Food Truck Friday - Taco Time Traveler

For this week, I'm showcasing a truck that some might disparage as a corporate attempt to hone in on a grassroots movement, but being a Seattle-area native, I consider to be NW comfort food: Taco Time Traveler.

Two of the victims of the Capitol Hill condo-fication were the Taco Time on 15th Madison and the Taco Bell on Broadway. When I lived on 'the hill', I was a regular at both. Usually Taco Time during daylight hours (or a quick bite before going out on the town), while Taco Bell was my 2am, drunken indulgence. When Dan & I moved to South Seattle, one of the perks is that we have a Taco Time and not one but two Taco Bells in our area. I even brought Taco Bell to our friend Craig on his last birthday, as we were often together on those drunken visits to the Broadway TB. And both bring up childhood memories of getting the treat of having fast-food for dinner, and high school years spent at Taco Bell.

Given my love of both, I was super excited to see the Taco Time Traveler parking regularly in the SLU neighborhood. They have a very limited menu of crisp & soft tacos, crisp burritos, and tostada salads, plus Mexi-fries (Regular and Sweet Potato). My real weakness on the menu is the crisp burritos, but couldn't justify the calories, so I went for the classic Chicken Soft Taco ($5.50 with tax). I could tell you how it was, but if you've ever had one, you already know. Just like their brick & mortar restaurants, the food was consistently produced using fresh ingredients, and was just what I expected. The service was also really friendly - coming out of the truck to greet me and take my order, and with a table set up with hot sauce, napkins, etc.

On my second visit, I went for the Bean Tostada Salad ($7 with tax). I'm not sure I've ever ordered one at their restaurants, so wasn't sure what to expect. It apparently normally comes with Ranch Dressing, but I was given the option of hot sauce instead. It was a little sad for the price - a flour tortilla bowl with beans, shredded lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, black olives and hot sauce. I didn't intend to eat the fried bowl, but couldn't resist a few bites... which turned into half the bowl. Oh well. It's a salad, so it's healthy, right?

Say what you want about Taco Bell, but don't you dare disparage my Taco Time.  They're a local, Seattle-born company celebrating 52 years since they opened their first store in White Center back in 1962. I'm happy to see they continue to evolve to match what customers want, and that I can get my fix here in SLU. It's worth noting that they give you enormous bags to carry your food away in, and as I carried the walking billboard into my building, it caught a lot of attention from folks excited about the prospect of Taco Time for lunch, too.

Food Truck Friday - Evolution Revolution

For this week's Food Truck Friday, I tried out the truck offering "New American Street Food" - Evolution Revolution.

My first visit was on a beautiful sunny spring day, and they were offering Mahi Mahi tacos, so I couldn't resist.  They were loaded with fish and bright flavors, though turned out to be a little messy.   The staff were super friendly, even saying hi to my dog, Hilo.  Later, Hilo did his best to spill my tacos, pulling me toward an adorable puppy he really wanted to sniff.

On my second visit, I tried out two menu items.  First, the Fried Brussels Sprouts ($5), which were golden brown and fragrant and tossed in a house made sambal chili and honey dressing.  Not too spicy hot, more sweet really, but wonderfully satisfying if you dig Brussels sprouts.

Since that wasn't exactly a full lunch, I also got the Thai tofu wrap ($8), which was packed with noodles, fried tofu, basil, tomatoes, and lots of peanut sauce.  It was pretty large (I really should've stopped at half), and my only complaint was the simple flour tortilla was a little gummy, as they tend to be .

The service in both visits was very friend and this time Hilo got a treat, too.  The food was yummy and I'll definitely head back soon.

Food Truck Friday - Now Make Me A Sandwich

This week, we finally feature a truck I see ALL the time - parked here in SLU, parked just off McLellan and Rainier in the evenings, and on the road between the two during my afternoon commute - the aggressively named, Viking emblazoned, Now Make Me A Sandwich.



On my first visit, I went for the Turkey Special ($9), which had sliced turkey with bacon, avocado, tomato, arugula and rosemary aioli. The bread was soft and a good ratio to the fillings, which were packed with flavor, particularly courtesy of the aioli and bacon. It was moderately messy, but held together to the last yummy bite. My only complaint was the amount of avocado, which was more along the lines of a smear of avocado than what I'd expected (sliced avocado).

I posed a question to the food truck email list at work and got a very strong recommendation for the ThanksGetting sandwich ($9).  It's essentially Thanksgiving all rolled into one easy to eat package, with bacon thrown in for good measure:  Sliced turkey, bacon, cranberry sauce, stuffing, gravy, and rosemary aioli on a grilled Telera roll.

I worried the stuffing would have celery chunks, or that the gravy would make it terribly messy, but neither was the case.  A couple bites in and I could see why my coworker gets this sandwich every time.  It's delicious and complex and moist and conjours good memories.  It turns out Thanksgiving in June is pretty great.  I'll absolutely be back for this one again.

Happy Hour at Shanik

I recently switched to a new company (within my previous company), which meant a change of building (three blocks away). It's surprising what a difference a few blocks makes to your perception of some things. I'm now just across the street from Shanik- the much anticipated Indian restaurant that got pretty mixed reviews out of the gate, so I'd shied away. I'm trying to be better about thinking of ideas for our weekly date night on Wednesdays, so thought it would be a good chance for my husband to see my new office space, meet some of my coworkers, and try out a restaurant we've both tentatively had on our wish list for a while now.

They're only open for happy hour in the bar before 5:30pm, so when we first walked in they didn't seem open yet. I thought maybe only the 'Market' portion of the establishment was open, but Dan assured me he saw it on their web site. While we were checking our phones, the hostess came up and let us know they were open, and escorted us to the bar. (Unlike the layout of many restaurants, the bar is tucked in the back, and a screen blocks your view from the entrance, so it looks like an empty restaurant with an open door.)

The bar itself is very modern in style, but with vibrant colors and floral patterns repeated in several places (laser cut steel tables, wall covering, and window decals). I liked the look, and was suprised how comfortable the low, natural wood stools are - even with my bad back.

Along with waters we were brought small happy hour menus, listing various food items, but only one cocktail - the Bollywood 411 - which I asked about and learned was essentially a mango mimosa ($5), so I went for it. Dan opted for some wine. Then we ordered a few things off the food menu.

First was the Spice Encrusted Lamb Popsicle (normally $9, $7.20 each during HH). We were warned it was the price for one, so we got one each. They were super tender, cooked perfectly with a little pink inside, and with nice grill char and spices, as well as nice sauces.

Our second item was the Lentil and Potato Pakoras with Date Chutney (normally $6, $4.80 HH). They came with a mango dipping sauce as well as a mint chutney, both of which lent a lot of flavor to the little fried bites.

We ordered the Marinated Paneer Kabob, but they were out, so instead we tried out the Spicy, Mini Indian Crepes (Pura) (normally $6, $4.80 HH). They were vibrantly yellow from turmeric, and also paired with the same sauces. They were rolled and sliced in such a way that we could eat them with our fingers - perfect for bar food, I thought.

The lamb was hands-down my favorite of the three items we tried, and enough to entice us back to try more. The service was attentive without being invasive, and the space was very clean and comfortable. I'm eager to check out the entire menu, and maybe see a full drink menu. I always think not having a full drink menu on hand is a lost opportunity, but maybe I've been binge watching 'Bar Rescue' too much.