On Sunday the ever-popular Seoul on Wheels popped by the Surfriders Earth Day block party on Taraval Street and 46th Avenue... for me, this was the highlight of the street closure as there were very few vendors and attractions here. After starting a mid-afternoon snackfest, I snapped up some photos of the truck so you know what to look for...
Late lunch of the day: a Korrito, a burrito stuffed with kalbi, Korean-style BBQ'd short ribs, and rice. The combination is good, the flavors are exciting and there's plenty of beef. However, I prefer my kalbi to have a stronger garlicky taste from the marinade and a slightly charred quality from the charcoal grill... seeing as how it'd be a pretty bad idea to have a charcoal grill inside a vehicle, I let it slide and happily munched my Korrito. The honey citron drink in the back is quite good!
Today my baseball crew found Koja at the Truckstop. We were instantly taken with the promise of buns made of toasted rice and the fancy TVs showing off the menu. As you can read, Koja serves up dishes with Korean and Japanese flavors. I guess I ordered pretty much from the Korean side of the menu...
Today's gut-busting lunch was the Kamikaze combo with kimchi and more galbi! On the left is the truck's novel koja, a sandwich with toasted cauldron rice in place of bread or bun. The sandwich could've been hotter temperature-wise but the flavors were fantastic! The beef was bathed in a strong marinade and grilled over the fire... you could tell with the small blackened spots of goodness. I loved the flavors... the sesame oil, the crisp lettuce, the sour kimchi... this little koja sandwich was truly Korean.
On the right are some of the most delicious fries I have ever tasted! Cross-cut potatoes are loaded with tons of BBQ'd beef (bulgogi,) green onions, sweet and spicy chile sauce, and the most amazing shellfish-laden kimchi. Savory and spicy and sweet... these fries are divine... they bring back that magical aura of your very first meal from a food truck. They are that good.
So whose beef do I prefer to eat? Seoul on Wheels has a solid hot Korrito, a complete meal for $8 but the beef is not quite as flavorful as that of Koja. Koja's namesake sandwiches are perfect in terms of flavor but the handheld pockets of rice would benefit from a turn on the grill. Each koja looks small at just $5.50 - $6.50 each but they are very filling. The Kamikaze Combo is too much food for one person so if you can't find someone with which to share and you must choose, choose the Kamikaze fries. You'll never look at loaded fries the same way again.
So, despite the cool temperature of the food, I declare Koja the winner! Novel, flavorful, and downright tasty saves the day!
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