Nostalgia Overload July 11, 2012

As those of you who follow me on twitter might know, this blog’s first anniversary passed last week. I accidentally missed it. Food Truck Nerd reminded me on Monday that it was coming up, so I looked up what day it was in the archives. I thought it was the 5th, but I apparently missed the fact that I had so many posts in July of 2011 that there was more than one page of them! The first post was actually written on the 3rd, and I didn’t realize that until the 5th, naturally. Ugh. By the time I realized that, I was so disappointed in myself I couldn’t bring myself to write for awhile, but now I’ve sucked it up and am back. This was mostly a result of another nostalgic moment for me yesterday, the last Edgewood Eats indefinitely. Before I write about that, though, let’s catch up on some of the truckin’ I’ve done in the couple weeks since my last post.

I caught up with Baba Kabob for the second time during one of their lunch runs. I had been craving the veggie kabobs I had the last time I tried their truck. This time they were serving them over rice I hadn’t had yet, and it was the perfect combination.

Veggie kabobs over rice from Baba Kabob

I also sought out Sugar Tree for a second taste on a lunch run. This time I even got to meet the owners and chat with them! I was sure to grab two new treats. I had to have more of the organic cotton candy, but this time I got a new flavor. I also picked up some cookies and cream popcorn, which one of the owners said had been referred to as “crack” before. I wouldn’t say that description is too far off; when I ate it I easily ate it all in one sitting.

Watermelon organic cotton candy from Sugar Tree

Cookies and cream popcorn from Sugar Tree

On the Fourth of July, Kyle and I headed to the Rose, White, and Blue parade, but we bypassed the Moveable Feast lineup to high-tail it to a new truck we hadn’t tried before, Grilled Cheese Bandits. When we found them we were greeted by a young lady handing out paper menus, which I thought was a nice touch to get the word out and prevent the usual crowding around the menu at a truck.

The front of the Grilled Cheese Bandits menu

We looked at the options, made our choices, and went up to the truck to place our orders.

The Grilled Cheese Bandits truck

Kyle decided on the Dillinger, which consisted of jack cheese and garlic on texas toast. I tried a bite, and it was a nice spin on a classic grilled cheese.

The dillinger from Grilled Cheese Bandits

I went with the Giuliano which was similar to a caprese style grilled cheese. It was smaller, but had much more flavor. I also liked how they served their sandwiches in baskets that you could then return to them after you finished; much better for the environment!

The giuliano from Grilled Cheese Bandits

My final food truck visit before I get into Edgewood Eats took place at yet another lunch run. (Do you see a pattern here?) I was in Palo Alto for a doctor appointment and happened to see on my phone that Manna was going to be at Sequoia hospital in Redwood City. I had only tried them once before and thought the roll I got was so awesome I couldn’t wait to have it again. They don’t really travel down to the south bay, so I didn’t mind going out of my way to try them again. I usually try to get something new when I go to a truck for the second time, but I couldn’t not get the best veg sushi I’d had again! I also got a Japanese soft drink to enjoy while I waited for my meal.

Ramune from Manna

They included a lollipop with the packaging for the sushi, and I thought that was a nice touch that I could enjoy on the drive home

The Manna takeout container with a lollipop

And finally, the wonderful sushi. Mmmmmm. I try not to post the same food twice on here, but I just can’t describe how great this roll is.

Veggie roll from Manna

And with that we can finally move on to yesterday’s Edgewood Eats. Like many, I am sad to see this event coming to an end. They are looking for a new location but haven’t found one yet. Edgewood was the first food truck gathering I attended in the bay area, and I’ve been going since February of 2011. I have discovered many, many new trucks there and will always associate the event with my earliest food truck memories. As I approached the shopping center for the last time before it is broken down, I saw that someone had spray painted a greeting along the wall.

A final greeting

Now, as those who follow Food Truck Nerd might know, he considers it a “Pacman” when you eat at five or more trucks at one food truck gathering. I have never attempted a Pacman, although I have inadvertently completed many Ms. Pacmans (four trucks) without trying. I didn’t exactly plan to complete a Pacman at the final Edgewood, but as I bought food and realized I was buying small portions, I also realized that a Pacman was completely within my grasp. It helped that I wasn’t rushing and was chatting with Dan Hugo throughout my time there. Unfortunately, since I didn’t realize I was achieving a Pacman until halfway through it, I didn’t take photos of all of my items. Dan will have to serve as my witness. I usually only photograph the food I haven’t had before, and some of the food I got was food I’ve tried many times!

I started my Pacman journey with a menu item at Little Green Cyclo I hadn’t tried before, tofu spring rolls. I had seen them serve duck spring rolls many times, but this was the first tofu ones. I jumped at this opportunity since spring rolls are one of my weaknesses. They were out of the peanut sauce that comes with them, but I got a soy sauce instead that complemented the spring rolls nicely.

Tofu spring rolls from Little Green Cyclo

My next stop was House of Siam on Wheels for my usual favorite, the tofu taco. Sadly, no photo was taken.

The third truck I visited was Conklin’s Catering, a truck I had only seen once before and hadn’t been too impressed with in terms of vegetarian options. This time I ordered some of their roti, which usually comes with a dipping sauce that has meat in it. Dan suggested I get a soy vegetable sauce that comes with one of the other menu items with it instead. I then waited about 20 minutes to a half hour for a little bit of bread. Dan ordered his meal after me and got it and ate it in the time it took them to bring my order up. I was rather disappointed.

Roti from Conklin’s Catering

The roti itself wasn’t bad, but the “vegetable” sauce had exactly one slice of a vegetable in it. While we waited, I heard one other vegetarian and one vegan ask about meat free options and get turned away by the truck’s staff. I try to be understanding of trucks without vegetarian options, but it really looked like they were losing business because of it, and it wouldn’t be difficult for them to just remove the beef from some of their menu items and make them vegetarian. As much as I hate to write negative reviews of trucks, I think it’s safe to say I won’t be returning to this one anytime soon.

The fourth truck of my Pacman was a much better experience. I ordered an avocado roll from We Sushi, and they let me know ahead of time that it would be 15-20 minutes. I was grateful for that knowledge because it allowed me time to go to another truck and pick up dinner for Kyle. (Don’t worry, I’m not counting that in my Pacman since I didn’t eat it!) When I came back, my food was ready when it hadn’t even been fifteen minutes yet. Unfortunately, I also didn’t take a photo of this item since I’ve had it before.

The final leg of my Pacman took place at Scoops where I tried a flavor I hadn’t had before, the raspbernet chip.

Raspbernet chip ice cream from Scoops

It was a refreshing end to my Pacman on such a hot day. By this time, Edgewood was the most crowded I’d ever seen it. Dan said they should have their last Edgewood every week with that kind of turnout.

The crowd at Edgewood Eats, July 10th

Today I ventured to Hiller Aviation to check out the trucks there for the first time, but I will save that for another post. I will leave you with a not-exactly-food-truck-related reminder that today is 7/11 which means it’s free Slurpee day! Don’t forget to get your free Slurpee. If you live in San Jose, I recommend the 7-11 on First and Gish. I’ve also had luck with the one on 11th and San Carlos in years past, but the one at 6th and St. James has told me they don’t participate in free Slurpee day before… pshaw!

This Week in Food Trucks June 18, 2012

I’ve gotta say, it’s nice to be writing a mere week after my last post. This means I get to write a little more thoroughly about each truck and all of my food truck experiences.

Last week I went to Edgewood Eats on Tuesday. There was a new truck I hadn’t heard of there. Sunrise Deli seems to be a brick and mortar restaurant that became a truck. When I saw falafel on their menu, I was in. It had been far too long since I’d had falafel from a food truck!

The Sunrise Deli Truck

As you can see, their doors were down when I arrived about twenty minutes after Edgewood started. I was willing to wait to try a new truck though. It didn’t take much waiting either, and before I knew it I had ordered my avocado falafel wrap.

Avocado falafel wrap from Sunrise Deli

I have to admit, I pretty much inhaled it. I couldn’t help it; falafel is so yummy, especially when paired with avocado. I don’t know how I never had falafel until I became a vegetarian. I feel like I have 27 years of falafel eating to catch up on.

The avocado falafel wrap after meeting my wrath

I also stopped by Scoops and grabbed a scoop of their birfday cake flavor. The gentleman taking my order made sure I pronounced the name the “right” way before serving me. He also took a photo of me and put it in the “happy customers” folder on their facebook page here. I ate a bit before I got a really good photo of all the colors of confetti in this ice cream.

Birfday cake ice cream from Scoops

On Friday, Kyle and I decided to go to a Word on the StreEatz event at Piedmont Hills High School for dinner. While there I got to try a new truck I’ve heard lots about but hadn’t run into yet, Takoz Mod Mex.

The Takoz truck

I ordered a vegetarian “el tako”. I was impressed with all the toppings which consisted of more than just the regular toppings you see on a traditional taco. It was very yummy.

A vegetarian taco from Takoz

My next stop was the Dough Truck. I had been wanting to try their tater tots ever since listening to Food Truck Nerd’s podcast about them. After verifying that the “special sauce” was vegetarian, I ordered the Animal, which is basically tater tots served animal style like at In-and-Out: melted cheese, special sauce, and onions on top.

The Animal from Dough Truck

From there, we drove to Club Auto Sport where a new candy truck, Sugar Tree Sweets and Treats was serving at an event. If you know me, you know that I love candy. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to try a new truck that includes candy. When we got there, we quickly discovered that this was a HUGE event. It took forever to find parking, and we felt like we were crashing someone’s party. Eventually, though, we found our destination.

The Sugar Tree trailer

This is one of the rare trucks where you actually get to walk inside. What’s more, the inside of the truck is decorated, complete with checkered floor. I’m a sucker for checkered floor. Get it, sucker? oh boy…

Shelves of candy, and checkered floor!

Another photo of the inside, including Kyle checking out the goods

It took some deliberating, but I eventually decided on a small bin of organic blueberry cotton candy, a red velvet cake pop, and a packet of fun dip (an old favorite from my childhood).

Organic blueberry cotton candy from Sugar Tree

The cotton candy had just the right amount of flavor without being too sugary sweet. It definitely tasted healthier than the kind you get at the carnival.

Red velvet cake pop from Sugar Tree

The cake pop was incredible. I don’t know how else to describe it, just utterly delicious.

Inside the cake pop

This morning, I woke up and had a mediocre half-breakfast of stale cereal. I quickly realized I need to do some grocery shopping and would need to go to a food truck for lunch before then. When I checked roaming hunger, I saw a food truck I hadn’t heard of before in Mountain View, another one that seems to be a brick and mortar gone mobile, SF Soupmobile.

The SF Soupmobile truck

They had a lot of vegetarian options, and all of them sounded delicious after my poor excuse for a breakfast. I decided to try a couple at once and went for a small bowl of the split pea soup and a half hummus wrap. After I ordered my food it was ready almost immediately. The soup seemed too hot to eat right away, so I decided to just high-tail it home. Luckily, I live close enough for the soup to still be warm when I got there.

Hummus wrap from SF Soupmobile

The hummus wrap was the perfect blend of flavors. I though the kalamata olives were an especially good touch.

I consider myself a bit of a split pea soup snob because I grew up going to Andersen’s on family vacations, and I think nothing measures up as a result. This split pea made the cut though. They also included a bit of a sourdough roll for dipping purposes, but I didn’t get a photo of it. Most importantly, after I finished the soup I let my cat lick the bowl.

I think he enjoyed it.

I’m not even sure he focused on breathing while eating the soup.

SF Soupmobile: KITTY APPROVED!

More Where That Came From March 16, 2012

Oh dear. I guess it’s been over a month since I hit 100 trucks and posted the big list. I even posted two blogs in one week then thinking I was going to start writing more often, and now look at me! I blame my blogging absence on two things: 1) Having to finish Mockingjay before its due date at the library, and 2) taking on a new long-term subbing job. Obviously the latter has taken up the most time in my life, but for awhile all my free time was reserved for the former. Worry not though; I haven’t stopped going to trucks after reaching 100. Much to the contrary, I’m actually up to 104 now. As with any new job, I’ve just been learning how to balance my time again, and hopefully I’ve come pretty close to figuring it out. Also, I know how Katniss Everdeen’s story ends now, so that is no longer a hurdle

Since I last wrote, so much has happened. First of all, if you follow Veggie Truckin’ on twitter or facebook, you know that I have a new logo! It was created by friend and avid food truck follower Dan Hugo, and I’m happy to finally post it in my blog for the first time!

Credit: Dan Hugo

Secondly, if you follow food trucks at all, you have probably heard about the bill that has stirred a lot of response in California, AB 1678. I’m obviously against it as both someone who follows food trucks and an educator in public schools. I don’t think it is a solution to childhood obesity at all. For more detail on my thoughts, I’d like to direct you to this Food Truck Nerd podcast where I was interviewed, as well as many owners of food trucks, about the bill. The bill has since been amended, and while the changes are welcome, I would prefer there not be a bill at all and believe these issues should be handled at a local level, not a state level. I highly recommend checking out the many Food Truck Nerd podcasts and blogs about the bill; he has been a huge advocate against it and has done a great job of covering the issue as it unfolds.

Now, on to the trucks! While I have been to four new trucks in recent weeks, I’m going to make this another food porn post of new dishes (to me) from trucks about which I’ve already posted.

First on the agenda? Eat on Monday!

The Eat on Monday truck

Is it possible that I’ve never posted a photo of the actual Eat on Monday truck in here and just the food? Maybe, I’m not sure. I’ve revisited this truck a couple times recently and tried items I hadn’t tried before. First, the same day I hit my 100th truck, I ate at Eat on Monday for lunch, also at Rockage. Kyle and I got their fried brussels sprouts, and holy geez were they amazing.

Fried brussels sprouts from Eat on Monday with a side of fries

On another occasion, we met for lunch at Eat On Monday, and I finally had the anticipated veggie burger. Kyle had raved about how great their veggie burger was, and it did not disappoint. I especially enjoyed the bun.

Veggie burger from Eat on Monday

Another truck that has become incredibly active on twitter and whose constant communication with customers has made me appreciate them even more is Koja Kitchen. After trying and loving their teriyaki zen koja I was eager to try more, and on a couple different occasions I’ve tried two more items from their menu. First, the kamikaze fries. They’re usually made with meat and kimchi that includes shellfish, but they make a vegetarian option that is superb. The fake meat they use is delicious (which can’t always be said for fake meat), and I’m a total sucker for criss cut fries.

Vegetarian kamikaze fries from Koja Kitchen

Another tasty item from their menu is their signature dessert, the Mochimisu. From the unique plastic dish that gives the Mochimisu a fun spinning effect to the strawberry on top, this dessert rivals some of the best desserts on the food truck scene.

Mochimisu from Koja Kitchen

As part of SF Beerweek, Kyle and I attended the third annual Beerfest which had multiple trucks in attendance. For lunch we decided on a truck I had only actually tried from their booth at the farmer’s market, Oaxacan Kitchen. Beware: the following photo includes Kyle being adorably excited to get their food from a truck.

The Oaxacan Kitchen truck

I forget the name of what I got (I swear I hadn’t that many drinks at that point; it just happened awhile ago!), but rest assured that it was yummy.

Our meals from Oaxacan Kitchen (and beer!)

We also tried their churros, which were better than any churro I’ve ever had at a fair. One of the elements of Oaxacan Kitchen’s food that I love most is how authentic it is.

Churros from Oaxacan Kitchen

I feel like I’m being a tad verbose, perhaps due to my lack of writing in the last month, so for the next three trucks I’d just like to say that they were all trucks I had only tried once before, and not since the summer. I was happy to try new items from each of them, and they were all delicious!

Tofu sisig from Senor Sisig

Curry rice bowl from Tandoori Chicken USA Mobile

Seasoned fries from Whisk on Wheels

Kyle and I have started frequenting Gorditas Universales on weekday nights because it’s conveniently located between our two apartments. We’ve tried many of the fake meat options from their menu in burritos, tacos, enchiladas, and quesadillas. Somehow I only managed to take photos of a couple of their tacos though. I haven’t had a single thing from their menu that wasn’t delicious. Now if only they’d get a website, twitter, or facebook I could link to!

Tacos from Gorditas Universales

Finally, I’ll close with a special I tried at the Tikka Bytes truck. At a recent Edgewood Eats, they were serving a vegetable briyani that was so spicy I had to eat it in shifts.

Vegetable briyani from Tikka Bytes

I’m hoping my next post will be much sooner and will include the four new trucks I’ve visited in the last month. Stay tuned!

New Food From Old Favorites February 8, 2012

I’ve decided to take a break from my countdown to 100 trucks. I have visited my 98th and 99th trucks since my last post, but the 100th still looms in the future. Rather than spend one post writing about only two trucks, I’d like to play some catch up. I try to have themes in my posts, and as a result some of my visits to trucks fall through the cracks if they don’t fit a theme. I have a lot of photos of trucks on my phone, and they deserve some recognition! Many of the trucks I’ve written about I eat at on a regular basis, and I’m constantly trying new menu items from the trucks that offer multiple vegetarian options. This will be a photo-heavy post without a ton of words. Enjoy the food porn!

Apple walnut cake from Butterscotch on the Go

Paneer kathi roll from Curry Up Now

Fried pickles from Grill Stars

Mushrooms on a roll from Hiyaaa!

Rice box with tofu from Little Green Cyclo

Tofu tacos from Eat on Monday

Eat on Monday will make any of their meat tacos vegetarian by substituting the meat with tofu, so you have your choice of styles! They do the same with their burgers and veggie burgers, but I haven’t had the opportunity to try them yet. Kyle says they’re super tasty, so I look forward to trying them sometime soon!

Sweet potato fries from Sanguchon

Chocolate cupcake with caramel frosting, sprinkles, and cinnamon from Project Cupcake

Veggie gyoza roll and cucumber avocado roll from We Sushi

We Sushi recently updated their menu, and they added these two veg rolls to it and lowered the price of the veggie burrito I wrote about previously. I especially enjoyed the gyoza roll. I love gyoza, and it was my first time having it inside a sushi roll.

Sugar cookie and pecan cookie from Mini Yums

Tofu burrito from Mogo

MIlkshake cheesecake from Mogo

This isn’t the best photo because of the plastic wrap, but Mogo’s cheesecake is probably my favorite dessert from a non-dessert truck. They don’t always carry it, but I highly recommend grabbing a slice when they do have some!

Last night’s Edgewood Eats marked my one year anniversary of attending the event. It was cold and gloomy, and the turnout wasn’t as great as usual, but I still managed to fill my belly with yummy food, and there was a new truck that wasn’t a food truck; it was an art truck!

The Palo Alto Art Center truck

Quite a crowd of children ended up developing around the tables, and they all seemed to be enjoying making cupcakes out of clay. Definitely a fun idea for food truck events where there are a lot of families.

Once again, my boyfriend Kyle and I made a cameo on the latest Food Truck Nerd podcast. We had a round table discussion about food trucks in general, and I went into a lot of detail about what sorts of vegetarian options I like to see on food trucks. Food Truck Nerd’s podcast is now up on iTunes as well, so you can download it from the iTunes store and even subscribe!

Finally, Kyle has decided to start photographing our food truck experiences as often as possible (or as often as he remembers his camera). I guess he was getting sick of my less-than-stellar camera phone photos He started his quest when we went to Moveable Feast on Saturday, and he snapped quite a few good shots. You can find a photo of me receiving my ice cream from Treatbot as well as many more photos in this album. Once I figure out how to take his photos from flickr and put them on my blog, you can expect even better photography on Veggie Truckin’.

I hope this post tides you over until the big 100 hits!

A New Era of Veggie Truckin’ November 15, 2011

If you follow Veggie Truckin’ on twitter, you probably already know that some changes have happened around here. First, I registered the domain veggietruckin.com, so that url automatically forwards you to my blog. Secondly, I created a fan page on facebook for the blog. There’s a cute little widget on the side menu for it, or you can just follow this link. On a personal note, I got an iPhone 4S, and what that means for the blog is my photos will be much clearer. Granted, it’s still a camera phone, but at least it knows how to focus. No more out of focus photos just because there’s some foil in the background, yay! Finally, I was interviewed on the latest Food Truck Nerd podcast with my boyfriend. Check it out! This time I think I managed to laugh a little less, but only by a little

This post isn’t just to tell you what’s new though. I have a couple new trucks to write about too! Last week, for the first time, I ate food from a truck I hadn’t visited in person. My boyfriend saw that Twister Truck would be parked near where he lives, so he picked some up for us on his way home from work. It was a little weird not getting the full food truck experience, but the yummy food made up for it.

Twister burrito cone from Twister Truck

The photo of the twister burrito cone on the website intrigued me, so that’s what I ordered. I was still a little confused as to how to eat it, but it got easier once I decided to just use a fork. I also tore pieces of tortilla off the cone and used them to scoop up the insides. I thought a side of tortilla chips might help, but then the extra food might be too much because the burrito cone itself was the perfect amount for a meal. I also got a side of churro fries but wasn’t able to finish them all.

Churro fries from Twister truck

My boyfriend didn’t receive the chocolate or cajeta sauce mentioned on the Twister website with them, so they lacked a little bit in flavor. Additionally, all the grease collected at the bottom of the cup making the bottoms of the fries especially gross to a not-so-yummy degree. With a little less oil and a little more dipping sauce, I think these could really hit the spot.

On Saturday, we ventured to the Moveable Feast at the Garden City location. I miss the old ones at San Pedro Square that I could walk to from where I live, but I don’t mind driving a little bit for my food truck fix. I decided to try a truck I had been to before but only for some cookies, Sanguchon.

The Sanguchon truck

My boyfriend had been raving about their vegetable curry wrap which he had gotten at one of their lunch time stops. Never having had Peruvian curry before, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised.

Vegetales al Curry wrap from Sanguchon

What I found was an amazing amount of flavor that filled me up for hours. Every bite included a new vegetable I hadn’t tried before. I found myself taking a new photo every few minutes because I’d look down and see more and more colors. It was an amazingly photogenic as well as delicious wrap!

There was also a new truck at the event, Project Cupcake.

The Project Cupcake Truck

Aside from a clever name and truck design to go with it, this cupcake truck has a different concept than most. They allow their customers to build their own cupcakes, starting by choosing a cake, then choosing a frosting, and then you can put whatever toppings you want on top (similar to a frozen yogurt place). Another cute component is the fact that when you visit them you’re greeted by staff in lab coats.

A Project Cupcake employee dressed in a lab coat outside the truck

When I got to the truck, they only had six cupcakes left, so I didn’t get to choose my cupcake as specifically as most. I got the mocha flavored cake with cream cheese frosting. Then I visited their toppings bar and took full advantage of it.

The Project Cupcake toppings bar

I loaded on some butterfinger bits, oreo pieces, and sprinkled a little cinnamon on top. The result was a super tasty cupcake. I can’t wait to try them again when I can choose my cake and frosting more specifically too!

My Project Cupcake creation

Those are all the new trucks for this time. Don’t forget to like Veggie Truckin’ on facebook!

Lots and Lots of Eats July 16, 2011

It’s hard to believe, but I’ve been to three food truck gatherings this week. That’s the nature of food trucks in this area now, and I’m totally loving it. In fact, I’m kinda bummed that I’m going to be out of town so much in the next month and won’t be able to frequent my favorite trucks. However, I’m also excited to experience food trucks in other cities (Chicago and Los Angeles, specifically) and share them with you here!

My first stop this week was Edgewood Eats.

Edgewood Eats on Monday, July 11th

One of my favorite trucks, Little Green Cyclo was there. This truck was high on my list before I became a vegetarian, but now I love it even more. It has multiple vegetarian options as opposed to most trucks which only have one or two. I had had their banh mi with chicken before I became a vegetarian and loved it, so I was excited to try it with tofu instead. It did not disappoint.

Banh mi with tamarind organic tofu from Little Green Cyclo

The sandwich was filling, so I just wanted a little something more. I hadn’t eaten at Curry Up Now in awhile and had never tried one of their deconstructed samosas before. I wasn’t sure how big it would be, but at $6 I figured it wouldn’t be too too much food. I was wrong. It was a lot of food and very filling. That is in no way a complaint; I just didn’t have enough room in my tummy to finish it!

Paneer deconstructed samosa from Curry Up Now

Although I was stuffed, I made one last stop at Kara’s Cupcakes. I love to take two of their cupcakes to go, eat one for dessert later in the night, and have the other one after lunch the next day. This time around I got the Fleur de Sel and Kara’s Carrot.

The cute box in which Kara's Cupcakes are served

Fleur de Sel and Kara's Carrot cupcakes from Kara's Cupcakes

And now on to my second festival of the week! Last night (Friday), I went to the first Fremont Street Eats in the Pacific Commons shopping center in Fremont. I convinced my mom to have her first food truck gathering experience as well and gave her recommendations for some of my favorite non-veg foods I used to enjoy before I went vegetarian.

Half of the trucks at Fremont Street Eats

My first stop was Grill Stars, a truck I had yet to visit. Being a burger truck, they only had one vegetarian option on their menu (although I’ve heard great things about their fried pickles they weren’t serving that night), sweet potato fries. Although I only had to wait for one person in front of me to order, it took an unexpectedly long time for my fries to be prepared. In fact, I went to another truck while I waited, and my food still wasn’t ready. I’m sad to say that when I finally did get my fries, I wasn’t that impressed with the flavor. They were missing the usual bite sweet potato fries have. It felt like they just barely fell short. The fries also came with a marshmallow dipping sauce, but I didn’t try it since most marshmallows contain gelatin. Considering how long I waited, I’m assuming that they make their food as it’s ordered, so maybe in the future I can order their nachos without meat on them. I’m trying not to write this truck off completely after one bad experience; after all, they’re still a rather new truck, so maybe they still need to work out the kinks.

Sweet potato fries with marshmallow dipping sauce from Grill Stars

The truck I visited while I was waiting for my food at Grill Stars was That’s Sweet! Dessert Truck. I had gotten cupcakes from them once before about a month ago at Newark Street Eats. This is why I was surprised when the gentleman manning the truck recognized me as a returning customer. Impressive! I got a red velvet and a salted caramel.

Red velvet and salted caramel cupcakes from That's Sweet!

The next two trucks I hit up, for both my mom’s and my meals were two old favorites, House of Siam on Wheels and BBQ Kalbi. I got a tofu taco from each.

Tofu tacos from House of Siam on Wheels and BBQ Kalbi

Tonight was my last Moveable Feast in San Jose for about a month I didn’t take many photos because I spent some time chatting with Food Truck Nerd and his wife. They also introduced me to Ryan, the owner of Treatbot and creator of Moveable Feast.

When I arrived I made a beeline straight to the line for Toasty Melts, a San Francisco based truck that doesn’t make it to these parts very often. I had had food from their truck once before and had been waiting to try more. I got an Irish Cheddar Bomb, which consisted of two types of cheddar cheese and garlic mashed potatoes. Being lactose intolerant, I had to double up on the lactaid, but it was totally worth it.

Irish Cheddar Bomb from Toasty Melts

I wanted some Treatbot afterward but thought I should cool it on the dairy, so I got a cup of their lemon sorbet flavor. It was perfectly refreshing and fun to snack on while chatting.

Phew! What a week. I’m gonna miss my regular truck gatherings while I’m out of town, but that will make them seem that much better when I come back, right?

A Hot San Jose Night July 11, 2011

On Thursday, July 7th Moveable Feast held an event outside of their usual Saturday in San Pedro Square time and location. Seven trucks joined the rest of the Hot San Jose Nights festivities at the county fairgrounds for the evening.

I’ve found that my food truck obsession has brought me to places and events that I never would have seen otherwise on many occasions. This was definitely the case on Thursday. Old fashioned cars lined the perimeter of the event and often drove right by while I enjoyed my meal. There were also a lot of people dressed in poodle skirts and other ’50s garb who were attending the sock hop and decided to stop by for some dinner.

The first truck I went to was Tikka Bytes. I had only been to this truck once before and had had a taco at the time. This time I got a naanwich with tofu and tikka masala. Unfortunately, when I opened it up it definitely had chicken instead of tofu in it. I felt bad having to bring it back, but they were very understanding and my replacement naanwich came out much faster. I had a hard time getting a good photo of it though:

Tofu tikka masala naanwich from Tikka Bytes

Despite not photographing well and requiring multiple napkins to enjoy it, the naanwich was full of flavor and very filling. I had been eyeing a sandwich at another truck for afterward but soon realized I was too full for anything that big. Instead, I made my way over to The Wow Truck, a truck I never thought I’d eat at again because of their lack of vegetarian options. They have started serving a vegetarian dessert option, though, called a turon. This was basically a banana fritter, and it was tasty.

Turon from the Wow Truck

My final stop was Treatbot, where I got a chocolate chip cookie with eastside horchata ice cream. It was delicious, as always.

Chocolate chip cookie with eastside horchata ice cream from Treatbot

After I finished another messy treat (the messier it is, the yummier it is, right?), I met up with Food Truck Nerd for an interview for his podcast. He managed to record me between all the old fashioned cars driving by, and it was fun chatting with a fellow food truck lover. I’ll post as soon as he posts the episode with me in it, but until then I recommend listening to his previous episodes!

Tonight I’m heading to Edgewood Eats. I didn’t go last week, so I almost feel like I’m having withdrawals. Lots of my favorite trucks will be there, so I’m looking forward to it!