New GFT: Kala Truck hits the streets of OC

My sister Becky is my guest blogger, offering her report on food trucks from the Teller & Michelson lunch lot in Irvine, CA. This is probably the last report from the Teller Lot, as SeabirdsTruck reported that the lot is being converted to a car rental place.


 

Kala Truck made their Teller Lot debut on Wednesday in a very big and memorable way. They describe their style of cooking as “Artful Mexican Cuisine.” and represented just that.  At the front window, they artfully display each of their tacos (beef, pork, chicken, shrimp) over a bed of colorful tortilla chips (apologies for the plastic wrap over it). Each taco order has 2 items. 

Their Patron taco is the most popular of the four choices. After ordering it, I can understand why – tender, flavorful steak served with pico de gallo, creamy guacamole and queso fresco.

Patron taco

The Sweet Piggy taco is also just how it sounded – slow cooked pulled pork that just melt-in-your-mouth with each bite. There is an added note of sweetness that is just enough to excite, but not overwhelm your palate. The jicama slaw on top added a nice crunchy texture.

Sweet Piggy

The creamy roasted poblanos with organic corn is also topped with queso fresco accompanied with a handful of their house made tortilla chips. There is a noticeable theme in that great attention was paid to not only how the food tasted, but also how it looked / presented.

Artful Mexican Cuisine, indeed!

Problanos with corn

To celebrate their debut, a mariachi band came out to perform in front of their truck. For a moment, I thought I was on vacation as I sipped on their refreshing watermelon juice (with a hint of habanero and a twist of lime) and took a moment to enjoy the show.

Watermelon juice w/ habanero

Additional items on their menu (not pictured) were
Cochinita sliders (pulled pork sliders),
Cajun shrimp tacos,
Citrus chicken tacos,
Piggy fries (fries served with pulled pork, guacamole, crema),
Kala quesadilla (stuffed with cremini and button mushrooms, caramelized onions, epazote, mozzarella, pepper and jack cheeses),
Queso fundido (similar to a classic chili, but with chorizo, mixed with cheeses and served with chips)
Citrus quinoa and
Epazote black beans

Follow Kala Truck on twitter at @KalaTruck
www.kalatruck.com

Nov 17: Farm to Food Truck Challenge 4

Event was postponed to November 17 due to the possible inclement weather.

On Saturday, November 10th we are hosting a farmers’ market feast for you, our friends and fans. 20 local farmers and vendors, 15 gourmet food trucks, 5 challengers and an estimated 2,000 attendees will all come together to celebrate our second birthday and compete in our Farm to Food Truck Challenge IVYou’ll be able to taste the market from our challengers and celebrate our two years at SoCo Collection! 

Fifteen gourmet food trucks will serve food during the market, with five of our gourmet food truck chefs competing in an epic challenge. Chefs will source farm fresh ingredients from our certified farmers.

A $30.00 donation to our non-profit gets you a sampling plate from each of our five competition trucks! Friends, fans, and previous Top Chop Judges will join together to feast at our long communal tables in the middle of the market to vote with their forks and choose the next Top Chop Truck.

Click here for tickets

SCHEDULE
Tasting begins at 12:00pm 
Judging begins at 1:00-1:30 
Announcing winner at 1:30-2:00

INGREDIENTS
The five mandatory farmers market ingredients are: 
  • Butternut squash- Bautista Creek Local Produce or Pedros Farms
  • Walnuts- Bautista Creek Local Produce
  • Pomegranate- Nicholas Family Farms or Atkins Farms
  • Kale- Menos Farms or Gaytan Farms
  • Mushrooms- Kanes Family Farm
DISHES
Five Challengers will create five competition dishes using SoCo Farmers Market ingredients and Savory Spice salts and spices. 

TICKETS
Purchase a $30 Tasting Ticket to eat one of each of the Challengers competition dishes via PayPal. Only 100 Tasting Tickets sold!

LINE UP 
    • Taco Maria (competition)
    • Seabirds*** (competition)
    • Tamarindo*** (competition)
    • A Bite Truck*** (competition)
    • Chomp Chomp Truck*** (competition)
  • Also in attendance
    • Dos Chinos
    • Front Porch Pops
    • Garlicscapes
    • Piaggio On Wheels
    • Pulp Fusion
    • Rancho A Go Go
    • Tailgate Truck
    • Tasting Spoon
    • The Flip Truck
    • Tornado Potato
    • Waffles De Liege 

    Nov 16: Torrance, St. Catherine Laboure School

     

    St. Catherine Laboure’ School

    Friday,  November 16th from 6pm to 9pm  

    St. Catherine Laboure’ School is hosting this free event as a fun activity for the local community, but the main goal is to raise money to help cover tuition for underprivileged families. The trucks attending are donating a percentage of their sales to St. Catherine Laboure’ School.
    Food trucks scheduled (subject to change without notice)
    Rancho a GoGo Barbeque Truck
    BBQ pork grilled cheese sandwich with mac and cheese stacked into the sandwich, Moink balls
    Ragin Cajun On Wheels
    Po’ boy, gumbolaya and chicken, sausage & corn bisque
    Don Chow Tacos
    Chinese BBQ pork, Kung Pao Chicken and Soy Ginger Tofu
    Dogtown Dogs
    Tater tots, bacon wrapped dog with fried egg on top

    Address: 3846 West Redondo Beach Blvd, Torrance, Ca 90504.
    For more information about St. Catherine Laboure’ School visit

    www.stcat.org or contact Kathleen Gorze at 310-324-8732.

    Am I your favorite GFT blogger?

    Lookingforfoodtrucks was nominated and I hope you’ll give me your vote. Thanks!!

    Who is Your Favorite Local Food Truck Blog?

    While Mobile Cuisine is blog/ezine that covers the mobile food industry, there are numerous blogs across the country that cover specific areas that food trucks roam. From New York to Miami and Toronto to Dallas there are bloggers that cover the gamut of mobile food businesses. This poll has been set up to find out which local mobile food blog is the favorite in North America.

    I love food-trucks

    This poll will run through Friday, November 9th (11:59 PM Central Time). Once the votes have been tabulated, the winner will be announced. The winner will be able to claim the title of Favorite Local Mobile Food Blog as well as have the chance to be part of a feature story here at Mobile Cuisine that delves into the individuals who run these blogs and why they write what they do.

    So help us spread the word for your favorites.
    Click here and vote for me please! (remember, you can only vote once).

    Here is the full list of blogs as well as links to their sites:
    Atlanta Street Food Coalition – Atlanta, GA
    Burger Beast – Miami, FL
    DFW Food Truck Foodie – Dallas/Fort Worth, TX
    Food Carts Portland – Portland, OR
    Food Trailers Austin – Austin, TX
    Food Truck Fiesta – Washington DC
    Food Truck Freak – Chicago, IL
    Food Truck Nerd – Silicone Valley, CA
    Hub Food Trucks – Boston, MA
    Looking for Food Trucks – Los Angeles/Orange County, CA
    New York Street Food – New York, NY
    Orlando’s Food Trucks – Orlando, FL
    San Diego Food Trucks – San Diego, CA
    Saturday Night Foodies – Los Angeles/Orange County, CA
    Seattle Food Truck – Seattle, WA
    Stitches ‘n Dishes – Bay Area, CA
    Street Grindz – Hawaii
    Toronto Food Trucks – Toronto, Canada

    We apologize to those bloggers we may have missed. There are many mobile food blogs that didn’t meet our criteria for this contest as many bloggers cover other topics than mobile food, have not posted in the last month, or have their blog solely set up as a Facebook page.

    Nov 17: Riverside, Galleria GFT Festival

    Coming to The Galleria at Tyler in Riverside on Saturday, November 17th, it’s the Galleria Gourmet Food Truck Festival!  Featuring 25 gourmet food trucks serving a gourmet variety of delicious dishes and tasty treats. Visit a truck you’ve seen on TV, or try something new and unexpected! Grab a cold beer from Hangar 24 Craft Brewery or sample a wide variety of specialty non-alcoholic beverages.  The festival will feature entertainment throughout the day.  It’s a day of Food, Family & Fun!
    Who: The Galleria at Tyler, The Latino Network, and K-FROG 95.
    What: Galleria Gourmet Food Truck Festival
    When: Saturday, November 17th, 2012 from 10:30AM to 6PM
    Where: 1299 Galleria at Tyler Riverside, California 92503 (951) 351-3112.
    Food Trucks:
    Cousins Maine Lobster
    Firehouse Grill Truck
    Game On Gourmet
    Garlicscapes
    In Fusion Truck
    Los Lobos Truck
    Meat-The-Greek
    Meet N Potatoes
    MeSoHungry Truck
    My Tornado Potato
    Ragin Cajun
    Short Rib BBQ
    Texas Chili Pie Truck
    The Lime Truck
    Trailer Park Truck
    Viking Truck
    WTF Pizza
    ZZ Truck
    Fry Girl
    Waffles de Liege
    Mustache Mikes Italian Ice
    Cupcake Store
    Sweet Stops
    Adult Beverages: Beer from Hangar 24 Craft Brewery
    Ticket Pricing:
    5 & Under = FREE
    Presale General Admission= $8
    Day of General Admission = $10
    Early Entrance = $5 + GA Ticket (Package includes first access to the event)
    *Tickets include admission to the festival. Food and beverages are not included.

    Nov 4: Anaheim Stadium, Buddy Walk

    Sunday, November 4 – 2012 OC Buddy Walk, Anaheim
    Anaheim Stadium
    2000 E Gene Autry Way
    (outside tunnel B – Katella side)
    9:30 am – 2:00 pm