Stop #11: Transylvanian Cuisine Reminds Me of Family

I had been anxiously awaiting the week I would finally get to go to this next truck - Delicios, A Taste of Transylvania - not because I have a great love for the food of central Romania, but because I had no idea what the heck would be on the menu (not that I was expecting anything blood themed - yes, I so went there.)

On that note, it IS interesting that the truck is red and black....  But any illusion to the infamous count and his hankering for the sanguinary ended there.  The menu was populated with dishes that are very Eastern European in their influence (well, duh!)  including foot long hot dogs and sausages in what look like bagel buns, as well as schnitzel.  When I asked the woman cooking what she liked most on the menu, she recommended the stuffed cabbage.

My decision was made, hands down.  My grandmother used to make stuffed cabbage.   She would stuff the cabbage leaves with ground lamb and rice, served with a dried apricot sauce that was TO DIE FOR.  The nostalgic romantic in me wants to say she groud the lamb by hand, but I think I am totally making that up.  Anway, I hadn't had stuffed cabbage in YEARS!  It was on.

While the food was being prepared by the man who was working in the truck, the woman who had taken my order unwrapped one of their chimney cakes, took a pair of scissors and cut off a little bite for each of the people waiting.  First off, this is one of the things I have come to love most about the food trucks - these extra little gestures of generosity and connection (and salesmanship) by the entrepeneurs who are serving you.

Stock Photo of Chimney Cake

Also, the chimney cake was YUM-MY!  I don't really know how to describe it - like a donut and a croissant had a love child.  Flaky, sweet, dense.  And fashioned like a chimney or a very large (and edible) cuff bracelet.

When my food was ready I was handed a large and very heavy container, which I took back to my office.  Three large stuffed cabbage pieces, filled with spiced chicken and rice, plus creamy polenta topped with cheese and sour cream.  Ah, Eastern European Cuisine - all white, red and yellow with no green to be found anywhere nearby.  You can feel your arteries hardening just looking at it:

So Much Food.....

All that being said, it was delicious.  Not exactly how my grandmother made it, but clearly homemade with fresh ingredients by someone who knows what they are doing.   Always fun to try something new and find out that it is actually quite familiar in the end.

Delicios!
Stuffed Cabbage with Polenta: $7.00 (+ Tip!)
-Accepts Credit Cards

Stop #10: Bagels - Gourmet style!

So, I'm Jewish.  And my family is from the East Coast - New Jersey, basically right across the Hudson from Manhattan.  Plus I spent 3 years living in New York - and thus have gone to the infamous H&H Bagels on the Upper West Side and purchased "whatever just came out of the oven."  So basically, I know from bagels.  They must have that slightly hard, almost tight outside, containing the fluffy, doughy inside.  They MUST be boiled or frankly we are just talking about bread with a hole in the middle - not the unique creation that is A Bagel.

So when I arrived at Tastebud Bagel, I was ready to be non-plussed.  I became particularly suspicious when I read that these were "Montreal Style" bagels.  Um, I'm sorry, but since when did Canada know from bagels?

Since always, it seems. After eating lunch I decided to do some research (ie, Wikipedia) into this fascinating new species of bagel.   I am now not at all surprised that I liked these suckers.  Smaller and sweeter than their New York cousins, boiled (natch) and always wood fired (!!) - Montreal has it nailed.

I looked at the menu and was contemplating buying "the standard" (lox, cream cheese, onion and capers) as a barometer of quality (like ordering spaghetti bolognese in order to check the quality of an Italian restaurant.)  But when I asked the gentleman running the truck his opinion, he told me the most popular bagel was the braised lamb.  Ok, definitely not where my mind and stomach had been headed, but I was game.

All of the bagel sandwhiches are served open faced.  The lamb was braised to order and was topped with pickled peppers, cabbages and a touch of mayo.  Oy! So much joy in my mouth!   The lamb was tender and flavorful, the peppers tart with just a hint of spiciness, and the cabbage crunchy with a sprinkling of caraway seeds to add another layer of flavor.

Who knew?  Bagels in Portland I did not expect to love.  But there you go.

Tastebud Bagels:
Poppyseed Bagel with Braised Lamb, Peppers, Cabbage and Mayo: $8.00 (+tip)
-Accepts Credit Cards

***Be warned that this is a messy eat.  Order when you can sit down to consume it.***

Stop #9: Savor!

 Savor Soup House is an adorable little cart right on the corner of 10th and Alder.  Specializing in homemade soups on a daily rotating menu, they also have an array of grilled cheese sandwiches and regular sandwiches (all on fresh bread) and a few salads.

The young gentleman who greeted me was super sweet and offered to give me a taste of any soup I wanted to try.  But I knew what I wanted - butternut squash and apple bisque?  Are you kidding me right now?  Put it in my mouth!  (Gluten free and vegan, for those who have dietary restrictions.)  They sprinkled a few toasted pepitos (pumkin seeds) on top for some added crunch.

But I couldn't JUST go for soup when there was grilled cheese to try.  I got a cup of soup and half a classic grilled cheese sandwhich, though if I go back I will absolutely be building my own grilled cheese from their ridonculous options.  The menu includes (among other things) manchego, swiss cheese, balsamic reduction, bacon, sliced apple, or (wait for it) carmelized OR pickled onions. (Of course pickled - this is Portland.)

I got back to the office and dug in.  The soup was creamy and delicious with the hint of apple perfectly complimenting the sturdy butternut flavor.  And the sandwhich - oh the sandwhich!  As someone who usually tries to steer clear of the highly fattening, I don't eat a lot of grilled cheese. But this puppy was off the charts - nice and buttery, but with the great crisp of toasted fresh bread and the tang of good Tillamook cheddar.  Indulgence indeed.

Savor Soup House
Cup of Butternut and Apple Bisque with 1/2 a Classic Grilled Cheese:
     $3.00 for the soup, $2.50 for the 1/2 sandwhich  
-Accepts Credit Cards

Stop #8: Italian in a Wrap

I was super excited to see that Kitchenette was open.  This sweet little truck has been closed for ages - in fact, I am not sure that I remember seeing it open until last week when I went to Snow White Crepes next door.

The menu is pretty extensive - pasta dishes, sandwhiches, wraps.  While I was deciding, a gentleman was waiting for his spaghetti and meatballs.  He asked me if I had eaten at this cart before and when I told him no, he said he had been going through withdrawl for the two months that she had been closed and was jonesing for her amazing food.

After dishing out his heaping portion and sending him on his way, the lovely owner, who is part Italian and part Turkish, took my order for an Italian chicken wrap.  She cooked me up some chicken, wrapped it in a warmed tortilla with some lettuce and cabbage, all drizzeled with ranch sauce and a hit of sriracha.

The wrap was delicious - and ginormous!  I actually ate it in two shifts over the course of the afternoon, which is EXTREMELY rare for me.  The vegetables were fresh, the chicken flavorful and tender and the sriracha added the perfect little kick.

If you are passing and see this cart open, hit it up.  While the owner was preparing my wrap, I asked about her being closed for the last two months.  Sadly, she was suffering from heart disease and had to take some time off to rest and hopefully recover.  She anticipated being open somewhat sporadically in the next few months.  

Kitchenette:

Chicken Wrap - $6 (+tip)
-Cash Only

Stop #7: Snow White Crepes

Crepes - I love me some crepes!  Anything that, with the appropriate ingredients can be made into an entree OR a dessert has a versatility that I greatly admire.  Also, when I lived in Paris and wasn't eating baguettes, a crepe cooked up fresh by one of those carts on the street. with a little lemon and sugar, would hit the spot (hey, I was broke and I have a wicked sweet tooth.)

But I digress....Snow White Crepes! should have been my stop last week, but alas the truck was still closed for the holidays.  But not this week.

I have no idea why this place is called Snow White Crepes.  But apparently this truck has been aroung for ages.  And the woman who runs it also runs a restaurant.  I am tired just thinking about it.  So I suppose it is no suprise that it took her awhile to notice I was standing there waiting to order.

After looking through an EXTENSIVE menu of both sweet and savory crepes, as well as a list of sandwhiches (although who are we kidding?  A sandwhich was never going to happen....) I had settled upon a crepe with chicken, pesto, gorgonzola and cilantro.

Everything is made to order, so it took a few minutes for the crepe to be prepared.  Unfortunately, by the time I got back to the office, the crepe had cooled down enough to become a bit soggy.  And the gorgonzola sort of overwhelmed everything else.  But the flavor of the crepe was quite good.

Not a huge win, but where there is chicken and pesto I can usually walk away smiling.


Snow White Crepes
Chicken and Pesto Savory Crepe: $8 + tip
-Cash Only

Stop #6: Caspian Kabob

***In the interest of full disclosure, Caspian Kabob is not right next to Korean Twist.  It is two doors down.  On January 3rd, the two carts in between were closed.  But naturally, Mama still needs to eat!***

Caspian Kabob has been one of my favorite visits so far - both because of the food, but also because of the owner, Victor.  This food truck opened just a few months before I arrived here myself.

Victor's Story

Victor has his story printed up and posted on the truck - this is a man who is loving his new life as a chef and food truck owner!  Victor learned to cook from his mother in Iran, eventually moving to New York to live with his American wife (adorable picture on their website!)  We comiserated about the challenges of living in New York and how happy we were that we now lived in Portland instead of the Big Apple.

I ordered a jujeh kabob (chicken kabob) over mediterranean salad.  Waiting with me for his food was a young man who carried on a conversation with Victor in farsi.  First off, farsi is a gorgeous language.  Secondly- always a good sign when other folks who were raised on the cuisine you are going to eat are patronizing the same establishment.

As my food was just about finished, two young women approached the truck.  One looked at the menu and said "Oh wow, he has...." I can't remember the name of the dish, but when her friend asked if she was going to buy something from this cart, she emphatically declared "Oh yeah!"  She then also went on to have a brief exchange with Victor in Farsi.

At this point things got super cool - Victor said that he was working on a special vegetable soup/stew that he wanted us to try.  It was  spinach based with chunks of what I think was beef.  The flavor was a delicate array of spices, combined with the warm heartiness of a regional comfort food.  Indeed, the young woman said this was her Persian version of chicken soup.  

Complimentary Mystery
Vegetable Stew

I wish I could remember the name of it-- because it was awesome.  As was the ginormous serving of mediterranean salad (lettuce, feta, kalmata olives, tomato with a very light light vinagrette) topped with tender and delicious chicken sprinkled with paprika.  The meal was served with maste khiar (yougurt sauce) and warm pita.

Go to this truck.  For realz.



Caspian Kabob
Jujeh Kabob over Mediterranean Salad: $8 (I think...didn't write it down.) Plus tip!
-Accepts Credit Cards

Stop #5: Korean Burritos

Korean Twist offers up a Korean/Mexican fusion bonanza. Tacos, burritos, etc. but all served with meat prepared in a Korean style, with much of the garnish associated with Korean cuisine.  To be honest,  I didn't know that Korean Mexican fusion was a thing....but apparently it is.  With good reason.

Korean Twist is the first truck where, not sure what to order, I decided to ask the extremely friendly and personable young woman taking my order which menu item she prefered.  She quickly answered that she liked the spicy pork.  Intending to keep my carbs low, I ordered a Spicy Pork burrito bowl.

It was awesome.  A ton of food (with rice of course - so much for low carbs!) with lots of flavor.  I haven't often eaten Korean food, so this was a fun adventure in something new.  If I were to go again, the one thing I would change would be to ask them to leave off the mayonaise sauce - mayonaise being one of the very very VERY few foods I don't particularly like.  (It was between the spicy pork and the lettuce underneath.)

I think I will be making the "What's your favorite?" a thing from now on.

Korean Twist
Spicy Pork Burrito Bowl: $6 (+ tip!)
Accepts Credit Cards