Cucina Zapata

Food Truck, University City
S. 31st & Ludlow St
Philadelphia, PA 19104
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There has been a lot of hype surrounding this truck, and after I heard that it was Asian/Mexican fusion, I figured it was worth a try. Oh, and they have a Cap'n Crunch crusted tilapia burrito for $6.

The line is longer than every other truck on Drexel's food truck row. Of course every other truck only offers regular Chinese food, cheesesteaks, hoagies, or all of the above.

When I was looking at the menu, I just couldn't figure out what to get. So I went kind of nuts.

I started with a chicken satay taco (top) and a short rib taco (bottom).

Both had an amazing amount of components for the price tag. The avocado was fresh and plentiful, the slaw crisp, and the Sriacha sour cream on the satay was absolutely delicious. The green chili sauce on the short ribs was also a winner. Of the two, however, I think I liked the satay just a bit better. The rich marinade cut through the rest of the ingredients, and was about perfect. The short rib itself was just a bit chewy, which was one of my few complaints.

The Cap'n Crunch crusted fish burrito was the best value of the meal. It was quite hefty, certainly a steal at six bucks, and made with the same love as the tacos, and although it had many of the same components, it tasted totally different. Crunchy, slightly sweet breading, with flaky fish inside. The spicy sauce mixed perfectly with the slaw, diced tomatoes, and avocado slices. I was probably most impressed with this offering, overall.

The chicken Katsu, which is a traditional Japanese dish, for anyone who is going to dispute my saying this truck is Thai/Mexican fusion, was also pretty good. An extremely crispy, thin flat cutlet of chicken, served over a bed of slaw, with a fried egg, rice, and Sriracha drizzle. My only complaints were that the egg yolk could have been just a bit more runny, and this dish could use a side of one of their amazing sauces. I ate a lot of plain white rice that was hiding under the egg, and needed something to jazz it up a bit. I am sure the owner, who was ridiculously accommodating, polite, and funny, would be more than happy to fulfill my diva-like requests for extra sauces in the future.

This is now one of my favorite trucks in the city. If you liked how good Tyson Bee's USED to be, you will LOVE Cucina Zapata. Get the fish, get a Thai tea, hell, you can't really go wrong. Just get something.

Spot Burger

33rd and Arch
Philadelphia, Pa

Well it's kind of unfair to follow the Shake Shack post with another burger post. But, I have been hearing lots about Spot Burger, a unique cart that boasts burgers with freshly butchered and ground sirloin beef. Although it's usually at 33rd and Arch Monday thru Friday, they travel for special events.

It's a two person operation, with one guy in the kitchen and one working the "front of the house" and taking orders and money.

Everything is made fresh, from slicing avocado off of the pit, to par-frying their fries, and then finishing them when ordered, to order.

I went with a Spot Burger, a Santa Fe burger, and an order of cheese fries. As they were at a "special event" I guess they jacked their prices. Which is kind of understandable, and also kind of bullshit. I mean, the 'event' was the Frankford Hall Beer Week closing festival, and they happened to be about a block north of the gate. See here for the regular menu prices. I paid $8 per burger, and $4 for cheese fries. Which is pricy for a food truck, in my opinion.

See below for the Spot Burger. Now, I am not sure if the lines got crossed or what, but the Santa Fe was advertised as coming with Tapatio hot sauce, while the Spot Burger was supposed to come with Spot sauce. Unless Spot Sauce is also Tapatio, I am pretty sure I got Tapatio on both.

Anyway, the Spot Burger came with bacon, cheddar, dill pickle chips, coleslaw, and Spot Sauce. It was cooked to medium, which was fine (though ordered medium rare), but the issue was that the bacon and cheddar pulled a disappearing act. I had no idea they were even on there, as the main events were hot sauce, pickle, and slaw.

When the burger was almost gone, a piece of bacon fell out. It tasted just fine, but was non-existent in the main event.

Next up was the Santa Fe burger. This variation boasted lettuce, onion, avocado, sun-dried tomato, jalapeno, my old friend Tapatio, and pepper jack cheese. Again, for $6 this would not have been a bad burger, but $8 was pushing it.

This burger was much more enjoyable than the first. Although the bread was too big, the ingredients came together nicely. Of course, I am a sucker for Tex-Mex, so it's no surprise.

The cheese fries were freshly fried and had a great clean-fry flavor. I would have prefered them to be crispy, but they were still pretty tasty. Not to mention they were served with these awesome wooden toothpick/fork hybrids that brought me back to the chip wagons of my youth (I also noted the use of same said stick in Shake Shack's cheese fries).

The guys who run this truck are really great. They have a commitment to freshness, and quality. I need to try this place again on a regular weekday when they have their normal menu and are putting out their best work. There is a lot of potential here, it's just too bad their Fishtown mark-ups really threw me for a loop.

Tyson Bee's, continued

33rd and Spruce
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Website

After my last love fest with Tyson Bee's, I knew I needed to head back for some more of their delicious fusion goodness. This time I wanted to try some of the things I missed the last time around (even I can only eat so much).

The kimchi and cheese quesadilla was better than it sounds. No offense, but IN GENERAL, cheese and fermented vegetables are not a go-to combo in my book. Obviously, Tyson Bee's is the exception to the rule, and this thing was delicious. The tortilla was perfectly browned, the cheese deliciously melted, and the kimchi added a tart, pungent slap that sets it apart from it's south of the border brethren. The spicy aioli really tied the dish together. No surprise here, Tyson's food is decidedly toothsome.

The pork belly bun...another winner. This one is a no-brainer. Although it's not as adventurous as some of the other offerings, it's comforting, pure and simple. The sweet and tangy hoisin style sauce was a perfect match for the tender, fatty, slightly crispy chunks of pork. Again, simple and perfect.

Last, I had to try one of the hot dogs (!?!) offered on this Asian/Mexican inspired menu. The "O.G." dog boasts an all beef frank, topped with Korean BBQ short rib beef, topped with kimchi. A lot going on, to say the least. The BBQ beef was tasty, and almost absurdly rich. The kimchi added some crunch and once again, that interesting tang of fermented vegetables. Some thinly sliced radish kind of fell by the wayside. This was a good hot dog, but needed a couple of tweaks. The dog itself could use a brief stint on the grill, to crisp it up a bit, as it was slightly lost in the fatty BBQ beef topping. And much like the Banh Mi, it needs a crispy roll, such as those found at Cafe Nhu Y. Tyson Bee's is still the jam, and I have high hopes it will continue to serve up interesting, delicious, relatively cheap eats.