To go, please!: Food sold in trucks? Before you can say “Jollijeep,” here’s Young Star’s guide to the new food truck.
MANILA, Philippines - While 2011 overflowed with milk tea (word mutations to accommodate the word “tea” aplenty), and last year paid great attention to all things katsu and ramen, 2013 promises to pave the way for the food truck. I love mobile kwek-kwek carts as much as the next person, but these are the Formula 3 drivers of meal trucks we’re talking about here. At one point they existed just within the walls of my TV set, gracing the foreign food channels with their exotic fried Kool-Aid, red velvet pancakes, and sloppy cheesesteak sandwiches. The closest I could get to the food truck was through their distant relatives, five times removed: the corner Burger Machine stand and the Jollijeeps that line Metropolitan Avenue. So, it’s about time they crashed our sidewalks, really. Gathering every Friday to Saturday at Cucina Andare — the city’s first food truck market in Glorietta Park 3 — here are the city’s first few meals on wheels, making tracks to what will hopefully be a fresh new fleet to the food scene we know.
Food truck by broosy
Run by Sensei Sushi’s Bruce Ricketts, the truck fuses Pinoy and Japanese (and a little Mexican) cuisines, and shovels out things like Sisig Rice Toppers (P160), Pulled Pork Soft Tacos (P165), and Spicy Ramen (P180). Find gold in their glazed Chicken Pops (P160), peppered by a substantial amount of nori salt. If Ricketts is working the truck that day, insist that he prepare the meal for you. It will definitely make a difference.
Facebook: Food Truck by Chef Broosy
Twitter: @ChefBroosy
Tip: Not written on the regular menu is the tonkatsu on rice. Ask for this if you’re lucky enough to catch it being served that day.
Guac truck
Make your own Mexican concoction. Choose your base (soft taco, wrap, nacho, rice, or salad bowls), pick your meat (ground beef, honey-glazed chicken, or carnitas), and top it off with any of their six toppings. Funny, though, that for a truck named after guacamole, the beautifully green mush is nowhere on the menu.
Facebook: Guac Truck
Twitter: @Guactruck
Tip: For every 10 of their eco-friendly, origami-style food bowls returned, Guac Truck will give you one meal on the house.
Shawarma bros
Their tagline reads “A different shawarma experience.” If it refers to the excessively friendly men that man the counter — easy on the eyes, if you’re curious — then, okay, I get it. Also, there’s the Lamb Steak Plate (P200) smothered in garlic yogurt sauce, which is great for a late night meal, inebriated or not. Good job, bros.
Facebook: Shawarma Bros
Twitter: ShawarmaBros
Mio gelati
The only dessert truck at the moment, Mio Gelato offers gelato churned fresh on the day it’s served. Conventional cream flavors and fruity sorbets are offered. But if you’re going to have a scoop, you may as well tap their premium or alcoholic flavors: cream cheese frosting, crème brulee, s’mores, red velvet cake, Baileys, and beer, among plenty of others.
Facebook: Mio Gelati
Twitter: @MioGelati
Hungry rover
While the other trucks pop a side flap to open shop, the Hungry Rover invites you into their mobile dining area for the full experience. Plates of classic Pinoy comfort food comprise part of the menu, with things like Beef Tapa (P130), and chicken or pork barbecue (P95) on chili-hot rice.
Facebook: Hungry Rover
Twitter: @HungryRover
Tip: The rover comfortably fits eight people in total, so come early lest you run the risk of consuming your SurpRice (yes, it’s called that) on the curb by the rover’s tires.
