A great sampling event isn’t just about handing out delicious food or drink. It’s about making sure everything runs smoothly behind the scenes. From the setup of your mobile sampling van to food prep and storage, seemingly small decisions can save time, reduce stress, and shape an experience your guests will love!
Here’s what you can do to prep, organise, and serve like a pro…
Here’s a secret: mobile food vans tend to keep ‘onboard cooking’ to a minimum.
Cooking takes time, and you may not have much of that to waste on the day – especially as crowds gather around your mobile sampling van. That’s why it’s often smart to prep as much as you can before your food activation goes live!
Pizza bases can be pre-made so you can just add toppings. Tacos can be cooked and frozen, then quickly heated in your mobile food van. The big street-food brands do this all the time – it keeps the food consistent, speeds up service, and makes your life easier.
It also avoids possible venue restrictions, which can limit the use of open flames, power usage, and even the samples handed out. See our list of the top sampling locations for advice, and be sure to ask these 7 key location questions before you book a venue.
With limited space, you have to think carefully about what’s installed.
Above: Inside the Wasabi 'fire up the flavour' US postal van
You don’t need a full restaurant kitchen squeezed into the mobile sampling van. You just need the equipment that helps your menu shine and space for staff to move comfortably. Depending on the menu, this could mean:
Got a food or beverage campaign in mind? We can design the perfect mobile kitchen layout, based entirely around your serving needs.
See how Burger & Lobster ran their campaign from a modern sampling vehicle, complete with ample storage for food, drinks, sauces, plastic cups and paper packaging.
With the right mobile sampling van, food hygiene couldn’t be simpler!
Above: Two easy-clean kitchens inside catering vehicles
Sampling events are bound by Food Hygiene Regulations. That means two sinks with running water for fresh food sampling, or just one for pre-packed items.
You’ll need soap and paper towels, easy-clean surfaces, and a layout that keeps raw and ready-to-eat food separate. You’ll also need proper waste bins, with a solid plan on how to dispose of used packaging.
Whatever you have in mind, we can supply a food hygiene-certified sampling vehicle and staff who follow food hygiene rules to the letter.
Even the best-prepped mobile sampling van can’t run itself, so staffing is key.
Think about how your team will move around the van and interact with guests, keeping tasks clear and easy to manage. If you’re sampling as part of a wider experience, then you’ll need brand ambassadors so catering staff can focus on getting your food or drink items right.
To serve like a pro, we recommend hiring staff who work on sampling events every day. See our complete guide to promo staffing for the teams who bring food and beverages to life – all available through Promohire!
Who’s keeping your stock and delivering it to you on time?
Your campaign starts long before its first live day, so decide early how you’re storing chilled, frozen, and ambient stock. Even small campaigns can feature large amounts of food and drink, and without proper storage, they can run into problems fast!
Then there’s restocking. Your mobile sampling van only holds so much – and that’s where a support van becomes your secret weapon, delivering more stock to keep the lines moving.
Our team can manage the whole storage and restocking process for you! You can learn more in our sampling and fulfilment service guide.
It all begins with a discovery call to explore ideas and discuss what works for you
At Promohire, we can plan and execute every facet of your food and beverage campaign – for easy, stress-free sampling. If you’d like more advice or need a rundown of the best sampling vans, why not see how to run a product sampling campaign using a promotional vehicle?
Book your FREE call today, and let’s plan your sampling campaign together.