So many trucks...

...and so little time to sit down and write about them.  But it's been over two weeks and I'm heading out on vacation soon, so I thought I really need to find the time to really do a quick jot of all new things 'food truck'.  While there were a few re-visits, it was mostly first go's at some of the younger trucks.  In no particular order...

Surfside

Grilled fish tacos topped with a black bean and corn salsa, lime crema, and guac.  Dry and somewhat overcooked fish well compensated by the creamy guac and bright salsa that made up for it.  I'd actually be exceptionally happy if I could order a 1/4 or 1/2 pound side of guacamole like at a deli to take home and eat with my District Taco chips & salsa. Still nicely placed at 3.5 honks.

Nice Dream

Follow a tweet suggesting "trust me" on a taste sensation of sweet corn ice cream topped with bacon brittle, I ran right out to the truck who happened to be nearby.  As my friends would tell you, bacon is one of my very favorite things, and will hardly ever say no to it.  The brittle was delicious, truly, but I'm not sure I loved it on the ice cream, which on its own was not too sweet, creamy, and yet had a slightly odd texture, I expect from the granules of corn that peppered the chilled cream.  Most of the flavors on the truck are a little away from the norm, but I'll go back and try something else, and whatever it is, I will definitely be getting the brittle to top it.  3 honks.

Ball or Nothing

A stumble across Ball or Nothing at Farragut brought immediate hopes for wild boar balls to be on the menu, but alas I totally understood boar can be difficult to get, so to the standard meatball with marinara it was.  3 obviously homemade meatballs served with 2 sides for $9.  Another ball or two would be nice and on their own they were a bit dry, but blended reasonably with the marinara and my side of luscious mascarpone polenta.  The idea of a wedge salad is welcome, in this case, the avocado based dressing worked nicely with the first couple of bites but got tired after that.  All-in-all the polenta saved the meal for me and I'm curious so I'll definitely be back to see the two charming guys running things.  3 honks.

PhoNation

I commented earlier I was frustrated PhoNation was cooking their beef for pho rather than keeping it thinly sliced and raw, allowing the heat of the broth to cook the meat.  Rachel and I tweeted back and forth a couple of times and she explained they serve "rare beef" (rather than raw.)  Even more than that, they actually serve rare beef, brisket, or chicken.  First go I went for the rare beef.  While not particularly thin slices, the meat was fine, but the broth -- OMG!!!  Even better than I remember from last year.  So good, in fact, the very next time Rachel brought her truck back, I decided to try the chicken pho.  It worked too!  Grilled and gently charred.  Plus all pho orders come with appropriate accoutrements of basil, bean sprouts, lime, jalapeno, and as much sauce as you'd like.  Surely for pho, the best from a truck in the city, although What the Pho? isn't far behind.  4 honks. 

Pepe

The Serrano croquettes, despite taking a couple of minutes to receive, are delightful.  Crispy on the outside and pillow-soft on the inside.  5 come in the order, but it's hard not to just scoff them down.  Another winner from Pepe!

Hula Girl

A great sandwich as usual, but note there is/will be a sometimes secret condiment of a pineapple-ginger-habanero hot sauce.  If you like things with some bite, ask for it and gotta give it a try!

PORC & BBQ Bus

I'm not always in the mood for BBQ, yet somehow after my visits to both these trucks in the last week I'm thinking maybe I should push myself to be in the mood more often because both these trucks make me quite content.  Ribs with Number 5 and a side of fire roasted corn from the Bus, and a pulled pork "spectacular" sub from the Purveyors.  For those who don't know what ordering spectacular means, look at whatever the sauce for the resident mac & cheese menu item is and consider the sauce slathered on any of the sandwiches.  For a while it was a gorgonzola bacon sauce, but recently it appears to have changed to a rosemary cream variety.  Doesn't matter -- it adds a lush richness that compliments wonderfully.  Note to self: Visit both these trucks more often.

Goodies

In my last post about Goodies I commented about the great van and the sweetheart of an owner, and those things both still hold true.  Even my Oreo Concrete was awesome as expected.  However, Goodies is the third truck (that I know of) which is charging customers for using credit cards.  I've ranted about this before, and the $.50 is even more a pronounced rip-off at Goodies.  Square charges 2.75% flat fee, and on a single order of $5 at Goodies, that amounts to less than $.14.  Doing some quick math, you'd have to charge 4 orders to get to the $.50 up-charge.  In this case as the last one at Kraving Kabob, the charge was executed without advising the customer first; at least Goode's Mobile Kitchen makes it a point to be very up front about the charge, but I find the charge itself off-putting and was particularly angry about it this time.  Goodie's is the second most expensive ice cream from a truck in the city (not counting tourist spots on the mall where some Good Humor-ish and pedi-cab type folks go) and frankly the portions on Sinplicity are bigger.  Penalizing for credit to the degree this works out is not good.

DC Greek Food

Not the prettiest of trucks, and first thought is obviously, "just what we need... another kabob/gyro truck" but don't pass this one up just on the saturation principle.  $8 for a combo platter made up of a juicy chicken kabob and a pile of excellent gyro meat, served over rice with a salad.  An awesome deal and certainly better food than a number of the other similar trucks out there.  I wrote a post a bit ago about the relation of halal to kabobs to gyro and so on, and now with 2 Greek trucks in the growing mix, I think the relational train of thought needs to be expanded.  Easy 3.5 honks.

Reba's Funnel Cakes

After what seemed like an extended hiatus from approaching Farragut Square, Reba's finally returned with an updated menu and some lower prices.  It takes forever, but it is fresh and the wait isn't dull given the 'lively' personality of the chef.  Besides funnel cakes and the addition of savory items like hot dogs and chicken tenders, you can also get parfaits and various other fried items like fruit fritters and a variety of fried-other-desserts (oreos, brownies, etc.)  We sampled pineapple fritters and the brownies -- both were deemed big winners, although some folks preferred more than another.  Well priced at $3 each, but you gotta eat 'em while they're hot for maximum enjoyment.  Rating unchanged.

What the Pho?

I guess the folks over at What the Pho? read this blog because every single comment/suggestion about the lettuce wraps was addressed by my second visit.  As noted earlier, I marginally prefer the homemade broth at PhoNation, yet love the idea of the wrap and this one delivers with superb lemongrass chicken as a base.  Thanks for being open to ideas, and I'll be back soon and often!

Grids Waffles

The folks at Grids announced early in the week they planned on attending Farragut Friday and further stated they'd be bringing their pizza waffle with them.  With an inopportune parking spot, they did make it and I made my inaugural visit to try the touted menu item.  Available with or without pepperoni, a fairly gummy waffle was stuffed with canned pizza sauce, mozzarella, and fresh basil.  Obviously the fresh basil was the best part.  Maybe the sweet options are better...?  2 honks.

Chef Driven 

Yet another new item arrives on the menu in the form of Indonesian baby back ribs with a sweet soy glaze.  Jerry can do no wrong.  If you haven't been, you're really missing out.

PhoWheels

I've actually been twice in two weeks, the first time to try roasted duck tacos, and the second to grab some pho as it was the last one I hadn't tried of the 4 pho trucks now (recently) on the streets.  About a week or so prior to my first trip, PhoWheels had posted a photo of the duck tacos on Twitter and I wanted to be go to where ever they were planning on being because it looked to die for.  Things didn't exactly turn out that way.  When I did make it, the actual tacos looked about as good as the photo, however enjoyment did not compare.  If I'm gonna eat duck, the skin better be crispy.  Unfortunately the mid-rare duck had flaccid, very not-crispy skin which made the whole thing terribly chewy to eat.  The rest of it was fine -- I mean, it's hard to go wrong topping anything with hoisin sauce, plus the veg and the pancakes were both good.  I ventured back on another visit for pho and it too disappointed.  (At some point soon I'll put together a post summarizing all the pho trucks.)  Broth had little flavor, and other than a few green onions there were no other fresh herbs such as cilantro or Thai basil.  In this case I ordered chicken in my soup -- it was like unseasoned, lightly boiled then shredded chicken breast.  2.5 honks.  Note: The wrap is incredible.  No joke.  Really awesome looking truck!

Now to vacation... Hasta la vista!

Sampling 4 More Trucks

It still boggles my mind that I can head out for lunch and have the opportunity to try a truck I've never had before at least once per week.  Good or bad, that fact simply speaks to the volume of trucks roaming the District on a daily basis.  Last week I had the opportunity patronize 4 trucks I hadn't previously, including a rare VA-only truck appearance at Truckeroo of Hot People Food.

As you may have noticed, in the couple of months, the volume of pho trucks went from 0 to 4.  I've mentioned Pho Junkies a couple of times, and noted the new PhoNation truck is from the same proprietor as last year's short-lived Phonomenon.  (Special note--she tweeted me last week to say she's gone to rare steak, instead of the pre-cooked I was so unfond of last year.  To that end, I'll be visiting as soon as I can.)  Meanwhile, last week I was able to give What the Pho? a first go.  Not being able to decide between pho and an option for lettuce wraps, I went for both.  The pho ($8) is essentially what you'd think, homemade oxtail broth with noodles and raw/rare steak served with a "pouch" of accoutrements containing fresh basil, jalapeno slice(s), bean sprouts, and a wedge of lime.  I found the broth to both look and taste a bit fattier than some of the other broths, but still came off nicely smooth as pho should.  Once "prepared" with the whole bottles of hoisin and sriracha available on the counter (as opposed to Pho Junkies,) my self-personalized concoction satisfied.  In addition to banh mi sandwiches, What the Pho? also offers the filling of the banh mi options (chicken, beef, etc) over rice or served with large lettuce leaves to make wraps.  I figured I'd get maybe 2-3 leaves, but the container came with 5 huge leaves of washed red-leaf lettuce.  Both the bowl and box of lettuce came with slices of cucumbers and tomatoes, but minimal pickled veg and no cilantro as would be found in a banh mi.  It would also be nice if the selection of squeeze bottles on the counter included a spicy mayo (or similar) as I'd love to drizzle some, even from a little cup, in my wrap.  The lemongrass chicken, though, was juicy and well flavored.  Overall I enjoyed things for a 3.5 honk rating, although more than Pho Junkies who is still slotted at the same rating.  The other two trucks will be visited soon and then at some point I may try for a full comparison as, so far, they all seem to have their pros with some minor cons.

Thursday I found myself at the glorified Van-a-gon-looking truck dubbed K-bob that never tweets yet has been lurking around Farragut Square nearly every day for months.  They serve about what you'd expect from a truck with such a name: beef, chicken, and sometimes pork kabobs over lettuce, rice, in a combo, etc.  I can't count the number of times I'd walked right by K-bob since they started coming out, but recently I'd seen folks eating in the Square what looked like some pretty good food and when questioned I learned this is where they'd been coming from.  Salad topped with a chicken kabob is on the menu for $7.75 and I asked if I could have beef which was obliged for $1 more.  A single Greek-ish dressing is provided on the side and when asked if one was enough for me, I asked for a white sauce in lieu of a second dressing, and I'm glad I did because a single cup of "wet" was not enough.  It was fine and I would go back to get it again if I were in the mood for a simple salad, but I'm unlikely to be craving it as I do some other truck-food.  At some point I will try a kabob platter as well which is what looked so appetizing on walks by others in the park.  3 honks.

The third Truckeroo of the season brought several non-DC-permitted trucks to The Fairgrounds last week, among others include Hot People Food from Virginia who tout fresh and spicy ingredients "to bring out the hot person in you."  I took advantage of the opportunity and tried a couple menu items: Beef "Chinese" taco and cold spicy noodles.  (And beer.)  Hot People's definition of a Chinese taco ($9) means it is one larger than regular taco (which they also had) served enveloped in a scallion pancake.  Loved the pancake.  Beef was ok.  However, really excessive raw onions/scallions made it not only difficult to eat because of the size/shape and toughness of the uncooked fibrous veggies, but I'm sure I also offended a whole bunch of folks for probably 12 hours after eating.  It was beautiful and if I ever find myself the opportunity to have it again, I'll stick with the onionish-flavor of the pancake and live with just the other toppings.  Having said all that, I was really delighted by the noodles ($5) -- both light and hearty at the same time.  When I get Chinese take-out, I nearly always order cold sesame noodles and these have some of the same flavor but without the weight of the peanut butter.  3 honks.

For those interested in dessert, months ago you may have heard about (or seen photos of) the old-timey frozen custard truck Goodies and have been waiting with baited breath for regular appearances out on the streets.  (And I mean old-timey truck!)  Last week we may have gotten our wish as the new-old truck was out at least 3 times by my count, possibly more.  The adorable gentleman onboard serves up a variety of sundaes and floats for (as best I can figure) $5 each.  I had tweeted him a couple of weeks ago wondering where they disappeared to after scattered appearances; while at the time I received a response back of "soon," when Goodies actually took to the streets, I started getting tagged in every location tweet.  So on Friday when the location was Farragut, I couldn't pass that up despite my attendance at Truckeroo.  Detouring on my way back to the office, I enjoyed a turtle sundae for a cool down on a hot day.  Of course it is tough to go wrong with caramel & chocolate together and this blend with creamy vanilla bean frozen custard & the most perfectly salty-sweet pecans didn't disappoint.  The fresh whipped cream was even just gently sweetened for a lovely afternoon treat.  No truck on DCs streets conjures up a nostalgia factor quite like this one -- I'm not even old enough to remember trucks like this, but appreciate the truly authentic effort.  4 honks.

More later.... Pho Wheels & DC Empanadas' new flavor.

Weather & Holiday Recovery

Due to weather and leave surrounding the 4th of July holiday last week, I was only in the office 1 day but I was able to squeeze in visits to 2 new-to-me trucks in that day.  First up was the few-weeks-old Fire and Rice serving Korean bowls of food ($8-8.50, or veg for $6) which can be served more bibimbap-style with a fried egg for a couple bucks more.  I appreciate that you can pick what vegetables you want in your bowl of rice plus chosen protein and my 'spicy pork' was nicely trimmed and seasoned although not that spicy.  Luckily they had sriracha and a more sweet soy-miso(?) squeeze bottles on the counter for self-doctoring, but the issue both my friend and I had was the size of the portion.  We both found it noticeably small, however I will say after a tweet yesterday I suspect we weren't the only ones who had that sentiment.  If a larger portion size is on tap for my next visit, I'll be back for sure; if not, I'll stick with Kimchi BBQ Taco where I'm always full after my meal (Kogi,) with similar, equally enjoyable food for $.50 less.  3 honks for now until I can make it back.

Fearing I'd still be hungry after my bowl (which I very much was,) I sought a hearty side and remembered DC Ballers has fries on the menu in addition to their balls of falafel.  For $3.50 you will receive a huge portion of fresh cut fries, cooked to order.  They were deliciously seasoned with za'atar and were served with one too small (given the copious amount of fries) cup of dipping sauces.  I ordered spicy chipotle and was also offered a sample of a "fully homemade" garlic sauce at the serving window.  Think a nice smokey mayo with a little heat for the former, and for the later, while quite tasty, was a really pretty thick white sauce; it had an odd-ish texture which was not very "dip-like" at all.  Several other dipping sauces are also available.  In a heartbeat I'd go back for another order -- luckily they have 2 trucks now.  No rating without having sampled on a "main course" yet, but I think you get the idea I at least liked my side a lot.

Today between meetings I squeezed in a quick trip to the Tapas Truck for a sample of the 3/4 new menu.  (The corn fritters remain, which I'm exceptionally grateful for.)  Today's additional selections included a pulled pork slider with mustard BBQ sauce and garlic fries, meatballs in a tomato cream sauce with saffron rice, and fried calamari and shrimp with a paprika sauce.  From the photo you can see I went for the first and second tapas.  There are things I just don't get about this truck because some things are done so very well, and then it feels like corners are cut in other places.  For example, the pork and sauce were awesome but it was on mediocre bread.  Similarly, the sauce for the meatballs was lovely, but I truly believe they used frozen, pre-made, and probably mass produced meatballs.  $9 for all that food which is mostly great is a sound deal, but I think most of us will pay an extra buck or two to savor a completely good, fresh meal rather than a mostly good, partially mass-produced meal.  Keeping them at 3.5 honks.  Am I making any sense? 

Wassup Wassub?

Earlier this week I had an opportunity to try Wassub Asian fusion sandwiches.  I actually intended to try Phonation but quickly learned Rachel is preparing pho in the same way she did for the month last summer she owned Phonomenon: pre-cooked beef.  You may recall (see bottom under Closed) I thought her broth was awesome but couldn't get past the beef being pre-cooked rather than the more traditional way with thin, raw slices which get cooked by the hot broth.  Pho Junkies is doing it the later way, plus the Junkies have far more protein options yet doesn't have the exceptionally flavored broth.  (At least what it was last year.) 

So instead I grabbed a Sweetie Habanero from Wassub -- a sandwich I'd been wanting to try since I realized it had pineapple.  What's the good, the bad, and the ugly?  Let's go backwards.  The ugly: unfortunately, I think that pineapple I was excited about was canned, plus I could only find a couple small chunks.  Please use fresh to avoid that "tin-y" taste.  The bad: ok, so maybe it's not bad bad, but the "Why Wassub is better than sex" poster is full of lame jokes which may not be appropriate for the population en masse.  I think I have a reasonably decent sense of humor and definitely know how to tell a raunchy joke (in the right setting) so guess I just don't get why it's there.  Next, the good: the roasted chicken was adequately moist and it was well complimented by the ham and cheese.  And the roll, while not particularly unique, was fresh and light.  Now, the really good: Hottie Sauce!  When I asked for extra, the guy at the window gave me a look and cautioned me, "It's really hot, so be careful."  I didn't personally find it as hot as I think he thought it was, but it had great flavor and really brought the sub all together.  An orange colored, slightly creamy blend of a little sweet and a nice bit of heat.  Without the sauce, this would have been a 2.5-3 honker, but as served the sub worked at 3.5 honks.  Even though I'd passed by this truck many times previously, I'll for sure be back soon.  As a note to the proprietors, I would be very excited if the contents of this sub were put in a bowl as a salad for I think that hottie sauce would make a really interesting salad dressing. 

Acai & Lemongrass

Second day out after a miss yesterday and a near miss today, but I was able to find the new truck Mighty Dog & Acai at Farragut Square earlier to grab an order of their namesake dog.  Really pleasant folks who are very interested in doing their best to accommodate you, but there are a couple things I don't understand here.  The only menu they have (which did appear to be magnetic, so it could be attached to the side of the truck) was being physically held up by a woman standing on the SW corner of the square.  She came over to the truck and stood kind of near it when I wanted to place my order, but even then, trying to show it off to other folks, it swayed and moved, making it difficult to read the fairly small print.  I get she was probably there to generate some foot traffic for the unknown truck, but they desperately need a menu actually attached to the truck that you can look at when ordering.  Buzz needs to be generated another way or with a second sign.

Next, I don't get the price.  It was good with some unique flavors, but $7 for a condimented-up Nathan's hot dog (with cheese in the case of my Mighty Dog) seems pretty steep, especially considering other trucks are serving homemade or artisanal sausages for the same price.  The bread was quite nice and the package of goodies (mashed potato spread and our special “Mighty” sauce, topped with  pico de gallo vinaigrette, ketchup/mustard, kernel corn, Brazilian soft cheese and crowned with tiny fried potato sticks) was pressed to serve.  All the photos came out really poorly, but at least you can get the gist of what to expect, including the amount of filling.  2 for $12, which was also being offered, is closer to a fair price, even with the understanding it is coming from a gourmet food truck, but I'd be challenged to pay $7 again despite enjoying my Mighty Dog.  (Note, other menu options had an additional protein topping the hot dog, so perhaps those should be priced higher than the 'Brazilian Mighty'.)  I'd give them 3.5 honks, but the price really bothers me, so....

As an update to a prior post about Lemongrass truck and my very "chilled" chicken, I was able to catch up with them during a re-visit to National Geographic last week for a pork salad.  The meat was juicy and warm, tasting like tender BBQ pork but without the sauce.  Just a lovely salad, especially that awesome homemade lemongrass dressing that I can't wait to buy in a bottle.  3.5 honks, right where they should be.  And it sounds like we'll be seeing more of them with their second truck starting in DC.

Meanwhile, my love affair with Cirque Cuisine continues, that is when they actually visit Farragut Square for which I had to make a special request to make it happen this week.  So today I grabbed two of the three offerings: Spice rubbed pork tenderloin with cabbage & jicama slaw and a shrimp-grilled pineapple salad.  Both came along side saffron rice, black beans, and a fruit-based salsa, which all certainly pleased, but what remains so impressive about this truck besides quality is value.  While $12 and $14 may seem on the steep side (particularly just after my rant about Mighty Dog) but the pork dish came with 1/2 of a whole tenderloin and the shrimp dish had 6 HUGE shrimp.  Plus we know Chef Jess is using local, organic ingredients.  It's a matter of perspective and frankly, I get it at Cirque Cuisine but don't with the hot dog at Mighty Dog.  Sorry guys.

Chasing a Moving Target

Since Chef Driven changes his menu so frequently, it is hard to catch some of the items folks (myself included) have reviewed in various articles, blog posts, and other publications before they go bye-bye in favor of something else.  The good news is, some items occasionally slip back on the menu for a spell, although usually with a minor tweak or two.  And yesterday, sporting a nearly all new menu, I took the opportunity to sample two more selections before they go away: spinach gazpacho and pork sliders.  

Similar to what I said recently about Chef Jess over at Cirque Cuisine, Chef Jerry appears to be seconding the philosophy of inadvertently getting me to eat more vegetables by producing freakin' amazing concoctions, and today it was with the spinach gazpacho.  Think of it akin to pesto, but a thinner, more pureed texture and not oily like pesto can be.  I could totally get used to eating more vegetables if they're all done as yummy as this!

After downing my sample of the chilled soup, I received my order of sliders and salad.  The two generous mini-sandwiches of herb roasted pork topped with a simple cabbage and carrot slaw and red wine sauce were juicy with a appetizing tang generated by the melding of marinade and sauce.  But in my opinion, the highlight of this order was the corn & microgreen salad -- sweet from the roasted corn, crunch from diced jicama(?), and earthiness from a light sprinkle of truffle.  I'm hoping this is a side that doesn't go in to hiatus too quickly.  (...or EVER as far as I'm concerned!)  Not that the sliders weren't delicious, but I could easily go for a soup and salad with these offerings.  As always, great job Jerry, and thank you!

Meanwhile, I've made several other re-visits over the last week or so, although most notably to Pho Junkies where I learned the trick is to ask for extra sauce, since it doesn't seem like they are going to abandon the plan of pre-packaged sauces.  This time I ended up with two of the sriracha-laced hoisin packs, plus a smaller sriracha-only cup and I was much happier with my "doctoring" of the pho.  However, as promised, this time I did order the shrimp rolls, and let's just say I'd suggest sticking with the spring rolls: inside the perfectly crispy wrappers, the shrimp came out WAYYY over cooked.

Another truck I've visited twice in the last two weeks in Rolls on Rolls.  No surprise to some, it seems I become easily obsessed, because after my return about a month ago where I discovered the kathie rolls had substantially improved and they had become a truck who really knows how to serve up the spicy in their food, I can't seem to stay away.  However last week as I sat in my office enjoying my roll, I had four people standing in my doorway by the end thinking something salacious was going on due my "panting" from the heat.  I quite enjoyed the roll, but let's just say it's a good thing the office was pretty vacant at the time and was populated with friends who aren't easily offended.  Thus, when I went yesterday (in the rain so I for sure had to eat at my desk,) I asked for something "between medium and spicy" -- I was offered "medium-plus".  PERFECT!  Thank you, and I'll be seeing you again soon!

Finally, scheduled for posting later today, my latest Eat Street blog post will profile Cirque Cuisine, where "the food is so good it will knock your socks off."  (Inside joke you will all soon be privy to.  I will link to it when it's live.)  UPDATE: Here's the link.

Happy Eating...!

Another week coming to an end

And while I'm looking forward to hitting Farragut Friday in a couple of hours, on Wednesday I met my prior record of 5 trucks in a single day again: Sate Indonesian Food, Souvlaki Stop, Stella's, Captain Cookie, and Sinplicity.  I won't go in to Stella's or Sinplicity as I've discussed both many times, and will start with my first stop, Sate.  

Two options for sate, chicken or beef (or combo) served with rice and vegetables and Mie Ayam which is described as egg noodles, sesame sauce, chicken, oyster mushrooms, bok choy, and crispy wontons.  Realizing I would be also ordering a beef-something from Souvlaki Stop, I opted to go with the chicken sate.  While preparing the order, one of the two gentlemen on the truck asked if I liked spicy.  When I replied affirmatively, they filled my container with "spicy rice" instead of white rice.  Four skewers of reasonably grilled chicken topped the rice, along with a really tempting, moderately peanut-ty sauce.  On the other hand, the vegetables are described as a stew and they really meant it.  Really mushy carrots, onions, and string beans were also cooked with potatoes (or maybe turnips/rutabagas) but the starch component had broken down to the point it dissolved, making it indistinguishable.  $8.  3.5 honks.  No Twitter yet, but more than some of the other vendors who say they will get on Twitter, I kind of believe these guys.

Rather than going for the platter as I normally would if it were the only lunch I planned to enjoy, I went for a Greek salad from Souvlaki Stop, with beef souvlaki.  Even though I ended up bringing the salad home and ate it for dinner, I did sample the components as served.  It's interesting... I actually preferred everything at dinner far more than the lunchtime sampling.  During the day when I tried the beef, while the meat was heavily seasoned, I found it quite dry.  Later that evening, the (at that point) chilled beef worked nicely against the feta and other components.  The menu has both a green salad ($4) and a Greek ($6) listed, and both are available with a protein for $2 more.  Looking forward to the feta along with the typical herb-heavy oil and vinegar dressing, I asked for the Greek salad, but was disappointed to find a creamy Italian-ish blended dressing.  So, when I ate the salad, I instead dolloped the provided yogurt-based tzatziki sauce, which worked nicely other than being way too thick for that purpose.  I'll go for 3.5 honks on them too.

Later in the afternoon, Captain Cookie and the Milkman truck made its way to Farragut for the later part of lunch service, so I made a quick trip between meetings and ordered two cookies with milk ($4) from the varied options including made-to-order ice cream sandwiches, not too dissimilar from what Scoops2U offers.  Both cookies were soft and the ginger molasses fit the bill perfectly, but between my friend and I we could find only 3 chocolate chips in my entire chocolate chip cookie (maybe 3-3.5" in diameter, for perspective,) and frankly that cookie needed more of that creaminess running through it.  (If you click the photo to the right to blow it up and see the bottom of the lower cookie, you can see no chocolate.)  On a separate note, the size of the milk jug was unexpected to a benefit of 4 ounces.  Well priced menu and owners who are anxious to please.  A trifecta for 3.5 honks.

BTW -- Can I just mention how, at this point, it is nearly a daily occurrence I walk up to Farragut Square where there is another new truck?  Even when I look at the map, if there's nothing that I'm necessarily in the mood for, I am confident I can go and find either a new truck, or at least one from the Shame List.

Off to Farragut Friday soon... 

Chinese Food

Since last week when the members of my carpool called ahead on the way home for Chinese take-out last week, I've been in the mood, but was just not hungry that afternoon.  (I'm sure I probably must have hit 2-3 trucks for lunch, and since I'm not a big dinner take-out gal anyway...)  As luck would have it, a Chinese food truck premiered Wednesday at Farragut Square, although I'm not sure they've given themselves any sort of name -- the truck only says "Chinese Cuisine."

There were three items on the menu, and you could get whatever you wanted (including combo) with white rice or lo mein noodles for $8.  The proprietor did say he plans on changing the food options once every 2-3 days, so time will tell how often that may turn out to be.

I opted to try the two chicken options with rice.  Neither were spicy at all, and not a single peanut could be found in the kung pao.  Instead, there were copious chunks of some sort of squash, or maybe it was zucchini; it was hard to tell given the one-note color and texture.  Then for the orange chicken ... do you know how you can sometimes tell if the oil is "new" or "old" when you order french fries at certain places?  Well, besides being fried ahead of service, it would be my guess the chicken was fried in "old oil."  This made the chunks more chewy than crispy, although I give a modicom of credit for saucing each order, so it wasn't soggy too.  Chinese Cuisine fits appropriately with the company slotted at 2.5 honks.  If he actually changes the menu regularly as stated, I might go again and try something else.  No chopsticks, and no Twitter.

Still so busy....

I'm clearly very far behind with all the latest menu item "sampling" (plus a handful of re-visits) I've been able to do over the last couple of weeks, so I'm going to try to get a quick n' dirty summary done here to catch up:

Vietnamese Pork Lettuce Wraps from Cirque Cuisine: I swear Chef Jessica is on a mission to get me to eat more vegetables, and frankly, she's winning.  Two large leaves of butter lettuce stuffed with savory, slow-cooked pork and each topped with a giant mint leaf.  It was served with a light slaw of bok choy, cabbage, and fennel(?) plus a dipping (or pouring) sauce.  Fresh herbs make everything better...

Balinese Beef Satay from Cirque Cuisine: This was the same day, so these 4 tender skewers of beef were served with the same crunchy bok choy & cabbage salad as the pork wraps along with coconut sticky rice.  The surprisingly delicate peanut-ty sauce wasn't particularly spicy, but a thick(-ish) hot sauce is available to kick-up anything you want.  Cirque Cuisine continues to be a favorite, and I'm hoping to find time for another Eat Street article to profile them soon.

Funnel Cake from Reba's Funnel Cakes: Think about eating air that is gently sweet and perfectly crispy and you'll know what this funnel cake it about.  IMHO a bit pricey at $7 with just powdered sugar or $8 with fresh fruit.  Gets 4 honks anyway.

Kobideh & Beef Combo from Fresh Afghan Meals: I'd call it a close cousin of many of the other kabob trucks with different variations on the seasonings.  The kobideh (ground meat hand formed on a stick to resemble a sausage but without casing) was juicy and well cooked in polar opposite to the beef kabob which was pretty tough and overcooked.  They were both served over a different rice than I've had from the other kabob trucks, containing raisins and a spice-blend I'm going to guess as baharat (or some other blend that for sure contains cinnamon.)  Other differences included a more tomato-y chickpea side than others, plus the white sauce more strongly maintained its greek yogurt flavor -- none in a bad way, just different.  I probably won't go for the beef kabob again, but would definitely return for everything else.  3.5 honks.

Oyster PoBoy from Cajunators: Plump, cornmeal crusted oysters stuffed in a much-improved hoagie roll from the last time I engaged with one of their sandwiches (August 2011 Truckeroo.)  Plus, these guys KNOW how to make remoulade.  Everytime I hit this truck, I like it more and more.

Gumbo from Chef Driven: Talking about plump oysters, they are just one of the bits of goodness you will find in the zesty gumbo Chef Jerry is putting out. The effort he put in the roux is plainly evident.  As I've said several times, just go and order anything.

Chicken Pimenton, Pork Andaluz, and Corn Fritter tapas from Tapas Truck: Better than both my first and second visits as I truly enjoyed all three tapas this go-round.  I'm hoping the creamy corn fritters stick around a while, although I continue to appreciate changing menus.

I've been deliquent!

Between Thursday and today, I haven't had a chance to write about lots of new food:

Vietnamese Pork Lettuce Wraps from Cirque Cuisine

Balinese Beef Satay from Cirque Cuisine

Funnel Cake from Reba's (will come out at 4 honks)

Kobideh & Beef Combo from Fresh Afghan Meals (will come out at 3.5 honks)

Arroz con Pollo y Habichuela's from Borinquen Lunch Box

I swear I will get to it, although it was all good.  (Particularly Cirque Cuisine and Reba's...)  This post will act as a placeholder for the moment.  I also haven't updated last week's posts in the overall rank Page.  Hopefully it can all happen soon.  Busy week...

To Wiz or not to Wiz?

No, that's not the name of a Michael Jackson musical based on the Wizard of Oz; it is an ingredient quietly being offered from a new truck.  The rain stayed away and I made my inaugural trip to Phillies Phamous Cheesesteaks, (not that the rain would have stopped me.)  6" or 12" subs with chicken or beef with all the fixings you'd want for $7 & $13, respectively, or a special with chips & a soda for a couple bucks more.  For the first time (I'm aware of) from a DC food truck, these guys are trying something new by handing you an order sheet with a pen when you walk up so you don't have to try to explain your order to someone else ... just circle what you want, or otherwise make a note.

This morning tweets indicated "by popular demand, you can now ask for Wiz."  Typically I order my cheesesteaks with some sort of cheese that comes by the slice, but since I know Philadelphians(?) order it "with Wiz," I figured I go that route on my beef six-inch.  No offense to the noted Philadelphites(?) but, "You're doing it wrong."  (Jk.)  In all seriousness, I think I'm just more used to the way everyone else does it outside of the City of Brotherly Love and prefer the creaminess, texture, and general binding effect the melted slices of cheese provide to a cheesesteak.  So, I hardly noticed the Wiz, but that allowed me to take in all of the flavor of finely chopped, well seasoned beef and perfectly prepped onions stuffed in a pillowy-soft sub roll.  I'll go back to sliced cheese when I make my fast return to Phillies Phamous which may tip the balance to 4 honks.  3.5 honks 'til then.  Oh, and thanks for the mint I found at the bottom of my bag...

Meanwhile, I'm guessing it was not planned, but both popcorn trucks found themselves on opposite edges of Farragut today as well; it is Stella's PopKern's normal Wednesday spot, (although I was really happy she got there substantially earlier than her usual second-half of lunch arrival,) and Popped! Republic was involved in some DC101 promotional event.  I have been a fan and frequent customer of Stella's since she launched about 2.5 months ago, often spending $10-$12 a week on my habit, particularly when basil & Thai ginger is on the board.  Then you have Popped! Republic who launched on Saturday at Curbside Cookoff.  The differences "on the surface" between the two trucks:

Stella's PopKern: More flavors, including sweet, traditional, and more savory options.
Popped! Republic: Kettle Korn and otherwise traditional flavors like movie theater, caramel, cheddar.  Better packaging, mostly because it can be properly closed easily.  More options in portion size with 4 instead of Stella's 2.  Loyalty cards are a nice feature as well. 

For the 8 or 9 flavors I've tried between the two, I prefer the caramel at Stella's due to its milky-er quality.  On the other side, the kettle korn from Republic was an excellent blend of salty and sweet, save the large chunks of coating I caught while I absentmindedly shoveled from the bag to my mouth.  (See pic -- that's wide margin looseleaf.)  Other than the single time I received a bag of way too salty buttered popcorn from Stella, one recurring problem I've had is the flaky part of the kernel's hulls have a high tendency to get stuck in teeth.  It may sound petty to mention it, but I've never seen popcorn containing so much of it, and I can only guess it is the type of popcorn being popped.  I'm still quite content to return to Stella's and will be equally obliged to go back to Popped! Republic.  As such, 3.5 honks for P!R as well.