Introduction to Coachella 2025 Food Scene
The Coachella music and arts festival has quite the artist lineup year after year, but it’s also become a hot spot for local Southern California eateries to set up food booths, some with exclusive items just for the three-day festival.
If you know festival food, then you know it can be pretty hit or miss. On top of that, the price hike on basic items like lemonade, burgers, and a grilled cheese make you really want to get your money’s worth.
Which is exactly why our team of reporters set out to showcase the best things we ate during the festival. Here are some of our favorites.
Top Picks from Coachella 2025
The Remi Cruz Bowl – Sweetfin
Getting a poke bowl at Coachella might sound, dare I say, fishy at first, but trust me when I say, Sweetfin is the way to go. They’ve brought two of their standard poke bowls to the festival, the spicy tuna bowl and Yuma salmon bowl, as well as the return of the limited-time collab with content creator Remi Cruz’s namesake bowl “The Remi Cruz Bowl.”
Sweetfin president Seth Cohen told me it was Remi’s idea to bring one of her favorite sushi dishes, Spicy Salmon on Crispy Rice, to life in poke form. The collaboration happened pretty organically as one of Cruz’s favorite foods at the festival is Sweetfin, and she’s not alone. Sweetfin has been one of Coachella’s most popular vendors because it provides attendees with a lighter, healthier option than traditional festival food. On top of that, their entire menu is 100% gluten-free.
I got the Remi Cruz Bowl on day two of the festival as soon as we arrived to the grounds. It was the perfect pick me up after the half a mile journey from the parking lot to the main entrance in 99° weather. The dish is inspired by one of Cruz’s favorite sushi roll, salmon crispy rice, but in poke form. The flavors pair together perfectly in each bite.
If you weren’t at Coachella this year, the good news is that Sweetfin is an Los Angeles-based chain, born out of Santa Monica 10 years ago, so you can visit one of their locations to try one of their poke bowls for yourself the next time you’re in Southern California.
BBQ Chicken Quesadilla – BBQ Quesadilla Booth
Something about running around in the heat, deprived of electrolytes and covered in a film of desert dust, makes you hungry in a way that’s a little feral. There were healthy options like salads and acai bowls at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts festival, but I needed something hearty and gooey. When I spotted the BBQ Quesadilla stand, I knew the line would be worth it. I paid $4 extra for sour cream and they wouldn’t give me a side of hot sauce, but it didn’t matter. The onions, cilantro, chicken, jack cheese, and BBQ sauce hit the spot and gave me the fuel I needed to last until the end of the night.
Single Burger – Oh My Burger
At most music festivals, you are going to find some burger options, but nothing like Oh My Burger served at the Coachella Courtyard. Even as I write this, my mouth still waters. The center was a smashed patty with cheese, topped with pickles, grilled onions, and a sauce with a savory kick that elevated the smoky grilled taste between two slightly toasted buns. I didn’t get the name of the sauce, but I think about her daily. I will spend the rest of my life searching for her with the same determination Prince Charming did when Cinderella escaped, if I have to. This burger is my glass slipper, and the sauce is my princess, waiting for our fates to cross once more.
Fried Tofu Combo – Farmhouse Kitchen
I wanted something slightly more healthy than the fried foods all around the festival grounds, so I opted for tofu, which, OK, was fried. But vegetarian! The combo included lots of piping hot tofu squares on a big heap of French fries. On the side was a large scoop of blue jasmine rice, like, literally blue rice. Add to that plenty of spicy basil bomb sauce for the fried tofu. Oh, and a tasty dill pickle spear, because who doesn’t love a good dill pickle spear? Delish! Farmhouse Kitchen is an award-winning Thai restaurant in the West Adams neighborhood of Los Angeles, just south of the 1-10 freeway between La Brea and Fairfax avenues.
Sunset Square “Cheese Square” – Prince St. Pizza
Let’s be real, it’s hard to mess up pizza. But luckily, Prince St. Pizza elevates a classic slice that you forget you’re in the middle of the desert as you eat it. Their cheese pizza was just what I needed at the end of night two. It’s a Sicilian-style square slice that starts with a thick crust, marinara sauce, mozzarella, and pecorino romano. They also get a bonus point because in addition to them keeping their line moving, they accidentally prepared two slices for me instead of one and let me keep the bonus slice, which I was able to share with our team, who were notably eying it as I was enjoying my own slice.
Spam and Egg Salad Sandwich – Sandoitchi
As someone who genuinely enjoys gas station food from the rolling taquitos and other greasy delights as a secret guilty pleasure (I hope this doesn’t make less credible as food writer), I was curious when I heard that the Texas-based Japanese sandwich spot, Sandoitchi, had a bite inspired by my favorite choice of gas station food: 7-Eleven. Yes, the 7-Eleven’s in Japan are different from the ones in the U.S. and might contain tastier food, but hearing that there was some overlap caught my attention. When I heard that Sandoitchi was inspired by the Japanese 7-Eleven egg salad sandwich, I wanted to taste their elevated spin on it. I got the spam and egg salad, served with a thick cut of spam in the middle, topped with egg salad between two slices of soft and fluffy white bread. The bread melted away with each bite, leaving only the salty spam and fresh egg salad to complement one another. I almost went back for seconds and even contemplated tasting the $250 Wagyu sandwich, but snapped out of it when I realized that’d be more than my budget for the whole weekend, and it was only the first day of the festival.
Garlic Noodles – Man Eating Plant
If you’re a hungry vegetarian who can’t get enough of noodles, then look no further, this is just for you. The garlic noodles, mixed with shallots, pickled mustard greens, cilantro, and scallions, are perfect for a mid-day meal. They are $22, but worth the price.
Cheeseburger Combo – Monty’s Good Burger
This is arguably one of the better food deals at Coachella, and it’s vegan, which is typically pricier. Monty’s Good Burger offers five different combos at the festival; a single patty for $25, double patty for $28, chicken patty for $28, chicken tenders for $22 or a hot dog for $22. Each of these options includes a 50/50 of fries and tater tots as well as one of their sauces and a beverage choice of water or lemonade. I went with the single burger, the house spread as my dipping sauce, and their lemonade. Mind you, lemonades on the festival grounds run for around $8, so the girl math is what justifies the $25 price tag on this meal. The burger is already a solid veggie burger, but given that I had this in the afternoon on day three, it truly fueled me to finish out the weekend strong.
Birria Tacos – Birreria Michi
Do you ever wait in line for a food stand only to realize the menu has no prices, but it’s too late because you’ve already waited and you’re hungry? That was my experience with Birreria Michi, which serves birria tacos and quesadillas, birria fries, birria ramen, and even a birria mac and cheese burrito. I wasn’t feeling adventurous, so I stuck with the classic order of three birria tacos, which priced out to be a little over $10 per taco with cheese. I admit I was a bit skeptical because of the price, but after tasting them, it was so worth it. The tacos were made with a toasty tortilla, which wasn’t too hard but hard enough to hold the consomé-drenched juicy beef, topped with a spicy guacamole salsa, onions, jack cheese, and cilantro. With their classic tacos tasting this good, I would definitely return to taste their more unorthodox dishes.
Conclusion
Coachella 2025 offered a diverse range of delicious food options that catered to different tastes and dietary preferences. From Sweetfin’s Remi Cruz Bowl to Birreria Michi’s Birria Tacos, each dish provided a unique and satisfying experience. Whether you’re a fan of traditional festival food or looking for something new and exciting, Coachella 2025 had something for everyone.
FAQs
Q: What were some of the top food picks at Coachella 2025?
A: Some of the top food picks included Sweetfin’s Remi Cruz Bowl, BBQ Quesadilla Booth’s BBQ Chicken Quesadilla, Oh My Burger’s Single Burger, and Birreria Michi’s Birria Tacos.
Q: Were there any vegan or vegetarian options available?
A: Yes, Monty’s Good Burger offered vegan options, and Farmhouse Kitchen’s Fried Tofu Combo was a
