Featured Restaurants
Dads BBQ and Catering
Three service tiers with nine published per-person prices, and a smoker trailer that needs 65 feet of clearance before it can park.
CV BBQ
Priced by the pound and the platter rather than the head — cooked at their Indio kitchen, delivered, and served by their staff on your table.
Tacos Mora Catering
Four meats, hand-made aguas frescas and a 40-guest floor — running since 2010, and quoting every event individually.
Three Riverside County food-truck caterers made this list. CV BBQ and Dads BBQ and Catering now carry a dated Google rating — 4.8 from 347 reviews and 4.8 from 22 reviews respectively, both read October 16, 2026 — while Tacos Mora Catering still has no Google listing of its own to read. They stay listed alphabetically here rather than ranked by rating: CV BBQ clears this site's 25-review floor, but Dads BBQ's 22 reviews fall just short of it, and neither business has had the full merit and safety re-screen this site requires before ranking by rating runs against a new review corpus. Unlike some counties in this guide series, two of these three publish real, specific prices — a per-pound à-la-carte list and a nine-figure per-person matrix — so this is a county where you can actually compare costs before you call.
Michele Leocadio creates restaurant content for Elev8ed Table. We decide who’s featured on merit alone and never sell placement or ranking — nobody in this guide paid for inclusion.
This is the county where you can actually compare prices before you call, and you should. Dads BBQ publishes nine per-person figures — three menu sizes across three service levels — so the cost of upgrading from a drop-off to a staffed event is plainly visible. CV BBQ prices by the pound and the platter instead, letting you build a bill yourself if you know roughly how much a crowd eats. Tacos Mora publishes nothing and quotes every event individually. None of those approaches is wrong, but they suit different buyers.
Ask where the food is cooked, because these three answer it differently and it's one of the biggest differences between them. CV BBQ states plainly that all food is prepared and cooked at its own kitchen in Indio, then delivered, with staff on site to serve. Dads BBQ's premium tiers put a smoker trailer directly at your event. Tacos Mora's own site never states whether it cooks on site, drops off, or offers pickup — ask directly.
Read the fee lines and guest minimums closely — they vary a lot across these three. CV BBQ adds an 18% service fee to its standard package, stated explicitly as not a gratuity, plus a $35 delivery fee and a $650 minimum food order on deliveries. Dads BBQ charges $150 for each additional hour beyond the 1.5 hours included on its trailer and full-service tiers, and sets guest minimums that jump from 25 for drop-off to 75 for the smoker trailer or full service. Tacos Mora states a flat 40-guest minimum and publishes no price of any kind.
| # | Business | City | Rating | What stands out |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CV BBQ | Indio | 4.8 (347) | Cooked at their own kitchen and delivered; priced by the pound and platter, not per person. |
| 2 | Dads BBQ and Catering | Riverside | 4.8 (22) | Nine per-person prices across three tiers; smoker trailer needs 65 feet of clearance. |
| 3 | Tacos Mora Catering | Menifee | Not yet rated | Four meats, quote-only, 40-guest minimum, no published pricing. |
What to ask before you book
- Where is the food actually cooked? CV BBQ cooks at its own Indio kitchen and delivers; Dads BBQ's premium tiers bring a smoker trailer to the venue; Tacos Mora's site doesn't say either way, so ask.
- What does the full price look like once fees are added? CV BBQ's 18% service fee and $35 delivery fee sit outside its per-pound prices; Dads BBQ's $150-per-extra-hour and $20-per-chafing-dish fees sit outside its per-person tiers; Tacos Mora publishes no price to add fees to at all.
- What's the real guest minimum for the service you want? Dads BBQ's minimum jumps from 25 (drop-off) to 75 (trailer or full service); CV BBQ requires a $650 minimum food order rather than a headcount; Tacos Mora sets a flat 40-guest floor.
Frequently asked questions
What does food-truck catering cost in Riverside County?
It depends on the format, and the published figures only partly compare. Dads BBQ's drop-off starts at $21.99 per person for one meat, two sides and rolls, rising to $35.99 for three meats with full-service staffing. CV BBQ has no per-person rate — its meats run by the pound and its sides and salads by the tray. Tacos Mora publishes nothing. Comparing a per-person package against an à-la-carte list isn't arithmetic we'll do for you with someone else's prices.
Why are these ranked alphabetically instead of by rating?
Two of the three now carry a dated Google rating — CV BBQ (4.8, 347 reviews) and Dads BBQ and Catering (4.8, 22 reviews), both read October 16, 2026 — but only CV BBQ clears this site's 25-review floor, and neither has had the full merit and safety re-screen this site requires before ranking by rating against a new review corpus. Until that's done, all three stay listed alphabetically. Tacos Mora Catering still has no Google listing of its own to rate.
Where is the food actually cooked?
CV BBQ states plainly that everything is prepared and cooked at its own kitchen in Indio, then delivered. Dads BBQ's premium tiers bring a smoker trailer that cooks on site at your event — it needs 65 feet of clearance to park. Tacos Mora's own site never states whether it cooks on site, drops off, or offers pickup.
How far ahead should I book?
CV BBQ asks for 48 hours' notice on deliveries. Dads BBQ publishes no number, saying only to book as early as possible since weekends and wedding season fill up. Tacos Mora publishes no lead time at all.