Food trucks: still worth it?

Whenever we come to Austin, we never fail to stop and eat at  food trucks. If you didn’t know it yet, Austin is the food truck capital of Texas, if not in the nation. I was excited to try Kyoten, the sushi food truck after reading  about it on Eater (22 Hottest Food Trucks Across the US Right Now). “Kyoten is commanding great attention in Austin’s trailer dining scene. Chefs Otto Phan and Leo Rodriguez have trained in kitchens such as Masa, Nobu, Uchi, and more and are offering sushi and rice bowls from their East 6th Street trailer”.

We were quite impressed with its location —it had its own lot unlike other trucks where they are all nestled together in one area. We ordered a few sushi rolls and I noticed the sign, “no soy sauce please”. I asked why. He said they have a certain culture that do not believe in soy sauce. I lived in Japan for 6 years and I know for a fact that it is almost a taboo to drown your sushi in soy sauce (the rice must never touch the soy sauce and the fish is dipped in it very lightly). But the difference is the fish in Japan is melt-in-your-mouth fresh that you really didn’t need soy sauce to enjoy it.

We ordered three items in the menu:
*California- real red crab, avocado, cucumber
*Masu-zushi (boxed style sushi)- ocean trout, citrus, herbs, red onion
*Spicy, Creamy, Crunchy- tuna, avocado, cucumber, serrano
Total price: $28 plus $3 tip= $31

The verdict: I really wanted to like the sushi (honestly) but  none of the rolls stood out. We went out of our way to find the trailer, in spite of the violent rain we encountered in the city that day. Unfortunately, I didn’t have that ‘wow I can’t live without these sushi’ moment. But perhaps if I drowned them in soy sauce, it would’ve been more enjoyable!

 

Next to their lot was Patakon, a Colombian food truck. I was even more excited to try this trailer because I have many Colombian friends. Plus how often would you find a Colombian food truck? In Dallas, never!  None of the items we wanted in their menu were available (arepa and empanadas). So we got the chicken combination (with rice and fried plantains). It seemed they were the only things in the menu that wereready to be served.  Price: $9

The verdict: with the one piece of chicken thigh, two small plantains, and most of the  rice was submerged in the chicken’s grease, I didn’t find this food as enjoyable as I thought I would. I wanted to brag to my Colombian friends that I found this truck but…

My opinion: I honestly don’t think eating at a food truck is as pleasurable as it used to be. Perhaps my excitement over this trend is fading. Eating outdoors in a piercing hot summer day in Texas is not pleasant at all. The prices do not make up for this inconvenience as well. They cost just as much as eating in a restaurant (or in fact you may pay even more). In addition, there are no bugs or flies when inside a restaurant. And the heat won’t bother your zen either.

What do you think?