Tako Truk

Guest reviewer today is Org the Caveman

"Umm.  Me LIKE Tako Truk.  They make Tako with fire.  Me like fire.

Me want to eat more, but me only have five dollars.  Me happy $5 get Org three Tako's.  Me eat with woman.  Woman love Tako.  Woman like Octopus made with onions and fire.  Me like fire.

Me recommend to friends, Ook and Tegrob.  Ook and Tegrob also like fire.  Ook get spicy beef taco.  Ook happy not to have to hunt beef.  But Ook not like spicy.  Ook worry about digestion.  Tegrob like spicy like fire, and eat 10 Takos of other customers.  Me not bring Tegrob again.

Me think Tako Truk good.  Good fire.  Good woman place.  Good friend place.  Me think thumbs up, but me not have thumbs yet."

Like pretty much everyone had already written: NOT a truck

i dont know, i guess there wasn't anything "wrong" per say about the food... pork was really good, tako/octopus was fishy but if it's not cooked IN a truck, i'm not impressed. They take the order in to the 14 Carrot kitchen and bring it out for us to eat on the sidewalk... it's pretty much restaurant food that i had to eat on a bum bench.

ehh

Tonight I discovered my love for Octopus Tacos...

I got a couple of the octopus tacos, 2 chicken fries??, and one pigbelly lentil. The octopus and chicken were my favorites, I think. I'm not sure if I loved them a LOT because I was hungry and wine-drunk or because they're just that dang good, but I scarfed them down and was happy all the way through!

The only downer was the wait. I think we waited about 10 minutes (or more). Good in the sense of they were actually COOKING, bad in the sense of "I want my tacos!!!"

The gal working had a few moments where she got confused because we hadn't said "to-go" and hadn't specified that we wanted separate bags (even though we paid separately), but... whatever... I'm sure they're still figuring out some kinks.

Probably best for folks who are in the 'hood drinking, hungry, and/or too lazy to cook and craving tasty tacos... but I'm happy I went, happy I finally tried octopus tacos, and I definitely plan to come back! (Oh and I hope Shirley and Patrick enjoyed theirs as much as I did!)

Viva la Tako Truk!! Or.. you know... somethin' like that.

These guys are brilliant:
-Rent(?) the kitchen from a breakfast/lunch spot.

-Cater to the locals with a take-out window and a couple tables - they will even deliver to the Zoo tavern next door if you ask nice and they're not busy.

-Have a fantastic chef who used to run the kitchen at Sitka & Spruce

-And serve damn good food at damn good prices.  

I've been the past 3 weeks and have sampled almost every taco and everything is creative, fresh and will leave you looking forward to the next weekend.  Only problem - they're only open Thurs - Sat.

These guys are so great that I want to have their babies! Well ... sorta ... :) But they are great!

Seriously, these aren't your grandma's tacos. This is the idea of a taco filtered through Cormac's, the chef's, food consciousness. Their are tastes of Asia, India, Latin America and, yes, the U.S. (the tiny french fries are a wonderfully crunchy addition to many of the tacos).

Last week, I had the Street Stew: chicken, chickpeas, carrots, red peppers, all with a touch of beef broth and some cilantro (and I'm leaving out a bunch of stuff). Amazing! I'd eat that every day if I could. Spicey but good spicey. Makes your mouth and your stomach and your head happy.

I've had tacos with beef tongue (who knew it was so good?), pork belly, chickpeas and potatoes, and abodo chicken. The tamales are great and the salsas are out of this world. They combine heat and sweet in just the right amounts so you can taste both at the same time.

The best part is you get to meet lots of Eastlake neighbors hanging out here. And the Tako Truk guys are really nice and will tell you all about what they're doing.

Go!

Yes, the name is misspelled and yes, it offers rather unique taco fillers such as octopus and yogurt or aloo gobi tamarind and yes, it is in a restaurant therefore technically not a taco truck but the tacos are phenomenal.

Tako Truk operates out of 14 Carrot on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights from about 6:00pm to 1:00am. The times vary strictly at the chef's discretion. Right next to the Zoo Tavern this is the go to place for a little sustenance during a night of drinking cheap beer. From the door your order is taken and then you wait for your tacos to come to you.

For $5 you get three small tacos. Your filling choices are chicken, pork, and as mentioned previously, octopus and yogurt or aloo gobi taramind which is a potato and cauliflower puree. These sound far out but are worth trying.

Since I just say no to meat I went with the aloo gobi taramind. There was some chaos behind the scenes resulting in a bit of a wait but I kept patient knowing this was opening night. My tacos came and they were so little I couldn't help but say, "Aww!" I gathered one up and took a bite. Holy mother fucking awesome tacos, Batman! The potato and cauliflower puree was creamy and instantly melted on my tongue. Mint leaves and cilantro accompanied the puree and the flavors played magnificently off each other. The taramind sauce (unfortunately I don't know what ingredients are used) was the kicker. It was a well rounded smorgasbord of fantastic flavors albeit a little spicy for my tastes but I don't do hot stuff. My friend's, who tried all of the meat choices, all agreed their tacos were great.

These are rather little tacos so three didn't fill me up at all. I ended up downing six and still wanted more. These little suckers are exceptional.

If you are ever in Eastlake on Thursday, Friday, or Saturday evening stop by Tako Truk for a taco experience you have never had before.

I have many reasons to feel a great appreciation for Fred Armisen.  He's half-Venezuelan, which makes him a successful fellow citizen;  He cracks me up with his often serious face while he performs the funniest, dumbest characters;  He's a musician and...he played drums with the Blue Man Group! (Oh, so Tobias Fünke for God's sake! What's not to love?)

But what I like the most about him is Fericito--a Venezuelan nightclub comedian and host of ¡Show Biz Grande Explosion! he plays, from time to time, on SNL.

Do you remember/know Fericito yells "¡Ayyyyyy, Dios Mio!"?*

Well, that's what my tongue yelled when it first met with Tako Taco.

¡Ayyyyyy, Dios Mio!

Tako Taco is an offering that comes in two but reproduces in your mouth like a thousand delicious, explosive pieces of tender, perfectly sauteed octopus.  The bottom-living cephalopod with a soft oval body and eight long tentacles, is slightly marinated with lime and chopped in small pieces to make the wolfing down easier.  

I'm that kind that loves being tickled by little tentacles.  And when those little sexy legs are surrounded by yogurt and fresh greenies...

¡Ayyyyyy, Dios Mio!

The lovely husband had the Piggy Pork Tacos and loved them.  It's such a delight when my better half repeats "this is d-ee-licious!" with so much joy!  Even though I asked so I can round up this review, I was  head.over.heels with my choice.  I haven't been able to stop thinking about it.

Tako Truk shows itself in the form of a wooden crate outside the 14 Carrot Cafe in Eastlake. That's their counter.  And it's all about $5 fabulous.  RUN now to get some deliciousness on tiny tortillas.  But don't run fast if it's not Thursday, Friday or Saturday, because they only serve deliciousness on those days, from 6pm until 12pm.  Bring green paper, because they won't take any plastic.

¡Volveré!

* Translation for your convenience: OMG!

Me: Hi boyfriend, I brought home dinner! Tacos!

BF: Ooooo... they look good.

(Silence ensues, as he samples each one: pork belly, chicken, black bean, and octopus)

Me: Which one do you like best?

BF: Hmmm... tough choice. They're all good. Probably this cubed chicken one.

Me: MUAHAHAHAHAAAA!!!! That's not chicken, it's O-C-T-O-P-U-S-!!

Yup, that's right Yelpers. The amazing cook at Tako Truk managed to get octopus to taste like chicken. Tender, chewy, and not rubbery at all.

Go. Try. Now.

What a great concept and a great area.  We went on a perfect Friday afternoon and walked up and placed our order and about 5 minutes later our delicious tacos came out.  Piggy Pork for me and octopus for the Chick.  

The Piggy Pork have these crunchy mini french fries on top, which gives it a completely different eating experience than a normal taco.  Before the first I'm starving.  After the second I'm close to satisfied.  And with the 3rd, I'm perfect.  What a great eating experience!

Flavorful, Fresh, and different... in a good way.

$5 will get you two tako(octopus) tacos or three non tako tacos.
You give your money to the guy at the door and within a few minutes your food appears. When I stopped by there was no line and the whole operation was pleasantly mom and pop feeling.

My tako tacos were really good! Nice texture, spice, taste, etc... The other tacos were tasty and used quality ingredients. I ordered one of each they were selling that day- pork, sweet potato & black bean, and beef. The beef variety tasted like a stew meat and the pork came with crispies on top. The vegetarian variety was filling and had herbs and condiments to deepen the flavor.

FYI's~
* You can mix and match was taco varieties you want with the 3 for $5- except tako which is it's own menu item
* They tweet what varieties of tacos they are selling mostly every day they are open for business
* They tweet when they are running low on a taco variety or food in general and are going to close early
* They usually have one really unique taco on the menu
* I found parking easily on the street