Last Saturday was the 1st Annual Long Beach Street Food Fest in Rainbow Harbor! Basically that meant some pretty awesome gourmet food trucks were all parked out in one place (check out all the trucks that were there) , and we got to spend the day walking around the park, hanging out with friends, lounging on the grass and sampling food after food … pretty much a perfect day in our opinion! Here’s a short clip we took from our shady spot in Rainbow Harbor:
It’s no secret that the gourmet food truck phenomenon has been growing strong over the last few years. Ed & I credit the original Kogi BBQ truck for all the hype (We chased them around L.A. one night – you have to get their location by following them on Twitter). Many, many chefs have followed in Kogi’s direction, and now there’s a truck for just about any food you can possibly think of.
1st Stop: Ahn Joo LA (A Korean Snack Bar)
Where do we begin with Ahn Joo? It was amazing – we ended up visiting this truck twice, and we decided it was our favorite truck of the food fest. If you watched the Food Network’s “Next Food Network Star”, you may remember Debbie, who was one of the contestants. This was her truck! She was known on the show for being Korean, but growing up in the South. Mixing up bold flavorful Korean flavors with Southern Comfort food is an absolute winner!
Left: This was my “KFC” – Korean Fried Chicken! Yep, juicy on the inside, crispy on the outside – and glazed with a sticky sweet garlic sauce. I want to eat this everyday! Right: Ed was loving his Mama Lee’s Meatloaf!
And these were the simple, yet perfect, showstoppers: The “Seoultown Spuds”. Potato Wedges with a spicy chili sauce & green onions! LOVED THESE!!!
We also sampled Bacon-Wrapped Rice Skewers and Kimchee Citrus Pork Skewers with Grilled Fuji Apple. We WILL be searching out Ahn Joo in the future!
2nd Stop: Buttermilk
Buttermilk was a fun truck! They kept it simple – and indulgent! – by offering three things on the menu: Glazed buttermilk doughnut holes, Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Pancake Bites and “The Brick”. The Brick consisted of hashbrowns and an over-Easy egg smothered in chorizo gravy, with a buttermilk biscuit right on top. Ed was all over it – and this was a big fave from the day as well.
3rd Stop: Border Grill
Ed & I were super excited about hitting the Border Grill truck. Border Grill is none other than Chef Susan Feniger, who is an inspiring and energetic chef who we especially loved watching on Top Chef Masters (you may also know her from The Two Hot Tamales?). Unfortunately – the food we got on the truck was just “meh.” We tried the Yucatan Pork Taco, the Crispy Baja Fish Taco, the Potato Rajas Taco, the Carne Asada taco and an order of Cumin Fries w/chipotle ketchup. Maybe it was the crowds (this truck had a HUGE line) or maybe something was off, but the food was kind of a disappointment. Oh well, we still love you Susan!
4th Stop: Great Balls on Tires
Okay – technically, this is just a 1/2 stop, because while we were in line at Border Grill, people kept walking away with food from this truck that looked AMAZING (like that cute little meatball slider you see on your right!) and we had to get in line. But, we were too late – by the time we got near the front, they were sold out of many items and all they had left were bigger plates (which we didn’t want to indulge in, because we had to pace ourselves – there was a lot of food to try!). But I definitely want to find these guys again soon … they have a really fun menu (“Ballafel”, anyone?), and we are intrigued!
5th Stop: COOLHAUS
I could not wait to check out COOLHAUS, where I’d saw online that they are known for their “architecturally inspired ice cream sandwiches”! (The truck itself also rules – notice the rims!)
They have unusual (and some classic) flavors like: blood orange, brown butter w/ candied bacon, chocolate chipotle, cinnamon, coffee toffee, dirty mint chip, meyer lemon, vanilla bean, lambrusco, baked apple, sea salt caramel, mascarpone balsamic fig, ed velvet, peanut butter, strawberry, carrot cake, pistachio w/ black truffles, and even foie gras! They come sandwiched in-between two yummy freshly baked cookies.
My pictures didn’t really turn out (this one comes from their website) – but they come as minis, which is optimal for trying multiple flavors/combinations! Unfortunately, by the time we hit COOLHAUS it was later in the day, and the infamous Brown Butter Ice Cream with Candied Bacon was sold out – as well as the Red Velvet! But my Minty Brownie sandwich was awesome. It’s gonna be a long hot summer, so I guarantee The Kims will be seen chasing this truck in the future as well.
And for some summery refreshment: Del’s Frozen Lemonade
There’s not much better on a hot summery day than a Frozen Lemonade. Del’s was a classic. You could also consider this a palate cleanser, no?
Overall – it was a great day in Long Beach. We can’t wait for next year! (Or maybe this weekend, we we just go search out all the trucks again on our own?)