Midtown food trucks that parked near my work before the ban

I wrote this post before all the food trucks were banned from Midtown. Hopefully they're allowed to come back soon...I used to have a list of trucks that rotated daily. Nowadays you'd be lucky to find one in the area. Although some trucks have started setting up carts - I can still get waffels on Friday. So here's a run-down of what used to park near work.

Mexicue I've only gone once and ordered the chili bowl and a beet taco. The chili bowls was disappointing - it was a hollowed out bun (a little stale at that) with beans and meat ant toppings, but not enough of them. Maybe 4 forkfuls of filling. The roasted beet taco on the other hand was really good.

Kimchi Taco This is probably my favorite truck that used to come by. The first time I tried this truck, it was parked in front of Le Bernardin (which isn't all that if you ask me) and a cop came by and made them move (the poor guy was actually really nice, and they tried to bribe him with food but he made a good point that the building will just call them again). Anyhow, their rice bowls are ridiculously good and super filling (enough for two meals but since I am a goldfish, I eat it all at once).

The multigrain rice is definitely the way to go. Not sure what's in it but it looks like lots of other legumes that make the rice almost purple (it's way better than the purple rice+beans they have at Korean restaurants). I got this with spicy pork and scarfed it down. Problem is, leftover bits of kimchee start smelling after a while and I think I scared away several coworkers during the course of the afternoon. But I'm shameless and the next time I got tacos (one bulgogi, one spicy pork and one chicken). I'm not a fan of the bulgogi they serve - it was extra heavy on the cumin I think (or was it corinader? I forget). I think the bowl is a much better value and better tasting. So I'll be sticking to the spicy pork from now on. And, I have to add that their kimchi arancini were really good - even JP enjoyed them (he got a kimcheesesteak minus the kimchi). Oh, and one more thing - their mild sauce is very mild so stick to their hot sauce

Taim The vegetarian option. I've had falafel from here four times so far. One regular falafel sandwich, one special tomato and basil falafel sandwich which turned out to be dry, one hummus sandwich which I will get next time with extra cabbage salad and no quinoa salad (is it bad of me to admit that I don't think I'm a huge fan of quinoa?), and one Sabich. Secretly (maybe because I love cabbage so much), I still think L'as du Falafel in Paris was the best falafel sandwich I've had. But my go-to here is now the Sabich (it's a special so they don't always have it). Deep fried eggplant slices (not breaded) stuffed into the same pita with tahini and hummus and salad as the regular falafel sandwich. It comes with a sliced hardboiled egg inside for those of you who like it. I don't. Next time I will ask for it without. The guy taking the order steered me away from the whole wheat pita for the Sabbich and he pretty much knows what he's talking about. The regular pita soaks up the greasy eggplant juices better but I didn't find the sandwich to be too greasy overall. Don't forget to ask for the spicy sauce (S'rug) inside the pita - it makes a big difference. One thing I wasn't a fan of was their Date-Lime-Banana smoothie. But their fries are really good - on the thinner side and nicely crispy.

Joyride  A froyo/coffee truck. I got their original and topped it with blackberries and croquantes (chocolate covered rice krispie ball type things). It reminded me of Pinkberry although a tiny bit icier and with a richer mouthfeel. Too bad no trucks in midtown anymore as I would've become a regular customer for a mid-afternoon pick-me-up during the summer as there is no Pinkberry within a 5-minute walking distance from here. Although I'm scared to ask about the calorie count

ABC Kitchen - my favorite spot-of-the-moment

I'm a little bit late on the bandwagon for this one, but ABC Kitchen is now one of my favorite restaurants in NYC (ok maybe my ENTRY is late - I went for the first time back in the Spring). You see, I never know when JP gets out of work so I've started making reservations at restaurants several weeks in advance just in case he's free in the evening (or weekend for that matter). I'd canceled and rescheduled reservations numerous times already (Dell'Anima, Untitled at the Whitney) but this was one reservation I was not going to let go of, even if it meant going without him. Granted the restaurant has been getting a ton of buzz for a while now but I booked before it won the James Beard for Best New Restaurant earlier this year, and now it'll probably be even more difficult (I am still bitter about how I kept nagging him to go to Locanda Verde with me until one day early in their existence, NYTimes did a review and I still haven't gone there for dinner). On the plus side, ABC Kitchen has a fairly spacious bar area for walk-ins and some seating at the cafe in the back, where the same menu is served.

We went on a Sunday night. I went again the following Tuesday for lunch. That's how good it was. Since then, we've had brunch there twice. Their cocktails are bright and fresh. Their veggies are ridiculously delicious, especially the beets which I got twice, as well as the roasted carrot and avocado salad. For me the dinner was more memorable than the lunch but that's because the pasta I had at lunch (bowties with kasha and veal meatballs, below) didn't impress me much. 

What did impress me was the other pasta we had - cavateppi with spring peas, guanciale and parmesan. I gave half of a half of a half sized portion (...you following that? we got the smaller portion, which they split into two, and I gave him half of mine) since he didn't want to touch the beets after having a tiny bite. But I didn't care, more for me!

This is just really good, simple market-based cooking done well, with very reasonable portions (perhaps one of a handful of times when I didn't feel like I was pregnant with a food baby after dinner). Oh, and their cream-filled doughnuts with a rich dark chocolate sauce aren't too bad either. More dinners and brunches here await!

Coolhaus ice cream truck

I ordered earl grey ice cream on a brioche but I think I got sugar cookies actually...regardless, after waiting in line for 45 minutes for an ice cream sandwich (and I went around 4:30pm!), I got this behemoth:

Their architectural concept is pretty cool. You can mix-and-match any of their cookies and ice cream flavors into an ice-cream sandwich, or you can get one of their "recommended" combinations, playfully named after famous architects like Mies Vanilla Rohe (Mies van der Rohe), Frank Behry (Frank Gehry), and Richard Meyer Lemon. 

The locally-baked cookies are good and the ice cream is unique and tasty. I would go a little more adventurous next time and most definitely share. Since all the food trucks were kicked out from Midtown recently, I'll have to visit the Lot on Tap under the Highline to sample Coolhaus again. But then there's also Van Leeuwen there...and sometimes Kelvin Slush. Dilemmas, dilemmas...

Big Apple BBQ

Big Apple BBQ is an annual barbeque event featuring the best pitmasters from all over the country who descend upon Madison Square Park for one weekend in June as the behest of Danny Meyer (I saw him! He wears mom jeans!). It's pretty much a circus all weekend, with tons of people in the park, around the park and on the grass. This may be the only time Shake Shack doesn't have a line. 

This year I opted for a fast pass - $100 worth of food for $125. BUT, it lets you (+ 1 guest) go in the express lane. Sometimes, those faster lanes were still 20 minutes (ahem, Big Bob Gibson's) and sometimes there was no one and you could just walk up while tons of people are waiting in the regular line.

JP and I went on both Saturday and Sunday, and let me tell you - those $100 are HARD to use up. Plates of food were $8, desserts and sides $4, and drinks $2. But one pulled pork sandwich is more than enough - meat overdose. Luckily we had some help the second day but it was still tough.

Our first stop (twice over the weekend) is always Big Bob Gibson's for Chris Lilly's delicious pulled pork shoulder sandwich and mustard slaw. The meat disappointed this year but I slathered it in sauce anyway. I couldn't help but notice that everyone was using Pepperidge Farm hamburger buns this year, rather than Martin's potato rolls. I think that affected quality. 

But that wasn't the first thing we are there. While in the 20-minute "fast" lane, we passing another stand and shared some brisket. It was super fatty - I'm not the biggest fan of brisket so we'll leave it at that.

We also got ribs from different places to try, including 17th Street, which were really good. We typically avoid the New York-based BBQ joints because we can go any day, but while in line for dessert from Blue Smoke (ok, fine, it's in NYC but they were the only dessert-option there as Fried Pies were already sold out), I couldn't help but notice the Dinosaur BBQ pitmaster and the pork shoulders fresh out of the smoker...

I was a vegetarian the whole next week, promise.

New Le Creuset braiser

My first meal using my new Le Creuset braiser. I threw a bunch of stuff together and it was pretty tasty. A thinly-pounded chicken breast stuffed with mushrooms, spinach and cheese, with some tomatoes and green beans and leftover marinara sauce. At some point I think I deglazed the pan with some water and vinegar or something...anyhow, it was delicious! 

Except for the fact that I forgot to take out the toothpicks holding the chicken together and JP almost swallowed one. Whoops...

Go!Go!Curry! - chicken katsu bliss

I agree, the name "Go!Go!Curry!" isn't the most appetizing (something to do with the number 5 and Japanese baseball stars...), but this small Japanese curry shop, which is located in the awkward area between Penn Station and Port Authority, has a lot going for it. JLau and I ducked in here to grab a quick bite for lunch and escape the rain after an unsuccessful stop at a Theory sample sale during lunch hour. I've read about this place numerous times on various blogs but it was just too out of the way from work to ever go, so this was the perfect opportunity. I ordered a small chicken katsu. It's not small in the least as you can see in the picture. We could've ordered a medium or the Grand Slam option which gives you a little bit of everything and shared...but we each got our own small (JLau got the pork though).

It's a thinly pounded, panko-breaded and deliciously deep-fried chicken (or pork) cutlet (katsu), over a mound of sticky rice, with thick Japanese curry. I found the curry to be a little too salty for my liking but the rice balanced it out. The sauce on top of the cutlet was really good too - I forget what it's called but it reminds me a little bit of chamoy. Oh, and it comes with shredded cabbage to make you feel better about being a lard and eating all that fried, salty goodness.

Mad. Sq. Eats

Somehow I've missed this mini-food market the past couple years. Mad. Sq. Eats, appropriately taking place next to Madison Square Park (non-NYers - that's different from Madison Square Garden, very very different), brought together some great restaurants/food purveyors who set up stalls with food and drinks that you can either eat at one of the tables, at the park, or take home.

There were some purveyors I was really excited to see like Sigmund Pretzel Shop (I had a pretzel during the winter), Roberta's (it's all the way out in Brooklyn), People's Pops, Nunu's Chocolates and Stuffed Artisan Cannolis. Most of these places I'm either too lazy to go to (LES or Brooklyn) or are available only at food-oriented street fairs which I may miss.

I tried Calexico, which I think was one of the first "trendy" food trucks/carts, about three years ago. I didn't think much of it then. This time was much better. I got a pollo verde taco, which came with two tasty corn tortillas and moist chicken. Unfortunately, the overall flavor was nothing mind-blowing. Their chipotle pork quesadilla on the other hand was ridiculously good (although they could tone down on the cheese). The "wrapped" quesadilla was gooey and salty from the cheese, sweet and moist from the chipotle pulled pork and warm and crunchy from the griddle.

Other tasty bites were the hot dogs from AsiaDog, which have asian-inspired toppings like kimchi and seaweed flakes, thai-style relish with cucumber, red onion, cilantro, peanurs and dish sauce, and a banh-mi style topping, among others. I'm a huge fan of theses. Not a fan of tons of toppings on burgers, but on hot dogs yes.

And also a pretty delicious fresh-made pie from the aforementioned Roberta's featuring speck, mushrooms and red onions.

The event is over, but it seems Calexico has stuck around for a while.