This new food truck brings an East Coast specialty to south Louisiana
This mobile eatery is dishing out Knuckle Sandwiches 🦞👊
Over the past 10 years, a foodie friend group from Livingston Parish has traveled around the East Coast in search of the best lobster roll. Although their finds in Florida and Maine were impressive, Brynn Castagnetta, Hannah Williams, Seth Hardy and Emily Samson wanted something closer to home.
A traditional lobster roll is flavorful on its own, with sweet lobster meat in a toasted bun and drizzled with butter sauce, but these south Louisiana natives wanted to spice things up. Experimenting with flavors on their own lobster rolls led the crew to create Cajun-inspired rolls.
“We made a Cajun spicy one,” Castagnetta says. “It’s seasoned differently compared to a lobster roll you get in Maine, which is just going to be lobster and butter. That’s really all it is. So we’re trying to give Louisiana the flavor and the spices that they like.”
The idea of sharing their creations with the public came three years ago with the purchase of a food truck on Facebook Marketplace. That plan did not come to fruition, but the opportunity presented itself again in 2026.
After purchasing a bigger, better food truck, the group, now branded as Knuckleheads LLC, started looking for vendors and trialing menu items in January. For the best taste, the group decided on a fresh seafood provider out of New Orleans, only using the head and claw meat to make their rolls. According to Castagnetta, lobster tails can add an overly fishy taste.
Bringing a new seafood dish to south Louisiana’s food scene may seem like a daunting task, but the Knuckleheads team was confident it had found the right gap to fill. Customers seem to agree. Even though the Knuckleheads truck has made only three appearances so far, each has exceeded the team’s expectations. Castagnetta remembers the morning of the truck’s first pop-up on June 6.
“I walked out of the truck at 10:45 a.m. to hang up a little sign, and we had a line already,” she says. “I couldn’t see the end. I went back in and said, ‘Guys, this is actually for real. People showed up.’”
At that first pop-up appearance, the crew prepared more than 150 lobster rolls and sold out an hour before the event ended.
Knuckleheads’ menu offers many flavor combinations. For the most Cajun vibes, the signature Knuckle Sandwich features warm lobster topped with Cajun butter sauce and lump crab meat. The Mobster Roll features homemade aioli, and the Louisiana Melt is a lobster roll topped with loaded mac and cheese and Cajun butter sauce. And of course, there is a classic roll on the menu, aptly named the Maine Character.
Besides packed handhelds, customers can feast on bowls of mac and cheese, served with or without lobster. The truck also slings sides, like a chilled pasta salad with salami, pepperoni, onions and pepperoncinis. For those looking for something sweet, there is a homemade banana pudding on the menu. The dessert is layered with vanilla wafers and sliced bananas. Castagnetta’s recipe is inspired by Magnolia Bakery’s iconic version.
According to Castagnetta, experimentation is a fun part of the process and central to Knuckleheads’ success.
“We’ve really just been in this kitchen trying different things and seeing what sticks, what people like, and we’ll tailor the menu for cold seasons and hot seasons. We had lobster bisque, and surprisingly, people bought it out at 110 degrees,” Castagnetta says.
Follow Knuckleheads on Facebook and TikTok to stay up to date on the food truck’s appearances.
