Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors in New Orleans, LA (2026)
3 verified food trucks & mobile vendors rules for New Orleans, Louisiana, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Food Truck Permits
New Orleans caps mobile food truck permits at 100 citywide and requires Department of Finance approval plus sign-off from the State Department of Health and Hospitals and the Fire Department before one issues. Permits expire every December 31, cost $450.00 the first year, and must be visibly displayed on the truck's windshield.
New Orleans Food Truck Permit Requirements
Significant RestrictionsNew Orleans Code of Ordinances § 110-188
(a)A mobile vending permit shall be applied for with the department of finance ... No permit shall be issued until all requisite approvals by the State Department of Health and Hospitals and the Fire Department are finalized and received by the department of finance. ... (b)...Permits shall be issued on an annual basis and shall expire on December 31. Renewal applications shall be made by Janua...
Vending Zones
General transient-vendor permits for selling goods, wares or merchandise on New Orleans streets are void inside a defined Central Business District, except for a narrower carve-out area under Section 110-271, and are void again during the Jazz Fest season near the Fair Grounds under Section 110-272.
New Orleans Vendor Permits Barred Downtown
Significant RestrictionsNew Orleans Code of Ordinances §§ 110-259(a), 110-271
Such permit shall in each instance state the occasion for which it is issued and the date upon which it will expire ... Such permits, however, are not valid within the central business district area bounded by the Mississippi River on the east, Claiborne Avenue on the west, Esplanade Avenue on the north and Howard Avenue on the south, except as provided in section 110-271. ... Permits designate...
Sidewalk & Mobile Vending
New Orleans caps mobile food truck permits at 100 citywide and requires a Department of Finance permit before a truck can serve the public right-of-way, per City Code § 110-188. The same permit is barred outright from the Central Business District, the Vieux Carré, most of the Faubourg Marigny, and any residential or park zoning district.
New Orleans Mobile Food Truck Permit Rules
Significant RestrictionsNew Orleans City Code § 110-188(a), (c)
(a)A mobile vending permit shall be applied for with the department of finance and shall be on forms provided by the city and in the format and number of copies as required by the instructions. No permit shall be issued until all requisite approvals by the State Department of Health and Hospitals and the Fire Department are finalized and received by the department of finance. All permit holders...