Zooming down Olympic Boulevard to 2500 Broadway. The navigation chants “Your destination is on the left in 50 feet.” Eyes peeled to the sidewalk. “You are here.”
The main objective of this journey is nowhere to be found. Throngs of people pour out of the office buildings to the left and right yet the destination is still missing. Suddenly there is an explosion a loud applause and the target has appeared. Individuals sprint from their office stoops with cash in hand running toward this towering truck.
What is it? Why is it here? Why does everyone form an orderly line outside of a silly truck? It is part of a new phenomenon that has taken California by storm: the Food Truck Phenomenon.
A food truck is a restaurant on wheels. They have a menu the facilities to create a multitude of delicious treats and often have a staff of four or five hard-working renaissance men and women. The truck will travel around frequently visiting office buildings and studios during peak lunch hours. There are no tables and no chairs and customers will often purchase their food and dine on park benches and grassy knolls outside the office.
How does one know where these meals on wheels will be parked? Each truck maintains Twitter and Facebook accounts and Web sites that announce their locations. Every Monday a new schedule is created and the trucks stop at multiple locations throughout the day. This allows them to take advantage of a larger clientele.
There are a plethora of trucks that fulfill every craving but the Kogi truck has revolutionized the dining industry. It is a Korean barbeque experience. Kogi is a concept that combines the ideology of Mexican food with the basic ingredients of a great Korean barbeque restaurant. With everything from their Black Jack Quesadilla which contains caramelized onions and spicy pork married with cheddar and jack cheese bathed in a salsa verde to the Korean short rib sliders the Kogi truck is pushing boundaries and gaining followers along the way.
As the food truck phenomenon continues to spread throughout the greater United States GQ Magazine went in search of the top ten food trucks across the country. Kogi was obviously a restaurant on their list. When Kogi first hit the road people would often wait hours for their delectable Korean goodies. Presently Kogi has four rarely neglected trucks that flood the California area in search of hungry dinners.
Kogi inspired the Nom Nom truck. This truck prides itself on serving banh mi (a type of Vietnamese sandwich) to the Los Angeles area. The Nom Nom truck was created by David Sakunas someone who was sick of driving through Los Angeles traffic to attain his favorite foods.
After visting a Kogi truck Sakunas realized what he would need to do. He recruited other graduates from UCLA and they set out to serve banh mi to West LA.
If Asian isn’t what you are craving there are a multitude of other cuisines on the road. Food trucks deliver four-star restaurants bakeries and ice cream parlors right to your door.
If you are in the mood for something on the sweeter side go in search of a dessert truck.
Two specific dolce trucks have recently received endless amounts of attention; the Coolhaus truck and the Sprinkles Mobile.
The Coolhaus truck is perfect for cooling down on a hot California day. The Coolhaus truck is an old postal van with chrome rims drawing in crowds with its all-natural handmade ice cream sandwiches. The sandwiches come in a variety of flavors and continue to attract customers with their all-natural concept. Even the wrapper is edible.
The second dessert truck contains a product that is a staple for any Los Angeles-based sweet tooth— Sprinkles Cupcakes. Sprinkles prides itself on starting the cupcake trend not only through the Los Angeles area but the world. As Sprinkles expanded they decided to create their very own Sprinkles Mobile. Often based at the University of Southern California this truck delivers freshly baked cupcakes to individuals throughout the area. Imagine the Sprinkles Mobile pulling up to Payson one evening. Wouldn’t that be divine?
One might not have enough time to check all the Facebooks and follow all the Twitters of these delectable eateries so findLAfoodtrucks.com makes it easy for the food-truck obsessed. They list all the posts and locations alphabetically and even supply common locations for the curious. The next time a craving begins to develop why not try a food truck instead of a restaurant? You won’t be disappointed!