Nosh Pit

Slideshow: Mobile Food Rodeo 2012

Get stuffed all over again.

Posted by: Christopher Werner on May 08, 2012 at 11:30AM 1 Comments

The cavalcade of trucks parked outside Fremont Studios, making for a colorful (and fragrant) couple of blocks.

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The cavalcade of trucks parked outside Fremont Studios, making for a colorful (and fragrant) couple of blocks.

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A dash of Sriracha spices up Indian tacos from Off the Rez.

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Get ’er done: Nolan Stamps takes a bite out of a kalua pork sandwich from Fusion on the Run.

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Newcomer Crisp Creperie proved a popular stop. The line was so long it reportedly took up to two hours to get a crepe. Don’t say we didn’t warn you about that wait.

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Now that’s teamwork. Employees at Contigo demonstrate how a taco hand-off is done.

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Lynn Rehn of My Chef Lynn checks in with son Rocky, who helped man the truck.

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Rehn’s signature lamb burgers.

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With seating scarce, attendees took to the next best option: the curb.

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Plugged in: The Rodeo rounded up more than 30 top trucks, including familiar names like Maximus Minimus and Skillet, and more recent ventures such as Jemil’s Big Easy (which apparently keeps its condiments rather high).

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Crazy crowds meant food went fast. Molly Moon’s ice cream was out by 3:30—just as the heat hit its peak.

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Get ’er done, part II: Robert Howard dominates his Buns burger.

Where film buffs have SIFF and fashion folk Black Friday, food truck people have the Mobile Food Rodeo, an all-day opportunity to binge on all manner of curb cuisine.

This year’s bonanza brought in an impressive 35 trucks and took place Sunday in Fremont. Crowds were thick and lines long, but the grubbing was undeniably good (and that sunshine—glorious!). Hit the slideshow for a recap of the feast, and for everything you’ve ever wanted to know about Seattle’s mobile community, behold this feature on food trucks.

All photos by Seattlemet.com photographer Lucas Anderson. Full disclosure: Seattle Met was a sponsor of the Rodeo.

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Tags: Street Food, Seattle Food Trucks, Mobile Food Rodeo

New Pod Alert: Fremont Sunday Market

Plus other notable developments in the world of street food.

Posted by: Christopher Werner on Jan 17, 2012 at 02:03PM 0 Comments

Like this but with food trucks. Photo courtesy Fremont Sunday Market.

The same folks putting on the Mobile Food Rodeo are corralling trucks for a new pod at the Fremont Sunday Market. Up to ten of them will park there from 11 to 4 starting February 19. For now it’s a monthly thing but “will become weekly as the weather improves,” according to event manager Danniel Linn.

Linn and fellow organizers are busy getting a contingent together for other happenings including Fremont Outdoor Movies. Pod “pop-ups” are in the pipeline for Pioneer Square this summer, Linn added. Of course the Rodeo, with its 35 trucks, booze garden, and whatnot, is the granddaddy of their events, and two of them are planned for 2012. Linn divulged the first one will take place April 28 at 3501 Phinney Ave North. The second Rodeo is happening September 15 but a location is still up in the air. (It’s looking like somewhere in South Lake Union.)

Full disclosure: Seattle Met sponsored Mobile Food Rodeo 2011.

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Tags: Street Food, Seattle Food Trucks, Food Truck Pods, Mobile Food Rodeo

Early Details on Mobile Food Rodeo 2012

Make that Rodeos.

Posted by: Christopher Werner on Nov 21, 2011 at 10:57AM 1 Comments

Street food enthusiasts gather at Mobile Food Rodeo in September. Photo courtesy Mobile Food Rodeo.

Cochon 555 is a no-go in 2012, but hey, at least Mobile Food Rodeo is returning—twice.

Organizer/founder Ryan Reiter says two Rodeos are in the works. Locations are yet to be finalized but the dates are set for April 28 and September 15. Reiter is corralling 35 trucks from Seattle, Portland, and Idaho, up from the 25 that participated in September 2011’s inaugural event, and more are likely to sign on for the later one. Also new for 2012 is a booze garden featuring local distilleries, wines, and Northwest microbrews.

Anyone who attended in September knows the occasion wasn’t without snafus. Long lines—for food and entry to the event—dominated, with some trucks not stocking enough grub to feed the 7,000 attendees. To that Reiter assures, “We learned a lot and we listen to our audience and [are] determined to bring this tasty event back.”

Reiter says he also is organizing multiple Mobile “Mini” Lunch Corrals featuring 10 trucks. The noon hour nosh fests will take place throughout the year throughout the city; possible neighborhoods include Pioneer Square, Bellevue, Fremont, and Columbia City. Stay tuned for more details.

Full disclosure: Seattle Met sponsored Mobile Food Rodeo 2011.

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Tags: Street Food, Food Events and Festivals, Seattle Food Trucks, Mobile Food Rodeo

Sorting Through Street Food at Mobile Food Rodeo

Notes on the state of our mobile fare.

Posted by: Jessica Voelker on Sep 20, 2011 at 01:09PM 4 Comments

Food trucks at Mobile Food Rodeo

Photo: Mobilefoodrodeo.com

First, the disclosure: Seattle Met was among the sponsors of last Saturday’s Mobile Food Rodeo, an event at which I was one of many judges dispatched to weigh in on the “Wagon Awards.” The awards honored the best dishes served up on Seattle streets.

But I am not here to promote the event. Rather, I wanted to share some things I observed while sampling about 25 dishes made by trucks from Seattle and Portland.

Second, the background: My coworker Chris Werner is a street foods enthusiast, and he has been so thorough and punctilious in his coverage of mobile foods that I have hitherto left the sampling up to him, busying myself with things like cocktails and brick-and-mortar eateries. This meant that I had only tried a few of the 20-odd trucks on hand this weekend.

Having now been exposed to most of our mobile offerings, here are some of my takeaway observations:

1. The best food trucks are doing something idiosyncratic—meaning easily identifiable as theirs and theirs alone—and doing that thing well. A paradigm of the model is Street Donuts, which serves up baby dough rings with toppings like a dusting of Nerds candies or roasted peanuts, and curry sauce. Even if you find donuts as unexciting as I do, you will notice right away that the Street Donuts cooks are masters of their craft. These little donuts melt in your mouth and the flavors sing out clearly. For me, this was the surprise hit of the bunch.

In contrast, the several trucks dishing up hamburgers were hard to distinguish from one another, and none could stand up to what’s served out of Skillet’s airstream trailer. It’s simply one of the best burgers you’ll find anywhere.

2. When judging street food, wear elastic pants and don’t make dinner plans.

3. Is Parfait the best ice cream in town? I’m thinking it might be.

4. Watching Trophy Cupcakes and Party owner Jennifer Shea judge a cupcake is an experience every person should have.

5. Finally, based on what I experienced, here’s a list of not-to-be-missed mobile-food dishes around Seattle:

-Picadillo (Cuban-style hash) from Lee Scott’s new truck Snout and Co. It’s ground beef with chopped tomatoes, green olives, bell peppers, raisins, and spices. This is served on rice and then a big-old plantain chip is stuck into the bowl. A glorious, soul-warming dish and a tailgater’s dream come true.

-The duck confit on puffy flatbread from Big Food Mobile. This is an inspiring example of great food served up in the most casual of circumstances.

-A burger and a side of poutine from Skillet. But we knew this, right?

-An oyster po boy from Where Ya At Matt. At the Mobile Food Rodeo, Matt Lewis presented gumbo as his signature dish, but it is the po boy that is his crowning achievement, in my opinion.

-Curry-covered donuts from Street Donuts.

Anything I missed?

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Tags: Hamburgers, Street Food, Seattle Food Events, Mobile Food Rodeo, Street Donuts