Del Popolo Pizza Truck - San Francisco

Del Popolo
Currently at Mint Plaza, SF
(415) 967-1853

Rated: ♣♣♣♣♣

Sigh, I feel awful for leaving The Culture Bite for 2 months. I caught a case of the lazies and I couldn’t get myself motivated to write anymore reviews… until yesterday. It’s not surprising that pizza is what drew me back!

A coworker, and fellow food lover, suggested we take a trip out to the Mint Plaza to try this brand new Napoletana-style pizza truck by a former Flour + Water chef, Jon Darsky. Holy smokes, this truck is impressive. Darsky shelled out $180 THOUSAND to build his new restaurant-on-wheels in a shipping container complete with a wood-burning oven that can reach up to 800-degrees and pop out 72 pies per hour. Do you see how insanely large this truck is compared to its patrons?

For $10 each, Del Popolo offers 2 different kinds of pizzas - a classic margherita and a white pizza. I opted for the margherita since it’s usually my benchmark for comparing authentic Napoletana-style pizzas. In less than 5 minutes, I had a piping hot, freshly baked pizza in my hands. We ate in the plaza because I couldn’t bear to trek 15 minutes back to work without a taste of this cheesy-tomato pie. As I pulled apart my first slice, I immediately felt the soft pillowy crust between my fingers. I thought that since the pizza was scorched in a 800-degree oven, the pizza would be crusty. Fooled I was! I took my first bite and immediately went into pizza heaven. The crust was soft, chewy and salty. The mozzarella was perfectly gooey and the sauce had the right amount of tanginess.

I would say their margherita pizza is on par with my favorite Tony’s Pizza Napoletana in North Beach. But instead of waiting 2 hours for a table at Tony’s, I could come early to Del Popolo, the pizza big-rig, and get a pizza in less than 5 min!

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Brass Knuckle Truck - San Francisco

Rated: ♣♣

As you might have learned from here, here, here and here, I have an obsession with fried chicken. Any time there is fried chicken on the menu, it’s mine. It’s a very bad addiction, and I swear I’ll get help next week.

But first, let me review the fried chicken sandwich from the Brass Knuckle food truck. Now, I would say I’m rather an expert at fried chicken sandwiches (cocky much?) from experiences at such places like Bakesale Betty, 4505 Meats and the BBQ line at Town Hall (during past summers). I’ve heard some talk about Brass Knuckle after the Eat Real Fest in Jack London Square this year and I knew I had to try. I’m not sure I’m thrilled about having the Truck Stop (alley on Mission between Fremont and 1st) only a few blocks away from me because it’s almost too easy to get delicious and unhealthy foods from the hottest food trucks.

So, when I learned that Brass Knuckle would be at the Truck Stop, I rallied up my team and we each ordered the Fryin’ Maiden, a buttermilk fried chicken sandwich with a jalapeno slaw. Oh before I forget, their entire menu is “rock star” themed. At first bite, I was a little disappointed. The chicken was juicy, but flavorless. It could’ve also used some extra slaw, though that didn’t taste like anything either. It was basically flavorless shredded cabbage with chunks of non-spicy jalapenos. Bakesale Betty’s still has the number one fried chicken sandwich in my book.

The sandwich came with a complimentary bag of french fries. This, I loved. Though, I’m pretty sure these were frozen french fries. They tasted like the generously salted golden fries at McD’s. Who doesn’t love that?

Overall, a disappointing meal. I wouldn’t order the Fryin Maiden again, but I’m interested in trying the Notorious PIG. That’s a pulled pork, bbq sauce, waffle sandwich!

Brass Knuckle Food Truck

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Bacon Bacon Truck - San Francisco

Rated: ♣♣♣

I’m about to share with you something so disgustingly delicious, my heart is still hating me for the torture I put it through.

My coworkers and I trekked over to The Truck Stop (in an alley on Mission St. between Fremont and First) to try the newly popular Bacon Bacon truck. Apparently everyone else in the Financial District had the same idea because at about 11:45, there was already an hour wait in line! If you plan to try Bacon Bacon, I encourage you to get there when it opens to cut the wait time. They also run out of food as the day goes on, so the earlier the better.

Once I ordered, I had to wait another 30 minutes before I got my food. These guys seriously need an actual store front to handle the traffic. I ordered the Belly sandwich and a piece of chocolate covered bacon for dessert. The sandwich is a slab of crispy pork belly, a fried egg, arugula and caper aioli on a brioche bun. I feel like they only threw arugula in there to taunt me for eating a sandwich that’s 90% pure fat. Like, “Hey, you’re about to eat a 3,000 calorie sandwich, but it’s okay because there are some greens in it.” When I took my first bite into the sandwich, the yolk immediately popped and ran down my hand. The croissant-like roll paired with the crispy and juicy chunks of pork belly was like an explosion of amazingness in my mouth. I’m glad I savored every bite because there’s no way I can put my body through this again.

The chocolate covered bacon was interesting. They took a very thick slice of bacon, toasted it up and coated it in chocolate and toffee bits. Who knew chocolate and bacon made for a tasty combination?

I was also able to try some of the bacon bouquet (yes, it’s a bouquet of bacon) and the spicy belly fries. The bacon itself has got to be the best bacon I’ve ever had. So thick and crispy with the right amount of saltiness. It also appeared to be deep fried. The spicy belly fries packed a lot of heat, but I didn’t care for them all too much. They were topped with loose shredded pork (which tasted like Hawaiian kalua pork) that seemed separated from the fries. Like, you couldn’t eat the fries and toppings in one bite. you’d have to eat the plain fries first, then the shredded pork.

I’ll admit that the Belly sandwich is one of my top ranked sandwiches next to Roli Roti’s porchetta sandwich. But because of the fat content, I don’t think I’ll be coming back here again. It just doesn’t seem worth it with the wait time. I guess it’s one of those places you have to try once.

Bacon Bacon truck
LocationL varies

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It’s time for the La Cocina SF Street Food Fest again - Aug 20

I’m so excited the La Cocina SF Street Food Fest is back again!

This annual food festival features popular restaurants and food trucks in SF in street food form. Looks like they have some repeat offenders like Three Twins, 4505 Meats, Beretta and Hapa SF. The one cart I’m really excited to try is the Nom Nom Truck. If you watched The Great Food Truck Race on Food Network, you’ll recognize this Vietnamese sandwich truck as the runner up. Get your tickets now!

Day: Saturday, Aug 20
Time: 11am-7pm
Price: $25-$100
Location:
La Cocina
2948 Folsom
San Francisco, CA CA

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Bay Area Food Truck Hit List

A ton of new food trucks have been hitting the streets in the Bay Area recently and it’s so hard to keep track! So, here’s my hit list. Make sure you follow these guys on Twitter to find out which location they’ll be at.

Note: These are the places I haven’t tried yet, not food trucks that are brand spankin’ new. Comment if I’ve left anything off.

Curry Up Now

Indian street food on a mobile truck. Choose from a selection of curries to be rolled up into a Kathi roll (think burrito with roti). By the looks of their blog, looks like menu changes often.
Twitter: @CurryUpNow

Kung Fu Tacos
East meets West taco style. Items on the menu include Duck tacos with mango and Sriracha sauce or Mu Shu Veggie tacos.
Twitter: @kungfutacos


Sam’s Chowdermobile
The famous Sam’s Chowder House in Half Moon Bay goes mobile! Fresh clam chowder and lobster rolls. That’s all I have to say…
Twitter: @chowdermobile

Waffle Mania Truck
Warm, crispy, chewy Belgian waffles topped with powder sugar. Thinking about playing hookie from work just to try this place. Just kidding!
Sorry no Twitter guys! They hang out at the Civic Center on Wednesdays, 8am-2pm

Hapa Ramen
I missed the preview at the Coffee Bar on May 8th, so I’m waiting for this one to hit the stands at the Ferry Building. Hopefully I don’t have to wait too long!

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