Denton has been food truck-friendly for a few years now. Heck, we even have a food truck park nowadays. There are a dozen or so trucks that either are based out of Denton, or make it a point to stop by on a weekly basis. While we don't always get to see every single truck we'd like to, and we haven't seen a night as packed as that food truck festival at the DCTA station a few years ago, Denton still loves having the option around. Tonight, however, there are fourteen trucks visiting various parts of Oak and Austin St. near the square for the Austin St. Truck Stop Food Truck Fest and we're pretty pumped about it. Read on to find out what we're looking forward to eating this evening. Warning, we're going to be eating a lot so get ready now (maybe skip lunch, y'all).
First off, make sure to go inside Oak St. Drafthouse or East Side and grab yourself a beer or cocktail. Owner, John Williams operates both of 'em and Austin St. Truck Stop so support that dude every way you can.
Before we make our way to our recommendations, let's take a quick look at the full list of trucks that will be making an appearance this evening:
Easy Slider Truck
Yim Yam Truck
BellaTrino's Neapolitan Pizzeria & Cucina
Top Nosh Truck
The Pickled Carrot
The Waffle Wagon
Lean Machine
Coochie BBQ
Crêpetopia Denton
Kendricks BBQ and More
Down to Earth Vegetarian Food Truck
Vegan Noms
Say kimchi
Kona Ice
After you've enjoyed your beverage, make your way over to The Pickled Carrot and get a cucumber limeaid. In the summer days when it hits 100 degrees, those things are almost magical and gone in a second. Give 'em a wink and a nod and maybe you'll get a free refill, too. Read our interview with them from 2012 here.
Say Kimchi, our favorite Korean fusion food truck, is awesome. Their cupbob or bowlbob with Korean sauce and a fried egg is heavenly, but in this particular case, we're gonna suggest getting some kimchi fries. The first couple of bites (with a fork, mind you) of kimchi fries will have you making that noise where you try to say "mmm," but your mouth is full of hot deliciousness and it just sounds like you're breathing heavily. None of the other bites are quite as good as those first few (it can get soggy with the kimchi, the sriracha and everything), so eat it quickly.
Next up, stop by Easy Slider, one of the best food trucks in the metroplex. They are slider based, and most of them have some sort of a twist such as peanut butter. Every slider we've ever tried from them has been delicious, but nothing really beats the sweet and low down. It's a meaty slider with goat cheese, strawberry jam, and a strawberry on top for good measure. The sweetness of the strawberry, creaminess of the goat cheese, and meatiness of the burger all coalesce into one of the best things you'll eat all year. Seriously, why don't these guys come around more often? Maybe even make a Denton slider?
Full yet? You can make it.
Bellatrino's is worth a stop even if it is to just check out the awesomeness that is their truck. That said, their gourmet pizza is amazing. If you like your pizza old school and enjoy overly pronouncing "margherita," stop by and grab whatever has sausage from Jimmy's Foodstore in Dallas on it. If you're feeling full, maybe just stick with a caprese salad - we have more eating to do.
A few of the food trucks attending will be new to us. The two most interesting of the bunch are Yim Yam and Top Nosh. Yim Yam is Thai fusion and has a dish called porky pork and some "wing pops" with Thai pickles that sound amazing. Top Nosh is a little bit of everything and they look to do it right. The first three things on their menu are fried rabbit, fish and chips, and roasted bone marrow. So, maybe you just wanna stay there and work your way through the whole menu for the evening?
To finish up, make a stop at The Waffle Wagon (which is sadly up for sale on Craigslist at the moment) and grab a carby, chocolatey delicious piece of dough for yourself and loved ones. Waffles are love - especially when you put syrup or Nutella on 'em. Read our interview with them from last year here. If waffles aren't your thing, Crêpetopia Denton (which is often parked outside of Amitea on S. Locust) has some legitimately good crepes.
Of course, this is a food truck festival, so the normal rules apply. Check social media often. Most of the trucks have Twitter accounts, follow them to find out about special menu items and who is running behind. In fact, since it is a food truck festival, odds are someone will bail. That also means we might see appearances from trucks not currently on the schedule, too, though. Also, look out for rain... Denton and festivals have that specific combination that makes rain happen.
Whatever food you're interested in - whether it be our recommendations or not - make sure to stop by and give these truckers some of your hard-earned dollars so that we can hope to see them come back to Denton again sometime soon. What about y'all? Do you have any specific food truck recommendations? Let us know in the comments!
Austin St. Truck Stop is located at 208 N Austin St, Denton, TX 76201 beside East Side. The festival starts at 3pm, Thursday, April 9th. See ya tonight, everyone!