Trucking Around: Vietnamese truck offers four options, achieves spicy simplicity

Food trucks are a vital part of the Los Angeles culinary scene, with many accumulating hordes of followers who aggressively pursue them around the city. The sheer magnitude of trucks can make dining choices difficult, but columnist Alisha Kapur has narrowed down 10 to try out and review. Join her as she goes across the city, experiencing everything from Korean barbecue tacos to gourmet ice cream, in an attempt to find the food trucks that are worth following.

I went out of my spice comfort zone this week with the Mandoline Grill truck.

Some of its entrees include sriracha oil and jalapenos. I usually run away from anything more spicy than black pepper, but I decided to test this menu anyway. Out of the four entree choices, I decided to try the Vietnamese Nachos and Bánh mì.

I got my food immediately and brought it over to a picnic table with my friends. We dug into the nachos, which smelled delicious, despite the unusual stench, reminiscent of gasoline and old food, that surrounded the truck itself. I asked for pork on both the nachos and Bánh mì, but the truck also has chicken and tofu options. However, vegan options cost more than meat.

I paid $8 for the nachos, and the dish was huge. Crispy, flavorful chips stood up under tender strips of pork, fresh greens and a mix of scallion and sriracha oils. At first I thought the meat tasted too sweet, but after a few bites, I changed my mind, deciding the sweetness mixed well with the other ingredients.

We polished off the food in five minutes, but I would probably not order this entree again. It was nice to share it with a group, but I do not think I could eat a whole one by myself. The taste became monotonous after a while. I would rather eat the meat in something else, like the Bánh mì, which I enjoyed much more.

The Bánh mì, a foot-long French baguette with meat, cucumbers, pickled carrots, pickled daikon, cilantro, jalapenos, mayonnaise and scallion oil, tasted amazing. Its quality lay in its simplicity; no ingredient overpowered any other one. Although the Bánh mì had more of a bite than the nachos, I was able to finish it easily because its spicy qualities did not linger for too long on my tongue.

Although the sandwich was huge, I ate most of it in one sitting. The baguette was perfectly crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside, and the mayonnaise gave each bite a pleasant, buttery taste. I could easily carry and eat the Bánh mì, and portability is always a plus when I’m on the run. The sandwich even tasted good when I took it out of my fridge later that day.

The Mandoline Grill truck provides an authentic introduction into Vietnamese cuisine. What it lacks in options, the truck makes up for in taste – selling high quality, simple food. If I can eat the spices without a cup of water, I’m sure that anyone else can brave the sriracha and jalapenos to enjoy the truck’s delicious chow.

Do you know any food trucks in Los Angeles worth sampling? Email Kapur at [email protected].