As I’ve just moved back to Vancouver after a seven-year absence, I missed the first year of the food trucks. I am embracing it whole-heartedly now though. I will be working my way through as many as possible.
What is a food truck, you may ask? Generally, it’s a mobile cafe with a menu that can be anything from tea, sandwiches and crisps to full-service operations with fish and chips, tacos or what-have-you. There used to be one around the corner from our old flat in east London, serving mainly cabbies and local dodgy characters (witnessed by the time we shared a toast of Jim Bean in styrofoam cups with a regular who had just gotten off his drink driving charge – trust me, you would have done it too had you been faced with a red-faced East End hard man looking to celebrate). Chips in paper and toasted cheese sandwiches, plus a cup of builders [tea] was his specialty.
The Vancover food truck scene is something else entirely.
Run by proper restaurant chefs generally and fuelled by love, Twitter mentions and gallons of coffee, this is proper food served by people looking to get closer to their customers. Yes, it costs more than the old-school greasy hot dog stand, but that’s because the food is that much better.
Case in point: Tacofino Cantina.
Parked back from the beach proper on a triangle of grass dotted with giant laughing sculptures, the Tacofino truck was without a queue when I showed up on a Sunday afternoon with my mum and my son. I chose two fish tacos and a pork gringas for $12.50. Approximately 5 minutes later I was handed a cardboard dish groaning under the weight of my food. I had felt slightly miffed at the price initially I admit, but not once I laid eyes on it. I doubt I could have eaten it by myself, as it was, my son Elliot and my mum split the gringas and I wolfed the two tacos. I shouldn’t have really… But I couldn’t stop myself, it was that good.
The tempura-battered fish was light and crisp, I admit I don’t know what the fish was, something white and gentle tasting. Piled into soft taco shells with a crunchy cabbage and fresh fresh pico de gallo, it was impossible to eat it cleanly. I gave up all dignity and let juices run down my wrist. The contrast between the crispy hot fish and the cold lime-spiked pico de gallo was moreish. Sitting on a log on the beach was the perfect place to eat it.
Incredibly, despite the stellar food mere steps away, the crap hot dog stand had a queue of ten people. What were they thinking?!
It does beg the question, if a food truck, with a kitchen smaller than most restaurant loos, can produce that kind of food, what is the excuse for mediocre dishes from your average brick and mortar place? None.
Follow Tacofino Cantina on twitter to find out where they are – @TacofinoCantina
Download the Streetfood Vancouver iPhone app to find out where all the food trucks are, and if they’re open, at any given time.
I’ve seen Tacofino featured on Eat Street – in fact, it was just repeated last night! The food looks delicious – too bad it’s on the other side of the country from me.