I wrote the original blog post “Mobile Cuisine -Food & Wine’s Best New Chef’s 2010” back in early August when Food & Wine Magazine awarded their Best New Chef’s 2010 award to mobile food genius Roi Choi of Kogi BBQ in Los Angeles (see below) and wanted to update the blog post, as I’ve been doing some research on the current top food trends and No. 01 according to the Houston Press is Meals on Wheels – So the mobile food movement is not going away anytime soon.  A great location & multiple locations are key, as is a fabulous inventive menu, as well as to be able to harness social media in marketing your brand & publicizing your location(s) to customers.  And on the Austin front we have some new mobile food vendors that deserve some attention:

–The Flying Carpet: Serving up delicious organic Moroccan dishes that leave you wanting more!

–The Peached Tortilla: A mix of Southern tradition and Asian influences there taco’s are a delight in the mouth.

–G’Raj Mahal: Hidden back by Clive Bar & Luster Pearl G’Raj Mahal is run by a husband/wife team that serves up some of the best Indian food in town.  My personal suggestion is two dishes: chicken tikka masala and the korma lamb.

–Max’s Parfait: Texas Burgers made on a wood fired grill with a sustainable belief in providing organic & locally sourced products.

– Conscious Cravings: The newest vegetarian food truck on the scene serving up wraps & smoothies.

And with the upcoming November 6th  Gypsy Picnic Trailer Food Festival, a one-day event at Auditorium Shores for your tasting pleasure, Austin will be exposed to a plethora of food trailer in one location!  The event is being sponsored & produced by C3 Presents and Trailer Food Diaries.  Word on the street is one of the judges is Austin’s own Tasty Touring!

Looking for a trailer and cannot find their location?  Two great websites here in Austin have wrangled the food trailer scene just for you dining pleasure:

– Food Trailers Austin

You can also follow Food Trailers Austin on Twitter @FoodTrailersATX

– Austin Food Carts

You can also follow Austin Food Carts on Twitter @austinfoodcarts

On the gluten-free front, many of these trailers have gluten-free options.  Just double-check with the trailer before you place your order.

So as I stated in my original blog post – “It is a revolution, so be a part of the food movement and enjoy some amazing cuisine along the way!”

Original Blog Post: “Mobile Cuisine -Food & Wine’s Best New Chef’s 2010” – August 17, 2010 (Post written for TheLunchDeal.com)

Clearly mobile cuisine has made it to the big time!  Food & Wine has published their “Best New Chef’s -2010” list and Chef Roy Choi of Kogi BBQ in Los Angeles has made the list, solidifying it’s just not a roach coach anymore, nor is it just street food!  Amazing cuisine is being fashioned by top-notch chefs across the country; it is a culinary revolution that is not simply changing the food culture landscape, it is helping to define it across the country.

Having relocated from San Francisco and also having lived in Los Angeles, I was very familiar with mobile food carts/trucks.  San Francisco has a television show called “Check Please!“, which featured different restaurants around town and shortly before I moved to Austin, they started featuring mobile food vendors.  I loved this show and learned about two of my favorite vendors in San Francisco who were set up in my neighborhood of SOMA- “Soul Cocina” and “El Tonayense”.  I would eat at El Tonayense 3-4 times a week, picking up a beef burrito with beans, rice, and this amazing sauce for $2.50  (I have no idea what was in the sauce & didn’t want to ask, as I was afraid I would recreate it at home) and the burrito was so big it could cover me for two meals!  From Soul Cocina, I ordered up anything with rice and noodles, as the Chef was from restaurant La Victoria located in the Mission District, so I always knew it would be amazingly delicious!

And just to further solidify mobile cuisine is helping to define the culinary landscape and not going away anytime soon, celebrated Chef  and writer Anthony Bourdain & the likes of the Food Network have caught on to the buzz.  In Bourdain’s “No Reservations” episode “Heartland“, Austin’s own Odd Duck, Gourdoughs, & East Side Kings were featured.  Bobby Flay visited Austin’s  Flip Happy Crepes for “Throwdown with Bobby Flay” & they had a second appearance on Food Network  when “Beau MacMillan, best known for his appearance on last fall¬â„¢s Worst Cooks in America, who named Flip Happy¬â„¢s Nutella Crepes with Strawberries & Bananas as The Best Thing I Ever Ate on the show¬â„¢s season 3 ¬Å“Sweet Tooth¬Â episode.”   Premiering on August 15th on the Food Network (Check your local listings) is rolling out “The Great Food Truck Race” hosted by Tyler Florence.  And to further spotlight some of Austin’s own mobile food trailers check out this great article/blog from Addie Broyles  “Relish Austin” on Austin360.com!

With the ability to reach multiple customers utilizing social media (Twitter & Facebook posts show locations daily), and providing creative culinary twists on your favorite classics,mobile cuisine is here to stay.  Here are five mobile food vendors in no particular order, put together from SF Weekly, that features the top rated/favorite mobile cuisine in the country:

1. The Flavour Spot (Portland, Ore.)
2. The Arepa Lady (New York City)
3. The Fojol Brothers of Merlindia (Washington, D.C.)
4. Skillet Street (Seattle, Wash.)
5. Kogi Korean BBQ to Go (Los Angeles, California)

Mobile cuisine has been elevated from just a your average burger or hot god.  Chef’s alike are creating one of a kind culinary masterpieces for customers to enjoy, be it just down the street from your office or in a collection of trailers in your city.  It is a revolution, so be a part of and enjoy some amazing cuisine along the way!