Follow your first mind

Greetings lunch friends. I'm back to my desk after visiting my local watering hole and I gotta say, I let myself down today. I invited a friend Devon to roll with me down to my usual spot to politely stalk trucks. I found out around 11am that the Grilled Cheese truck would be there so I was geeked about lunch since breakfast!  They were advertising their pastrami grilled cheese and you guys know pastrami is my favorite. So i hit Devon up (he's an editor down the hall) and told him we were leaving around 1p. Chris, my sick partner from yesterday, was back- feeling sub par but was hoping a grilled cheese would lift his spirits. And so, we left. We walked & talked and played catch up until we got to the spot.


There was a pepto pink colored truck just beyond the corner and it was those awesome burger babes! We walked past them down to the TLoft location and there was this marigold and orange truck with one of the longest lines I've seen just at the intersection and my mouth instantly became a swimming pool. Devon (the smart one) opted to head back for the burger babes while Chris and I stayed behind at this supposed 8th wonder; after all the grilled cheese truck is ranked number one on most lists.


I stood patiently behind almost a dozen people in line. I get to the front of the line finally feeling like the perfect customer- cash in hand, order ready, bread selection and substitutions rolled off my tongue like a rehearsed monologue. Then he says, "I just sold the last pastrami to the guy in front of you." WHAT??? I was livid. I'm not sure if I was more upset that I was one person away or because he rubbed it in and told me that. When I looked at the guy who just walked away from the window, I thought about tripping him, offering him double for his sandwich, or even waiting til they called his number and intercepting then running down the street with pastrami hanging from my lip. I digress.


After pulling myself together and wiping the tears from my eyes and taking off my boxing gloves, I ordered a Cheesy Mac and Rib. This sandwich has mac and cheese, bbq pork ribs and caramelized onions between grilled buttery white bread slices. To stay true to myself, I had to create something on my own. I also left with a grilled cheese on wheat with bacon, heirloom tomatoes, and basil. I rounded out this cheese fest with a side of mac and cheese and their signature pickles. 


Would you be disappointed if I told you that hands down, the best part of my meal was the damn pickles!? And not because the sandwiches were gross (only the mac and cheese on the side was gross!) These pickles are just that damn good. Imagine your favorite butter pickle but with jalapenos and onions in the same pickling solution. It made both sandwiches 20 times better than they were to start! These things are great and boy are they spicy. I couldn't resist eating a few on their own. After the Coke Zero put the fire out on my tongue I reached for a few more slices. I could eat these things all day.


The sandwiches you ask, they were pretty good. The mac and cheese was past al dente but I think they get away with it because it's between bread. The bbq pork rib actually tasted pretty good. It was tender and the sauce was okay too. The blend of the bbq sauce with the cheese and slight crunch of the toasts' edge made this baby really pop! Texturally, it works!  I must say they get an 'A' for creativity which is great. The Mac and rib sandwich was interesting. While I can't boast that it's the best thing I've ever tasted, or even the best grilled cheese I've ever had, it was something different and not too bad at all. 


The tomato, basil, bacon combo was stellar! I'm sure you think I should've added mozzarella instead of sharp cheddar but isn't that too much like right? The tomatoes stood their ground and didn't turn into a mushy mess. EVERYTHING is better with bacon and the basil made you forget you were eating pork surrounded by cheese. It was so bright and fresh and complemented the tomatoes perfectly. I'd say it was a winner. 


The mac and cheese, not so much. I'm just about ready to tell people to stop trying to make mac and cheese. It's not just pasta and cheese. There should be significant doses of love and care put into a good batch. Theirs was good enough to throw on a sandwich, but the side order I tried was inedible. The pasta was way overcooked. There were tons of bright specks of seasoning: red, green, black- indicating that perhaps paprika, pepper, and even some dried parsley may have been used. Too bad all I could taste was perhaps the plastic spoon that it was served from. I do not recommend the stand alone mac and cheese. 


Overall, by pure default, this is my truck of the day. But I'd like to just say that Devon wins the Frontier of the day Award because he followed his gut to the right damn truck- the burger babes! Those burgers are so awesome that I won't taint their image with this petty honorable mention. I will do things the right way, hunt them down, take plenty of pictures, and write about their glory one bite at at a time like they deserve. Sorry burger babes. I should've followed my first mind. 


Grilled cheese truck, you better take this award for Truck of the Day before I change my mind. Good'day.