The talk of Coachella on social media has been about headliner Frank Ocean and his performance, Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello sharing a kiss, and more celebrity drama. But more people need to be talking about the insane food prices. At a music festival like Coachella, I expect the food to be top notch. From what I saw on social media, it looks like it was, but so were the prices.
Coachella takes place in Indio, California and is best known for attracting celebrities and influencers. Weekend tickets start around $549 (which doesn't include food), while VIP tickets start around $1,069. The festival is no joke, but I can’t get over these food prices.
What kind of food is available at Coachella?
Coachella takes about as much pride in their food lineup as they do the actual lineup. “Our food program features top restaurants from across the country, offering a wide variety of cuisine that will please any festival-goer,” reads their website. “Vendors range from chef-driven concepts to artisanal ice cream shops and crave worthy street food.”
How did people like the food at Coachella?
Some creators live for the hype around the Coachella food lineup. One user, @camberapp, shared their favorites before the festival even started. From pizza to burgers to sushi to Coachella staple, Broad Street Oyster Co., they went through all the top hits. And I’m not sure how I feel about seafood in the desert heat.
In another viral TikTok, user @jackietanti shared that the “shittiest" part of Coachella is the price you must spend on food vendors. She spent $64 on two iced coffees and two burritos one morning. “Capitalism really popped off today,” the user said in her video, which has received 2.9 million views. People commented in disbelief, some even saying these prices make Erewhon look reasonable.
Another TikTok user, @yvetteciao, shared everything she ate each day of the festival, with two of the videos receiving over two million views. Some of the user’s choices include $26 for one Redbull vodka, curly cheese fries with chili for $24, a chicken hibachi plate for $23, and so much more. According to the content she shared, Yvette spent $225 for food for two days.
While you can leave the festival and re-enter later, good luck getting to a restaurant nearby with the tons of traffic that everyone complains about (is Coachella even fun at this point?).
Why is the food at Coachella so expensive?
Most of the time, it’s not the vendor's fault. I worked at Firefly Music Festival on a food truck, and the company was forced to drastically raise their prices as the festival took a large percentage of sales each day. For the company to ensure they were covering the cost of goods, employee's paychecks, and to make the experience worth their trip, they had to raise their prices. Coachella is also just as much a celebrity and influencer playground as it is a music festival, and fancy food at fancy prices comes with that.
While I didn’t think Coachella was in the cards for me based on ticket price, it’s definitely not in the cards for me based on the price of food and drinks.