Road food

The current food truck boom has its roots in the Great Recession of the past few years. Far cheaper than opening a brick and mortar restaurant, gourmet comestibles have supplanted the “roach coach” reputation and humble roots of your father’s lunch shack, and Reno has some of the best. Here’s a few you can find operating in a parking lot near you.

GourMelt’s signature gooey, crispy delicious sandwiches ($5.50-$8.75) range from the simplicity of the “Grade Schooler”—American cheese grilled on white bread, crusts on or off—to the “Bumble Brie” (sliced green apples, ham, honey and melted brie on cinnamon apple bread). Of course, I just couldn’t refuse the “Italian” (mozzarella, Italian sausage, grilled onions, roasted red peppers, and grilled mushrooms on sourdough with a garlic Parmesan crust) paired with exceptionally yummy garlic fries and basil aioli. Named Reno’s “Best Food Truck” for three years running, and with a new brunch restaurant opening in Midtown later this year, these hard-working queens of toasted cheese definitely know their way around a grill.

The food truck version of the Burger Me restaurants in northwest Reno and Truckee, California serves a simplified menu featuring the all-natural and locally-sourced ingredients the parent company is known for. My wife ordered the gyro burger ($10), consisting of a one-third-pound lamb patty topped with mixed greens, feta cheese and tzatziki sauce all on a white or wheat bun (she chose white). A side of sweet potato fries completed the meal, which was pretty darn tasty. I’m not a huge fan of sweet potato anything, but as non-potato fries go these were pretty good. The sandwich itself was very flavorful, and my wife said it was very satisfying. I barely got a bite before the rest disappeared.

Operated by the organizers of the South Reno Food Truck Fest, the Battle Born Food Truck has been serving up “Nevada Style” tri-tip sandwiches, Sloppy Joes, chili and grilled chicken for about three years. For large events they haul along a trailer-sized, wood-fired grill to keep up with demand, and for good reason. I ordered the “Half & Half & Half” ($11) which is two halves of your choice of tri-tip, Sloppy Joe or chicken sandwich, plus a half order of fries. I ordered the tri-tip and sloppy joe. The tri-tip included mild jalapeno chilies, roasted garlic, lettuce, tomato, and garlic mayo, resulting in a pretty tasty combination. The Sloppy Joe turned out to actually be a tri-tip chili sandwich, including shredded cheddar cheese and chopped white onion, served on a hoagie roll. It wasn’t bad, but the other sandwich was better. The fries are made from hand peeled and sliced potatoes, fried “Basque-Style” with garlic and special seasonings. I believe every word of that description, because they were among the best fries I’ve had in recent memory.

Serving creative vegan and vegetarian creations, this cute little truck made my wife pretty happy. Though she’s a meat eater, she’s also watching her nutrition and calorie count, which makes a diet high in vegetables very attractive. There are those of us who are confused by cooking without animal products, and then there are those that are clearly practicing black magic in the guise of healthy cooking. How else to explain the super flavorful (and surprisingly satisfying) “Z Macro Bowl” ($7) my wife ordered, featuring brown rice cooked with coconut and turmeric, steamed greens, mushrooms? The potion that pulled this together was a knock-out lemon garlic tahini sauce slathered all over the dish, which even my steak-loving self had to admit was beyond delicious. If they all cook like that, vegans may indeed take over the world. Or at least your lunch hour.

There are grits (polenta), and then there are mogrits. The difference? Mogrits have mo’ going on, such as the jalapeno jack polenta grits I sampled ($3). Other varieties are available, such as mushroom cheddar, spinach mozzarella, and so on. I’ve never loved grits (a corn porridge made from hominy), but in the hands of this food truck family I could easily change my mind. They serve burgers, but I ordered a teriyaki chicken wrap (with mayo, lettuce and tomato, $5.95) to take with me for a hungry friend. He said the chicken was really juicy and tasty and he wished he’d asked for two wraps. Apparently known for their desserts, I ordered the day’s special, an enormous slice of creamy-yet-not-gooey cheesecake finished with a tartly-sweet topping homemade with Montana huckleberries ($6). My wife tossed her diet plan right out the door for this slice of heaven, though she did share it with me and our dining companions.

There’s an old joke that goes like this: A zen buddhist walks up to a hot dog cart, looks peacefully at the vendor and says, “Make me one with everything.” It’s OK, the owner of the Hot Dog Rod didn’t laugh, either. Easily the most eye-catching food operation at any gathering, this hot dog cart was custom-built over a two-year period by the same man wearing a white chef’s jacket as he grilled my foot-long and covered it in grilled bacon, onion, jalapeno, bell pepper, topped with fresh pico de gallo ($4.50). Yes, I said grilled. Unlike traditional hot dogs carts that use a kettle of hot water for the dogs and a steamer for the buns, this hot rod has a flat-top grill, and the man knows how to use it. He offers items other than dogs depending on the day, including carne asada tacos and cheeseburgers with grilled pineapple and bacon. I don’t often eat hot dogs these days (or other heavily-processed meats), but I’ll make an exception any time I see this cart.

In business for about eight months, this truck is on a roll. OK, enough with the bad jokes. The sign says, “Eggrolls with a Twist!”, and they’re not kidding around. My Reuben egg roll (fresh corned beef, Swiss cheese, fresh sauerkraut, homemade Thousand Island dressing, choice of salad or fries, $8.50) was really tasty, although I didn’t care for the dressing included as a dip. Not a problem, as my wife stole the dip for her fries, and I was happy using the black garlic aioli provided with both the roll and truffle fries. The fries were skinny with a soft rather than crispy texture, but the flavors of potato, salt, and truffle oil were fine with or without the aioli. My friend ordered the “Full Monte Cristo,” being a fan of the classic fried sandwich of turkey, ham and Swiss. The roll was served in the traditional manner, sprinkled with powdered sugar and served with homemade strawberry preserves. I didn’t hear him complain, and it was gone before I could steal a bite.

Definitely not your run-of-the-mill ice cream truck, Lazy Sundae is a one-woman operation (with a little help from family) serving up hand-scooped strawberry, chocolate, caramel butter pecan, vanilla bean, and birthday cake ice cream for the past three years. Whether choosing a sundae ($4) or banana split ($6), you have your choice of homemade butterscotch, strawberry, and chocolate toppings. Gourmet ice cream sandwiches more your thing? Select a flavor of ice cream to place between your choice of homemade chocolate chip or peanut butter cookies and you’re all set ($3.75). Waffle cones ($2.50) and root beer floats ($3.50) are also available. My sundae and my wife’s sandwich were a perfect capper to our evening food truck event.