by elisabeth on August 13, 2010
What’s better than a hot, juicy sausage on a not-so-hot, somewhat overcast slash incredibly foggy LA 2010 summer day? Nothing.
Everyone’s heard of Jody Maroni’s Sausage Kingdom, the first Kitchen Kingdom to serve gourmet sausages including the likes of Yucatan sausage with cilantro and chicken apple sausage. These scrumptious sausages have been sold since 1979 , originating in the muscle/sausage fest filled streets of Venice Beach. Though these dogs can now be found all over the world – from airports to casinos – our favorite of Jody’s franchises is of course, the food truck. Barely a month old, I couldn’t wait to visit the Jody Maroni truck.
Serving breakfast, lunch and coffee the truck has been making appearances all around LA. According to their Facebook page, the culinary team hopes to “amuse, delight, satisfy and enlighten” their customers. Not sure if it was their sausages or their service but they did all of that, and maybe a bit more.
I was lucky enough to get to taste almost all of their sausages due to their over-the top customer service, but I have to say my favorite was the Pomegranate Chicken sausage. Made with cardamom and fresh basil, the sausage was the perfect combination of salty and sweet. Grilled peppers and onions lay on top of the dog, adding the perfect amount of texture to compliment the juicy and perfectly grilled sausage. The boardwalk dog, my second favorite menu item, is certainly a classic – one that you can’t beat eating amidst the chaos of LA’s boardwalk streets. When you visit the truck, do not forget to get a side of the delicious potato salad – made with Dijon vinaigrette and perfectly cooled resulting in yet again a perfect contrast to the sausages. Although my picture didn’t capture the prices (my bad!), their sausages are super reasonable and you really get a true bang for your buck with each one of their menu items.
Alex of Jody Maroni's Mobile Kingdom
The customer service was out of this world. Although I’m not hard to please, these guys made my experience 1,000 times more enjoyable. Their true love for sausages and all that comes with Jody Maroni’s was not only refreshing, but also entertaining. They truly care about satisfying their customers both with their food and their service. Alex, the entrepreneur of the truck, has a thirst for success done right. He possesses knowledge of all things food truck related, which can be rare in this business. The combination of outstanding service and fantastic sausages makes Jody Maroni’s food truck so worth tracking down on Twitter and finding, at least once. I can guarantee that you will leave Jody Maroni’s food truck with a smile on your face.
by elisabeth on July 8, 2010
I was absolutely starving as I logged on to Twitter yesterday to find a food truck we at ILoveFoodTrucks.com hadn’t reviewed yet. I grabbed my brother, a food lover in his own right, and we jumped into the car headed straight towards Olympic Blvd. I can’t lie and say that the No Reservations food truck didn’t catch my eye due to it’s identical title with Anthony Bourdain’s fabulous Travel Channel show. Driving down Olympic, we spotted not one, not two.. but FIVE food trucks parked along the street. Although it was a tough call deciding between which truck to try, we stuck to our guns and went to the No Reservations truck purely because of it’s name.
After a quick glimpse at the menu, I was a little bit caught off guard to see that they only offer six choices – all of them being wraps. Wraps aren’t exactly my favorite food, I think that they’re an excuse to pile a bunch of flavors together and wrap them tightly into a tortilla. If you ask me, tortillas are for tacos and that’s about it. Nonetheless, we were greeted by a very friendly woman by the name of Leslie.
- Leslie
I asked her what their most popular wrap was and she told me it was the
“Rosemary’s Baby” wrap, consisting of the oh-so-California combination of pesto, chicken, etc. My brother and I decided to venture into the less common meat route and ordered the “Silence of the Lambs” wrap..if you hadn’t caught on, their wraps are all creatively named after movie titles.
While waiting for our eight-dollar wrap, Leslie explained the idea behind their truck – a French-California-International-Bistro Cuisine. They opened in May with the hopes of obtaining a second truck within six months, something that Leslie says will most likely happen within their expected time range. She also told us that the two chefs on the truck are trained in French gourmet cuisine.
After a few minutes we were handed our “Silence of the Lambs” wrap, thanked Leslie and sat in front of a nearby office building. The combination of ingredients didn’t look too appetizing but the flavors suprisingly mixed together well. There was a strong tangy after-taste from the pomegranate red-wine sauce which we thought added a lot of flavor to the otherwise so-so combination of flavors. The lamb was saturated with delicious flavors.
I think their food is a little bit over-priced but I am definitely tempted to try the other wraps on their menu. The lack of choices on the menu is certainly restricting. Our advice to the No Reservations truck – widen your range of options and lower your prices, but definitely keep up the gourmet mix of unique flavors!
by elisabeth on July 8, 2010
After eating at the No Reservations truck and driving back to the West Side, I received a bunch of calls and text messages from my friends announcing the Spanish win over Germany in the semi-final round of the World Cup. Having just lived in Barcelona for the past five months, my support for Spain’s soccer team is clearly inevitable. I had heard about Papa’s Tapas Truck, a brand new food truck that’s been spotted recently around town.
Having lived with a Spanish host-mom, eating purely Spanish food in her home, I have become: A. tired of Spanish food, B. hesitant to try Spanish food outside of Spain and c. if I do say so myself, a connoisseur of Spanish cuisine.
Headed west on Olympic Blvd, we passed by a cluster of food trucks parked near Centinela and I noticed the last one in line – Papa’s Tapas Truck! Filled with adrenaline in reaction to the win, we decided we had to stop and see how the truck’s chefs were feeling and try the food, of course.
To much surprise, the people behind the window of the glossy, black truck didn’t seem too excited about the win. After just a few words, it became abundantly clear that this is a family-run business. I was curious as to where in Spain their family originated from and learned that they are from an area close to Madrid and the family’s name was once Fernandez. Two out of two stars right away for being truly Spanish.
I quickly scanned the menu, recognizing every item. They have croquetas, montaditas, bocadillos and even tortillas – all classic Spanish tapas. I have to admit that as much as I had complained about being served la tortilla española night after night at my host-mom’s house, I missed it. I asked for the zucchini tortilla but was told they were all out of it so I settled with the tortilla española. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Spanish food – a tortilla is not what you’re thinking. Tortillas are omellete-ish slices of cooked egg filled with thin potato slices stacked on top of each other.
I was quickly handed a plate with a HUGE slice of tortilla, a tiny bit of salad, two slices of delicious French bread, two different salad dressings and a couple pieces of montego cheese. First of all, since when does a food truck give you fresh salad with two dressing choices? Since when does an American restaurant serve you montego cheese? And most importantly, since when can you get real, true Spanish cooking outside of Spain..from a food truck?!
The tortilla española was deliciously light, exactly how it should be prepared and the salad, bread and cheese perfectly complimented the tortilla. Each bite sent me straight back to Spain.
Papa’s Tapas Truck is out of this world. It is a truly unique truck, serving a style of cuisine, which I think we, Californians, should all eat a lot more of. I hope I find their truck soon, I’m dying to try their tri-tip Bocadillo!
by elisabeth on July 3, 2010
To put an end to our day in the office, we were lucky enough to interview with world-famous, self-proclaimed “culinary Kanye”, Chef Brian of the Comfort Truck. Chef Brian gave us an in-depth story including his upbringing, culinary background, favorite food and even his thoughts about food truck politics.
Chef Brian began his culinary career at the ripe age of thirteen as a reaction to the brutal combination of his mother’s burnt hard-boiled-eggs and his sister’s burnt bacon. He couldn’t stand the overwhelmingly dull and disgusting flavors, so had no choice but to explore the world of food independently.
He has never attended culinary school yet is beyond famous for his gourmet comfort food. After taping the Food Network’s Private Chefs of Beverly Hills, Brian and two of his best friends got together to form the force known as the Comfort Truck which has been venturing the streets of LA for almost five months now.
When asked what his favorite food from the truck was, Chef Brian explained the glory of his BBQ Fried Chicken Slider – deeming the flavor luxurious and guaranteeing that it’ll make your knees buckle. The most popular item ordered off the menu is the Fried Chicken Slider, which features his original roasted garlic aioli, which is made fresh on the truck.
When asked the big question – what do you think about the current day food truck drama? Chef Brian had quite a mouthful to spit out. Born and raised in Washington DC, he is more than familiar with the political world. Chef Brian is confident that ‘some lobbyist’ from the restaurant world came to councilman LaBonge and made him a deal in return for fighting against food trucks in LA. Brian then explained that LaBonge had no idea what he was in for and that this fight will be over before we know it because what it all comes down to is that “food trucks = convenience”. Food trucks provide us with something that we can’t get anywhere else. As Chef Brian reminded us, you can’t get a fresh mouth-watering jerk beef wrap from Subway for three dollars, can you?
by elisabeth on July 1, 2010
The food truck frenzy has made its way all the way to the magic kingdom. Disneyland’s California Adventures is hosting a nightly ‘Glow Fest’ celebration, which will last until the end of August. Alongside psychedelic lights, loud music that’s been deemed appropriate for all ages, and glowing cocktails for adults/parents – two Anaheim-based food trucks have been making their own nightly appearance. The nightly festival has been receiving all sorts of mixed reviews but for us, the biggest controversy is the markup Disney is enforcing upon the trucks. The owner of Louks, a truck serving Greek specialties, which are certainly hard to find in LA, has to charge customers 8 dollars instead of the normal 5 for his gyros. And yes, Disney wants to receive a cut of his profit. Although this may come off as unfair to the owner, Disney is giving him a free parking spot right outside the festival entrance and tons of hungry customers allowing him to avoid the norm of feeding a meter all night or an inconsistent client base.
We’ll be keeping track of this situation to hopefully discover who is being helped out here, Disney or the food truck guy?
by elisabeth on June 30, 2010
Driving down Wilshire Blvd. through this awful June, soon to be July, gloom I spotted a truck I’d never seen before. The Calbi Fusion truck was parked on Wilshire right before 7th Street in it’s rainbow-colored glory. I quickly pulled into the 711 parking lot and made my way to the truck. A kind man greeted me with a smile as I introduced myself. He explained their different options, which include tacos, burritos and quesadillas filled with beef, pork, shrimp, tofu, chicken or vegetables. $1.99 buys you one taco and he assured me that the best option is the pulled pork. I decided on 1 pork & 1 beef and happily paid my total, which came out to be less than five bucks.
After saying my goodbyes, I returned to my car anxiously hoping that no ticket would be waiting on my windshield. After pulling out of the parking lot, I couldn’t resist the pungent smell of Korean BBQ that had instantly infiltrated my car. I bit into one of the tacos and was immediately in love. The meat had been penetrated with the sweet and tangy Korean BBQ flavor that I find irresistible. The perfect ratio of lettuce and cabbage with a sprinkle of cheddar cheese lays gently upon the meat. Each bite is a perfect contrast of crunchy and juicy. If you couldn’t tell already.. I had a truly mouth -watering experience sitting alone in my car amidst the mid-day LA traffic.
Calbi offers a really incredible fusion of traditional Korean BBQ and California flavors, all while remaining true to its homeland in that healthy options are available – they use fresh greens, corn tortillas and even have a lean grilled chicken option. They have a total of 7 trucks which travel throughout the LA and OC areas and have been in business for over a year. I can’t wait to stumble upon their delicious yet light tacos again.
by elisabeth on June 29, 2010
Director of MILF Jugs and the series The Sop**nos, NYC’s Rob Spallone, has opened an absolutely unique and entertaining truck. Taking advantage of his familiarity with the industry, Spallone’s truck is mainly making stops within the epicenter of the porn world – the Valley. Twelve Italian ice flavors are offered, all of which are named after famous mobsters such as Mango Montana and Strawberry Soprano. Serving sizes are either “Fatsy” or “Skinny” and customers are encouraged to mix their own custom flavors. We can’t wait to meet up with Rob to try some of his bound-to-be satisfying Italian ices.
by elisabeth on June 28, 2010
In spite of the controversy going on about the survival of food trucks in LA, drunken stumbles have led us to see that an end doesn’t seem in sight. Food truck after food truck were lined up on Main Street in Venice Friday night. Tons of hungry 20 somethings lined up for delicious tacos, sandwiches and munchies.
