St. John's Fire - Hot and Crunchy Chicken Sandwich

Truck: St. John's Fire
Location: Menil Collection, 1501 W Alabama St
Date: September 19, 2013
Twitter: https://twitter.com/firetrucktx

Hot and Crunchy Chicken Sandwich - $8

A great big sandwich on ciabatta bread with pounded chicken breast fried extra crispy with a sesame seed crust. Combined with the sweet fig preserves the effect is like a chicken PuPu sandwich. Plenty of applewood smoked bacon adds to be the meat candy experience. Melted brie adds creaminess to the whole. The good ciabatta adds its great airy and chewy texture. Synopsis: A riot of textures for the carnivore with a sweet tooth.

Mr. Sizzles Curbside - The United We Sizzle

Truck: Mr. Sizzles Curbside

Location: Houston Food Park, 1504 St. Emmanuel, Houston TX

Date: September 18, 2013

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MrSizzlesCurb

Somehow I've never tried this truck. To tell the truth I didn't even recognize it. Waiting for my order I caught the enticing aroma of sizzling beef and lots of black pepper. Very promising!

The United We Sizzle - $10

Mr Sizzles specialty is their stuffed burgers on fresh high quality buns. This burger is stuffed with very thin crispy bacon and cheddar cheese in a huge burger. Top the burger with a fried egg, jalapenos, lettuce, tomatoes, red onions, mayo, and mustard. The very thin bacon gets you some bacon in every bite, the cheese in the burger keeps is moist and juicy. The yolk of the egg really adds a third sauce to this monster. The fresh roll and veggies tie it all together. Synopsis: Mr. Sizzles has great buns.

Bare Bowls Kitchen - Yucatan Bowl

Truck: Bare Bowls Kitchen

Location: University of Houston

Date: September 17, 2013

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BareBowls

Consistency is something that can be a very hard target for a food truck. Bare Bowls manages to put out consistently great food and do it with creativity on a theme. When I'm asked what are the best food trucks in Houston, Bare Bowls is always in the top of my list.

Yucatan Bowl - $9.25 Large

Banana leaf roasted pork, braised cabbage, fresh cilantro, queso fresco, and pickled onions over yellow rice. Where do I start? The pork was incredibly tender, like butter literally. I don't think I've had meat this tender that was not failing apart. It was also sweet and flavorful without being the least bit spicy. It's really a work of art in itself. The cabbage was great with a little vinegar tanginess. The cilantro and pickled onions give it some crunch and texture. Bare Bowls always has great rice. I like how it's firm and bit chewy still. Over the last 25 years I've spent months in the Yucatan and these favors are dead on. Synopsis: to use a soccer analogy for the Yucatan Bowl - goalllllllllll!

Pho-jita Fusion - Pad Thai and Thai-males

Truck: Pho-jita Fusion

Location: Boneyard, 8150 Washington, Houston TX 77007

Date: September 11, 2013

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Phojita1

Pad Thai - $9

A great version of the Thai classic. Pad Thai is a noodle dish made from rice noodles. Thai cooking is known for the balance of sour, sweet, salty, and bitter. Sour from the lime, sweet and bitter from the tamarind pulp, Salty from the fish sauce. Pho-jita nails it here. Lots of fresh bean spouts and green onions made this dish extra appealing. You have your choice of chicken or shrimp. I got shrimp and they were done just right and perfectly fresh. Synopsis: A great food truck version of classic Thai street food.

Thai-males - 2 for $8

This item on Pho-jita's menu has intrigued me every time I've looked at the menu. They are a version of Mexican tamales filled with Thai chicken basil.  I wasn't disappointed. The masa for the Thai-males was very light and pillowy soft. The chicken basil gives it some spice. The Thai mayo is a great sauce and the pico on the side was a perfect condiment. Synopsis: This is what Thai-Mexican fusion is all about.

The Waffle Bus - Fried Chicken and Waffle Sandwich with Waffle Fries

Truck: The Waffle Bus
Location: Houston Food Park, 1504 St. Emmanuel
Date: September 6, 2013
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheWaffleBus

Buttermilk Friend Chicken and Waffle Sandwich - $7

A great big boneless chicken breast, battered and fried extra crispy and tossed with your choice of sauces (Spicy Mayo, Ancho Chili Honey, Mustard, or Buffalo Ranch). I got the Ancho Chili Honey. The sauce is spicy, sweet, and sticky; well balanced. The extra crispy chicken holds up nicely to the sauce and stays crunchy. The waffles that make the sandwich are also extra crispy and hold up great too. This sauce must make some great chicken wings. Synopsis: Like that other chicken, finger lick'un good.

Waffle Fries - $2

A generous portion of large waffle cut fries, cooked just right in my opinion. dusted with a slightly spicy salt mix.

Tamalito's Cafe - Beef Tacos

Truck: Tamalito's Cafe
Location: Houston Food Park, 1504 St. Emmanuel
Date: September 6, 2013
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TamalitosCafe

Tamalito's is a mainstay of the Houston Food Park and I don't believe there is a better value in Houston food trucks. They just keep serving up classics, done well at great prices.

Beef Tacos - $2 each

A good size portion of Tamalito's great beef (see my review of 7/19/2013), cilantro, and onions. Your choice of flour or corn tortillas. Served with lime wedges and red or green sauce. You can't get much more traditional than these tacos. The beef is spiced a little and the red sauce has plenty of heat and some vinegar bit. I'll be honest, I didn't like the sauce on my first bite, but it grew quickly on me and by the last bite I was thinking it was the best part. Synopsis: Classic old school tacos at their best!

Third Coast - Bruised Peach and Diner Chips

Truck: Third Coast
Location: University of Houston
Date: September 5, 2013
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ThirdCoastHTX

Bruised Peach - $9.50
All of Third Coasts sandwiches basically start out as a classic Philadelphia Cheesesteak, then they get creative with them. The Bruised Peach has peach chutney, blue cheese, caramelized onions, and fresh basil. There is plenty of rib-eye done in classic cheesesteak style. The peach and onions are sweet, but the blue cheese acidity helps to cut that, still its a pretty sweet sandwich. The bread for the sandwich is very good, something I think is pretty hard to get right in Houston for this type of sandwich. This is as close to the bread in Philadelphia as I've found in Houston. Synopsis: A sweet and meaty sandwich with great bread.

Diner Chips - $6

Think nachos made with kettle chips. These are loaded with, well a classic diner breakfast. Hash browns, an egg, Cheddar cheese, lots of bacon, and maple aioli. The chips hold up really well under these toppings. I wasn't able to eat mine right away and they stayed crisp. The flavors work in these oddest of nachos I've ever tried. These chips are super rich with the egg, bacon, and aioli. Synopsis: It's like scooping up your breakfast with potato chips.