Midtown Lunch

My love of food trucks is an odd obsession that has managed to endure many years despite numerous contradictions.  For one thing, even though I love to track the comings and goings of new food trucks it is always with a slightly disapproving eye.  ”Did you seriously put money into this idea?” “Didn’t anybody warn you that food trucks are a losing proposition?”  ”Didn’t you bother to ask!?”   Most new trucks are either too cute for their own good, more expensive than they should be, or (the worst offense) just downright awful.  As if dressing up shitty food in a painted truck is going to somehow turn it into the next Kogi.  And yet on indecisive lunch days I can’t resist heading to Miracle Mile, or Pennsylvania and 26th, or the newly re-opened food truck lot on Overland and Washington to see what’s going on.

Last week I was rewarded with “Cod Save the Queen”, a new fish and chips truck that launched at Coachella this year.  And as somebody who runs a website/podcast called Food is the New Rock, how could I not?

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What do falafel sandwiches, chicken parm sandwiches, gyro pitas, and burritos all have in common? Answer: They are all made infinitely better when stuffed with french fries. Don’t agree? Then you’re probably a communist. (Or a far less disgusting eater than I.) But in California, the king of the french fry stuffed lunch has got to be the California Burrito, a San Diego creation that is essentially carne asada fries, wrapped in a giant tortilla. Or as I like to call it, a nugget of deliciousness.  I’ve never actually had a California burrito in San Diego, but that’s probably a good thing. Because it means that I can enjoy these 3 (presumably more mediocre) versions available right here in Los Angeles.

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Ever since Kogi exploded onto the scene 4 years ago wannabe entrepreneurs have flocked into food trucks of their own, spurred on by the media’s overblown coverage, many of them with no real understanding of what made Kogi a success in the first place.  In other words, there have been a lot of dumb food truck ideas in this city. But there have also been a lot of genius food trucks (I’m looking at you sushi burritos!), and my love of street food keeps me rushing out every time a new one hits the streets.  The latest concept to catch my stomach’s eye (that’s the bellybutton, right?) is The Garbage Truck, a new truck serving up Rochester, New York style garbage plates/trash plates.

What are garbage plates you ask?  Well, imagine going to a Fourth of July picnic, eating as much as you possibly could, throwing it all up onto a plate, and having that throw up taste delicious.  That’s a Rochester garbage plate. Want to see what it looks like?  Of course you do!

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I hit up the Ludo Fried Chicken Truck yesterday for the first time since the end of last year, and discovered a big change.  No more balls!  Not sure when they started doing this (it may have been awhile ago), but Ludo’s Provencal fried chicken is no longer franken-balls held together with lord knows what.  Instead, they’re using what appear to be whole thighs- making them more like dark meat chicken strips.  It’s completely understandable considering how much work it takes to make Ludo’s famous balls, and it’s hard to be mad since the chicken still has the same great herbes de provence packed flavor.  Oh… and the portions are waaaaay bigger- so there’s that.

Congrats to Starry Kitchen for now serving our favorite balls in Los Angeles, uncontested. But for fried chicken from a truck, Ludo is still king.

Related:
Ludo Fried Chicken is a Truck Worth Chasing

If the excitement for food trucks is on the decline here in L.A. nobody has bothered to tell prospective food truck entrepreneurs. Every time I hit up my favorite food truck lot for lunch it seems another (usually ridiculous) idea has placed itself on four wheels- from nachos to peanut butter topped hamburgers.  And while many early gourmet food truck fans have given up on finding anything of quality off of a truck that seems to have spent more time on their logo than researching their business plan, I still can’t help myself.  Sure, the relatively low barrier to entry has created a parade of mediocre trucks run by wannabe cooks who are in over their head- both financially and culinar-ally (yes, I just made that word up.)  But occasionally you stumble upon something so genius- I’m looking at you sushi burritos- or just plain tasty, that it restores your faith in the whole genre.  And if you work in an office near Mid Wilshire, or 26th & Pennsylvania, or Olympic and Bundy, or Overland and Washington, or 7th & Fig, being a snob about food trucks doesn’t really seem like an option.

So when I read on Grub Street that a new Japanese curry truck was hitting the street, I got a little excited.

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I still remember the very first time I read about the sandwich known as patacon Maracucho. Named for the city in Venezuela that it comes from (Maracaibo), I remember it because for somebody as committed to being fat as I am finding out about a sandwich that uses fried plantains in place of bread is something that sticks with you.  Yes, you heard that right.  There is a town in Venezuela where they take shredded meat and sandwich it between two large patties made up of fried plantains.  (KFC Double Down, eat your artery clogged heart out.)

In New York, this sandwich (and the popular Vendy Award nominated truck that serves it) became known as patacon pisao, literally flattened plantain, and the rest is history. The open faced version of the dish, known simply as patacon, can be found at any number of Columbian restaurants in L.A. (like Cafe Columbia in Burbank.)  But the Venezuelan sandwich version is a bit more rare. So you can imagine how excited I was to read that the newly launched Lidia’s Dominican Truck was serving up their own version of patacon pisao off a truck on Miracle Mile.

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It’s no secret that the Jogasaki Truck is one of my favorite new trucks to hit Los Angeles in the past year. Their sushi burritos are not only the perfectly portable food truck treat, but they’re also a good value and delicious. If they parked outside my office, I’d probably eat one every day.  Most of the press they received (and it was a lot for awhile there) was of the “can you believe this truck is making sushi burritos!?” variety, but apparently there were others who saw Jogasaki for what it is… a genius idea, worthy of copying.

A few months ago The Pokey Truck hit the streets of Los Angeles, and if you thought their signature item was going to be Hawaiian poke (like you get at this great place on the Venice Beach boardwalk) guess again.  It’s another sushi burrito truck.

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