THROUGHOUT my 21 years of living I have always wondered how the infamous “taco trucks” tasted. It was this year where I had my first encounter with Kogi BBQ, a Korean BBQ and Mexican fusion of heavenly bliss. Taco Tuesday came around the corner and I had spotted the truck in the corner of my eye as I walked into my apartment complex. I decided not to go in and instead wait in the tremendously long line where I found people scrapping the bottoms of their wallets to purchase the delicatessen spare rib sliders featured on the menu. As I waited patiently in line, I got to thinking about all of trucks I had so frequently seen on streets in Venice; and now, the king of all food trucks was on my own street. As I scoured the menu I noted the different types of foods offered, tacos, sliders, burritos, sriracha lava cake, my mouth began to water. I placed my order 30 minutes later and scurried up to my dwelling to taste the highly acclaimed Kogi BBQ.
Food trucks always remind me of Los Angeles. My first experience with Kogi was most definitely not the last as it was at Collegefest last month. My love for the truck grows each time I spot it on a random street, Abbot Kinney or outside of my apartment on Saran Dr. in Playa Del Rey. Not only is Kogi a signature truck in the area, but also the Buttermilk Truck, KO Tacos, and The Flying Pig. All three trucks are local to Los Angeles and always roaming the hungry streets. Where else can you find a plethora of mobile eateries? As I visited the Kogi website, I noticed they have various different trucks amidst the Los Angeles area and Orange County. As a native to OC, I have never seen a food truck perched on any busy street or in any area. However, as I have become a local in LA, I have noticed many dispersed around the highly populated areas of Venice, Playa Del Rey, Hollywood, and Santa Monica. The concept of food trucks seems to be a growing entity. There are hundreds of genres and thousands of trucks catering to different areas of the region. I am always pleased when I find one conveniently located to wherever I may be because I know I will always be a sucker for those food trucks.
-Chelsea Vogt
-Photo credit: Guardian.co.uk
I love food trucks! I also see them randomly pop up at popular streets. I think it is great that they know how to capitalize on this craze. I even saw a food truck that could also be found via twitter!
ReplyDeleteHands down my favorite food truck. $2 pork tacos? Hard to go wrong.
ReplyDelete--Weston Finfer
Mhmm! I really enjoyed your blog about food trucks. I never actually gave this catering business any thought. You're absolutely right when you say that mobile eateries are become a fad in Los Angeles. Can we get any lazier? Instead of driving to a fast food restaurant, the fast food restaurant can drive to you... The food truck business wasn't the same a couple of years back. Before food trucks sold Mexican food to go. Now, people are getting creative and coming up with the most interesting types of food trucks. I never heard about the Buttermilk truck or the Flying Pig. Did you know that there was one for Grilled Cheese and even Dim Sum? I didn't see one of those until I went to Alhambra. You know what fascinates me about the food trucks? The fact that these food trucks reflect and even parallel the diverse culture of LA. However, I also do find irony in the food truck business. Isn't it ironic how people are starting to drive around looking for the food trucks? The idea of the food truck is supposed to be the truck coming to you; however, with the demand for food trucks getting higher and higher, food trucks are slowly becoming the choice for eatery.
ReplyDeleteI fell in love with food trucks despite my best wishes. I've always been kind of a health freak and knew that anything cooked and served out of a truck wasn't the best to put in my body. However, the trucks lining Abbot Kinney on the first Friday of each month and the smells wafting the street got the best of me one evening and I caved.
ReplyDeleteIt was the famous Grilled Cheese Truck that did it for me. I had been casually following them on twitter as they posted where they were at each day and finally, the day arrived when they were located right here in Venice and my roommate and I had nothing better to do on a Tuesday evening. Needless to say, it was delicious and I've been hunting for others ever since. Guilty pleasure?