Tragic Sandwich

Tag: coolhaus

  • More on Food Trucks: Grill ‘Em All

    GRILL 'EM ALL

    We finally made it! After a year and a half of following them on Twitter, we were able to match up our schedules, location, and cash with the Grill ‘Em All Truck.

    They were just in Northridge last week, so I hadn’t expected them to be nearby soon–but a tweet caught my attention, and I found out that they were planning a trip to Reseda. We bundled Baguette into the car and sped off to the intersection of Sherman and Lindley.

    Imagine my amazement to find four food trucks (Grill ‘Em All, Coolhaus, Mandoline Grill, and Meet ‘n’Potatoes)–and not one of them had a line more than two or three people deep.

    We focused entirely on Grill ‘Em All, and I have to say: it’s no surprise they won the first Great Food Truck Race. I ordered a Waste ‘Em All (green chiles, pepper jack, beer-soaked onion), and Mr. Sandwich ordered the Molly Hatchet (seared fennel sausage gravy, bacon, maple)–with a side of fries for Baguette, naturally.

    First, the burgers. They were amazing. The Waste ‘Em All is the best burger I’ve had in a long time. Don’t get me wrong–there are plenty of burgers I like. But this one was noteworthy. And the Molly Hatchet was also excellent, with maple that we could still sense after we got home. These are two very different burgers, both executed magnificently.

    Next, the fries. I don’t remember the last time I had fries this good. Crispy, flavorful, salty. I’ve previously mentioned my love of salt–well, these fries were wonderfully salty, which is a characteristic that too many people seem to be trying to ignore in the interest of health, or some such nonsense.

    Seriously, the fries were so good I had to go up and ask about them. It turns out that they’re double-fried in vegetable oil–once at high heat, and then again on-site to ensure crispiness. And you also get your choice of dipping sauce. It turns out that Baguette is a fan of garlic aioli, which I can only see as a good sign for her eating future.

    If you like burgers, you want to find Grill ‘Em All. You will not be sorry.

    Photo by davecobb, via Flickr.

  • A Whole Lot of Food in One Post

    It’s been a long time between posts. So let’s go to the highlight reel, shall we?

    Recently we were introduced to Fabrocini’s Italian Restaurant in Tarzana. Best chicken piccata I can remember.

    Little Toni’s in North Hollywood has great pizza–we had Canadian bacon, meatballs, and garlic on ours. It makes me wonder why we haven’t been adding garlic as a topping all along.

    Tacos Michoacan serves some awesome carne asada, and the price cannot be beat.

    But the real news is that my dear friend Madame Scandal (of Tea & Scandal) came for a long weekend. As she, like the Sandwiches, loves food, I figured that a tour of Los Angeles food institutions was in order. No, we did not enroll in L.A. Trade-Tech, although I hear their cafeteria–run and staffed by the culinary arts students–is excellent.

    So what did we do?

    First, we had lunch at Salsa and Beer. This may not be an institution, but it’s mighty fine Mexican food, which is tough to find in Madame Scandal’s home state. Dinner, naturally, was In-n-Out. You just can’t beat a good double-double.

    The next day, we packed up Baguette and headed to Hollywood. Our destination? Pink’s. Verdict? A hit. That evening we invited a few other friends over for a cookout over the wood-fired grill that Mr. Sandwich has installed in our back yard.

    Saturday started off slow, but wrapped up nicely with the second L.A. Street Food Festival at the Rose Bowl. Yes, I know that’s not in L.A. But the field was the site of dozens of tables stocked by local food trucks, which have become a Twitter sensation. We ate so much, and enough time has passed, that I don’t remember all of the details. But I loved the banana pudding at Nana Queen’s, and I’ve never been a fan of banana pudding. I’d go back for more of Nana Queen’s, though. Manila Machine had good adobo, although unfortunately they had run out of lumpia. And although I didn’t spot The Grilled Cheese Truck until I was too full for anything but dessert (the concourse or mezzanine or whatever it’s called midway up the stands still seems like an odd spot), I did finally get to try Coolhaus‘s ice cream sandwiches. While I had never before imagined ice cream that includes candied bacon, I can tell you that it? Is delicious.

    One suggestion to the organizers: although there is a cool factor to being on the field, the need for vendors to run food down from the trucks added to the slowness of quite a few lines–even for those of us who spent the extra $$ for VIP tickets (totally worthwhile, I might add). Why not have the event in the parking lot, like the monthly swap meet held there? You can still control access (the swap meet does), and it seems like there would be fewer delays.

    On Sunday we made a trip to the Encino Farmers’ Market (who doesn’t love farmers’ markets?) in the morning, and made our way to Philippe’s in Chinatown for French dip sandwiches.

    And then, sadly, on Monday Madame Scandal had to go home. Frowny face. We live too far apart.

    But the eat goes on.

  • Tweet, Tweet, Tweet

    You can follow me on Twitter. But you knew that, because there’s a link in the right-hand column.

    Who do I follow? A variety of people and organizations, naturally. After all, it is Twitter. Included in that variety is a growing number of food trucks. While I have yet to patronize any of them (although, as you recall, I tried to last week), that’s only because they haven’t been near an area I’m in at a time that I’m in that area. If you follow my meaning.

    At any rate, here are some L.A.-area food trucks that I follow on Twitter and hope to eat at soon:

    Grilled Cheese Truck: this is a new entry, but what’s not to love? I mean, it’s grilled cheese!

    Don Chow Tacos: Chinese food. In a taco. Will I love it or hate it? The only way to know is to try it.

    Nom Nom Truck: This is the truck that didn’t show up as expected last week. The sandwiches sound great. I hope they’ll be back soon!

    Get Shaved: I found this thanks to Nom Nom Truck’s Tweets. Frankly, I’m surprised that Hawaiian shaved ice hasn’t made a bigger splash on the mainland. Sno-cones just can’t compare.

    Sprinklesmobile: Cupcakes. From Sprinkles. On a truck. I’m a bigger fan of Susiecakes, but they don’t have a truck.

    Kogibbq: The granddaddy of them all, the food truck that made food trucks famous. If you don’t count all of the actual taco trucks and lunch wagons that came before it. But how many of them specialized in Korean BBQ?

    Calbi BBQ: Following in the footsteps of Kogi. Or not. I won’t know until I’ve tried them both. And even if I know, will I care? That’s why I need to try both. No need to set up a specious Star Trek/Babylon 5 feud when both offerings may be delightful.

    Coolhaus: Looking for a dessert that isn’t a cupcake? I hear their ice cream sandwiches are fantastic. And I do love a good ice cream sandwich.

    So have you tried any of these? Share your thoughts–and let me know if there are other trucks I should be following.