Austin Food Trucks

Anyone who calls him/herself a foodie must participate in the food truck scene in Austin. Having seen so many of them featured on TV so despite our short stay, I knew I had to squeeze in a few. I was like a kid in a candy store!


Chi'Lantro

   

Chi'Lantro is famous for its KIMCHI FRIES (fries topped with kimchi, Korean BBQ, grilled onions, cheddar, monterey jack, cilantro, magic sauce, sriracha and sesame seeds), so of course we had to try it. My bf and I were a bit disappointed at this dish; we would have liked to taste more kimchi.

   

BULGOGI TACOS (corn tortillas filled with bulgogi, soy vinaigrette Korean salad, cilantro, onion and Chi'Lantro salsa) is another favorite of people who love Chi'Lantro. While waiting in line we heard numerous people ordering it. Since my bf loves fish tacos, he gave the Bulgogi Tacos a try. Hands down these tacos are my bf's favorite item from all the food trucks we ever ate. They're very fresh tasting. All the ingredients work well together; not one overpowers the others. We enjoyed them so much we ordered some to bring back to the hotel.

   

Saving the best for last. The best thing on the entire menu, in my opinion, is the CUCUMBER KIMCHI BULGOGI BURGER (bulgogi, grilled onion, cheese, magic sauce, cucumber sauce, cucumber slices and lettuce on homemade buns). When ordering you will be asked if you want the fried egg on it. The answer is always YES! This burger is so good because it has a lot of different tastes rolled in one: salty and sweet from the bulgogi beef, rich and creamy from the sauce and egg, and bright and fresh from the lettuce and cucumber slices. I'd rather eat this burger over any other kind of burgers any day. Unfortunately, neither you or I will be able to get this burger again because it was a July 2013 special. But don't despair, you can always order the original Bulgogi Korean Burger, with the egg, of course.

East Side King

Having seen so much about this truck on basically every shows that feature food trucks, I made it a mission to eat here. On a very late Sunday evening my bf and I waved down a pedicab to take us to East Side King tucked inside the Liberty Bar.

   

   

Somebody slap me because I must have died and gone to food heaven. Check out the thick slice of pork belly in the POOR QUI'S BUNS (roasted pork belly in steamed buns, hoisin sauce, cucumber kimchi and green onion). I was so thankful my bf doesn't like pork belly. These were all mine and they were yummmmmy! My bf ordered the THAI CHICKEN KARAAGE BUNS (deep-fried chicken thigh in steamed bun, Thai-flavored spicy mayo, basil, cilantro, mint, onion and jalapeño), which I also wanted to try. Luckily, an order of the same chicken without the buns was given to us by mistake so I got to taste some. Yippe! OMG, they were so good! I also ordered the BEETS HOME FRIES (deep-fried roasted beets, kewpie mayo, schichimi togarashi and green onion). Deep fried anything is good, even beets. Actually, I love beets so it was a bonus.

Gourdough's

If eating a donut drowned in butter maple syrup topped with a heaping of bacon is wrong, then I never wanna be right. As we were heading out of town and right after stuffing ourselves at Roaring Fork, I literally begged my bf to stop by Gourdough's. From checking out its website, I had my eye on the FLYING PIG (bacon with maple syrup icing) and the FUNKY MONKEY (grilled bananas and cream cheese icing with brown sugar) while my bf was tempted by the ODB (cream filled donut holes with icing rolled in coconut). Unfortunately, my stomach only had room for one, so I went with the Funky Monkey. Seriously, can anyone resist bacon? Definitely not this girl.

   

   

My donut was huge, warm, crunchy on the outside yet soft inside, topped with at least 5 pieces of super crunchy bacon and drowned in a maple syrup that tastes like it has tons of butter in it. I loved everything about it, except I would have liked just half the syrup. My bf's ODB was not as good as mine and not as described on the web site. Instead of the donut holes rolled in coconut flakes, they were drowned in the icing and the coconut was sprinkled on top. The donut holes themselves were good, but the entire thing was entirely too sweet. Despite not enjoying 1 of the 2 we ordered, I still think everyone must try Gourdough's before they die.

So many food trucks, so little time! With so many tasty food trucks in Austin, I totally could skip the restaurants altogether. I might just do that on my next visit.


Websites:
Chi'Lantro: http://www.chilantrobbq.com
East Side King: http://eskaustin.com
Gourdough's: http://www.gourdoughs.com