food that is both rooted in tradition and reimagined for today. “The langos is topped with a wild herb pesto made from plants that I forage myself: nettles, ground elder, wild garlic and wood sorrel. I love the idea of using ingredients that grow wild all around us – plants that many people walk past every day, or even see as weeds, but which are actually fantastic food. I combine the wild herb pesto with roasted garlic and porcini cream, Västerbottensost – one of Sweden’s most distinctive cheeses – smoked and dried moose heart, pickled mustard seeds, blueberry balsamic and freeze-dried lingonberries.” Wait until you try it…
WAFFLE WANDS
Britain 2026 Finalist
A brother/sister business. With a supportive family in the support vehicles. Waffle Wands are proud of their Danish roots – “that’s what inspired us to start the waffles on a stick business” says Louie. “But we are influenced by Dutch food too, and we like to bring a touch of Amsterdam to everywhere we go.” Which explains the Poffertjes and the Stroopwafels on the menu. It’s all an education. Come see. “Our food is very interactive to watch we bake everything fresh in front of our audience and top our treats with warm sauces and luxury toppings. People are always blown away by our innovative products and the flavours we offer.” And they’ve been VERY inventive with their dishes for the 2026 finals…
SUSHI BROS
Latvia 2026 Champion
It’s not easy, reinventing sushi to suit the streets. “We usually work from 11am to 4am” say Karlis and Reinis, the hardest working brothers in street food, “and then spend another hour cleaning everything up, packing, and making our way back to our base.” The story doesn’t always end there. Like the time they set off for home – 300 km from Estonia back to Latvia – without brakes. But they made it. All set to start seasoning the sushi rice for the next big event.
OH BABU
Britain 2026 Finalist
Oh Babu don’t just serve food — they serve the sort of glorious, gravy-slicked chaos that makes you immediately text your friends. Their Delhi-inspired street food menu is engineered for maximum pleasure: Naughty Rolls wrapped like edible presents, and Samosa Chaat that hits every corner of your mouth at once. Since winning Best Burger at the British Street Food Awards in 2022, they’ve only sharpened their swagger. And then there are the Butter Chicken Masala Loaded Fries — absurdly indulgent, gloriously messy, and proof that chips were always destined to bathe in buttery tomato gravy. This is comfort food with a horn pressed permanently on the steering wheel.
CRUMBLIES
Germany 2025 Finalist
The Crumblies signature is a freshly baked, American-style cookie: thick, soft and gooey on the inside, with a lightly crisp, caramelised edge. We use high-quality ingredients, trailer has a special story. We bought it from an old local farmer who used to sell eggs from it. When we transformed the trailer into the home of Crumblies Cookies, we wanted to keep a connection to its past. Today, we still buy our eggs from the same farmer and use them in our cookies. So in a way, the eggs never really left the trailer—they just became part of something new.
BBQ WAGON
Latvia 2026 People’s Choice
Are you okay with your “office” having wheels, no heating, and a generator that dies during your lunch rush? Then – maybe – street food is for you. That’s the advice from BBQ Wagon, the Latvian barbecue obsessives who trade out of a Rice Hunter Wagon, rebuilt from scratch by the owner. So, technically, it’s not just a food trailer – it’s a labour of love. “People say to us ‘Could this burger be any bigger?’. ‘Yes’ we say ‘but we chose mercy instead’.”
FIRE & FLANK
Wales and Britain 2025 Best Main Dish
Fire & Flank is a Welsh street food business, born in Cardiff and built around one fairly simple obsession: beef. Dave’s signature dish is steak and mash – flank steak, cooked sous vide until perfectly medium-rare, then finished hard and fast over live fire. It’s served with rich, cheesy garlic mash and our house made chimichurri. “We’re proud of what we’ve achieved from a relatively small operation – including winning Best Main Dish at the British Street Food Awards in both 2021 and 2025” says Dave. “Now we’re making the jump to compete on a European stage.”
BRGR
Slovakia 2026 Champion
Martin has been running restaurants for four years. And food truck had been part of the business plan for two – but it took the 2026 Slovak Street Food Awards to make it happen. “Probably not the easiest place to start!” he says. Wet-aged beef from the butcher in Moravia, served up inside home baked butter buns and slathered with homemade sauces. Every burger made to order. “We are coming to Germany to compete, to learn, to meet great people and, of course, to make some really good burgers. With a little bit of Slovak stubbornness, a lot of passion and two burgers we truly believe in. See you in Germany!”
LITTLE CLOUD SPOT
Norway 2026 Champion and People’s Choice
Last year, in Munich, Monika was working shifts at Piece Of Greece – Norway’s entry at the European Street Food Awards. She watched, learned—and left with an ambition: to build a food truck of her own. Then came New York, smash burgers and a return to Norway. Four months after opening, she had sold thousands of burgers, earned rave reviews in the Norwegian press and won the Norwegian Street Food Championships— as Champion and the People’s Choice Award. Now she’s back in Germany. Last year, she was part of the Norwegian entry. This year, she is it.
SIGGI CHEF
Iceland 2026 Champion
His nickname is Burger Jesus. And Siggi brings that irreverence to his food. He doesn’t really have a van or a truck or a trailer – for the Icelandic Street Food Awards he built a shed from pieces of wood he collected, burned, brushed and painted. And his menu is all about flat iron steak – the lesser known “butchers’ cut”. “My steak is marinaded in a Chinese char siu bbq sauce” says Siggi, “slow cooked for six hours , then seared over flaming hot coals. On the side there’s a beef dripping and truffle aioli – made from smoked beef fat, fire-roasted garlic and fresh black truffle – with cowboy onions made with Icelandic butter.
ROK
Britain 2025 Best Snack
ROK have built their reputation on Korean Fried Chicken. “We’ve developed the recipe and style to suit what we are – Brits who lived in Korea for three years – while respecting the origin of the dish and its influences from America.” For their 2026 ESFA menu, Steve and Kelly are introducing French flair. The KFC is brined, then tenderised, filled with a seasoned mousseline, rolled, poached and fried. Served with a fresh cucumber Kimchi and gochujang sauce. Finger lickin’ good.
INDIAN STREET FOOD
Italy 2026 People’s Choice
Sajan Pal started Indian Street Food in 2022 with just a bike – and his mother’s recipes. He may have graduated to a truck, but the recipes haven’t. Take his Pani Puri. In Mumbai and Delhi, people stand around the stall and eat six or seven at once, one after another. It’s pure spectacle. “I make hollow, crispy balls (puri) that I fry until they puff up. I fill them with spiced potatoes, chickpeas and then pour inside my signature “pani” – a cold, tangy and spicy water made with fresh mint, coriander, tamarind, roasted cumin and black salt. It’s 100% vegan, fresh, and digestive. I make the pani fresh every day, no powder. Come and see.”
DESSERTS INC
Germany 2026 People’s Choice
Made with really REALLY high fat cream cheese from a local farm in the little town of Lievelde, the Desserts Inc New York Cheesecake is the definition of handmade. Danielle wiggles every one to check if it’s nearly done. Her carrot cake is a symphony of spice: ginger, cloves and nutmeg, topped with a bacon-walnut-ahornsyrup incorporating chilli and cayenne. It’s a cake with a kick. And this is home cooking done properly.
JOE’S AMERICAN BBQ
Italy 2026 Champion
Huge 500-gallon Primitive Pits smokers, oak and cherry wood, and proper low-and-slow American BBQ — brought to life by Giovanni, an Italian adding his own expertise to the craft. The brisket is smoky, juicy and ridiculously tender, especially piled into a sandwich with cheddar fondue, pickled jalapeños and sweet BBQ sauce. Serious BBQ, serious kit, serious flavour — with Italian ingredients and know-how at the helm.
CEGIN HALFNHALF
Wales and Britain 2026 Champion
Cegin HalfnHalf showcases Welsh-inspired cooking with plenty of Indian personality, bringing together locally sourced ingredients, exceptional technique and the creativity of modern street food. At the helm is Kuldeep, a softly-spoken chef who was a trainee of Arvind Saraswat (a legend in Indian cookery), Chef Michel Roux and Pierre Koffmann, and worked at Benares and is now creating a new Rajasthani menu that brings another dimension to the Cegin HalfnHalf offering. Expect slow-cooked meats, rich gravies, comforting Welsh flavours and beautifully crafted dishes that put local produce centre stage.
Kuldeep’s biryani, slow-cooked for six hours in a sealed pot, is particularly remarkable — a dish of extraordinary depth and delicacy, and one that stands out as some of the finest biryani you could hope to taste. There’s a real focus on quality and flavour: taking great local ingredients, cooking them with care and turning them into generous, satisfying dishes with a distinctly contemporary edge.
BAO LATVIA
Latvia 2024 ESFA People’s Choice
There are street food traders who quietly turn up, cook something delicious and go home. And then there’s Bao Latvia. They understand that street food is theatre. Horns. Bells. Movement. And the unmistakable sense that something important — and probably very tasty — is about to happen. Like their signature Duck Bao that they took to the Chef Of The World competition in China. Come and see the masterclass in action.
FUMETTO
Italy 2023 Finalist
Fumetto means “comic book” in Italian, and Emanuele has always believed that every great street food business should have a story worth telling. “Ours started in Brescia with smoked meat, sandwiches, a converted trailer and a lot of ambition. Today that story is bringing us to Saarbrücken to cook alongside some of the best street food traders in Europe.” Their competition dish combines American-style low-and-slow bbq technique, smoked pork ribs and Italian artisan bread – ingredients and flavour in complete balance.
SANDO
Norway 2023 Champion
Piotr won European Street Food Awards for Best Looking with Matalogi in 2023 2024 and 2025. But he wants to be know for more than his good looks. Check out his Korean BBQ Sando – marinated and grilled beef bulgogi, served with homemade kimchi, cucumber pickles, carrots, and salad. And his Crispy Chicken Sando – golden, ultra-crispy chicken in a soft Japanese-style milk bread, finished with creamy, tangy, and crunchy layers. Could 2026 be his year?