(Facebook photo from Delectabowl)
The Detroit Free Press gives a shout out to five new food trucks in Metro Detroit that have surfaced this year.
Erin Podolsky, a freelancers, writes about Delectabowl, Katoi, Stockyard, Rogue Estate BBQ and Chicken Coupe.
Here's a sampling:
Delectabowl
The electric blue truck known as Delectabowl made its maiden voyage Aug. 13, and it's been a staple during the lunch rush at Campus Martius ever since. The concept is pretty simple: delicious food in bowls equals delectabowls. The execution is simple, too, though not in a bad way. The menu changes fairly frequently. The Comfort Bowl is a mess of pulled pork (or brisket, depending on the day) on a bed of moist, dark brown cornbread, topped with cranberry coleslaw, cheese and barbecue sauce on one of our visits. Other good options include the Fiesta Bowl, which features marinated grilled chicken, roasted corn, pico de gallo and green goddess dressing over a brown rice foundation.
Chicken Coupe
Chef Rodney Saleh started out working for Detroit food truck stalwarts Mac Shack and El Guapo before setting out on his own with the puntastic Chicken Coupe. It's housed in the original Mac Shack trailer (they've since upgraded), and the menu is small — just two entrées when we visited, the chicken and waffles combo and the Coupe Cone. Chicken and waffles is a simple dish that, when done right, just works, and Chicken Coupe's signature is a fine specimen. Panko-crusted white meat is goosed with Saleh's special spice blend, but he has a few tricks up his sleeve to get the end result of ultra-moist chicken despite the dangers of deep-frying — primarily the fact that he poaches it in butter before breading.
Danny Fenster recently wrote at our site about Katoi, which parks behind Two James Distillery on Michigan Avenue and serves its patrons:
Katoi
At Two James, customers order at a window near the building’s rear entrance and take a numbered card back to their tables. When the order is up, Katoi's food runners take the dishes from the truck to the patrons and retrieve the numbered card. In addition to the bar's regular seating, Katoi has two tables set up in back near the truck.
Curry with noodles and chicken from Katoi. (Photo by Danny Fenster)Owner Brad Greenhill gives traditional Thai street food a particularly Michigan spin. “We’re using Thai flavor profiles with what is seasonal here," he said. "Right now we’ve got corn, eggplant, tomatoes, grilled leeks—all of that is coming up fresh and we can get it locally. I wouldn't describe it as authentically Thai—it's Thai inspired."
An order came up, steaming from the ledge of the truck’s service window—a bowl of noodles in a rich red curry. The curry was spicy but not overpowering, balanced with coconut and fresh cilantro. Meat melted from the bone of curry-sunken drumstick of chicken.
Almost all of the vegetables used are sourced locally, from Keep Growing Detroit and Eastern Market vendors to neighborhood farms in the city. “Some of the herbs people don’t have the ability to grow locally yet,” said Greenhill, but “more and more of it we will eventually be able to get local.”
Prices range from around $5 to $15 per dish.
To read more about the others, click the link below.
