Location: 8438 SE Woodstock Blvd
elnutritacopdx.com

El Nutri Taco is just off the 205 freeway, so I have to believe many hungry travelers have passed it by without a second thought before eating at Taco Time or Taco Hell down the street. And guess what, they blew it. Only in Portland would a sketchy looking Mexican cart in someone’s front yard have an extensive Vegan Menu. And then actually be good, too. That is the story with El Nutri Taco.

It took me years to try this place – Taco carts aren’t hard to come by and like I said, it looks sketchy, but we kept hearing they had great vegan food. And since the psudeo-vegan in my life cares about that sort of thing, eventually we went, and guess what, the rumors were true.

Potato Burrito. Not shown actual size.

Even knowing what I know, it still feels strange to pull up to someone’s house and order food in their front yard, but inevitably you will not be the only one. This place is fairly busy and once you get your food, you’ll see why. Not only are the portions ridiculous, but the burritos are interesting and unique. This isn’t just a beans, rice and cheese place, they put all sorts of goodies in them — cactus, peppers, mushrooms, potatoes, basically whatever you could think of. They also have multiple kinds of veggie meat, and for me, real meat as well.

There’s a little covered seating area behind it, although if you’re scared of giant old german shepards, that might be an issue (there’s one that lives there, but he seems nice.) If you’re really opposed to carts, there’s also a brick and mortar location in Northeast, but to get the true experience, well, you gotta go to this one. It’s good, I promise.

3848 SE Gladstone st. Portland, or 97206
www.shutupandeatpdx.com/

Technically, Shut Up and Eat is a real live brick and mortar restaurant, but I’m counting it because it used to be a cart. I went there when it was in the Ala Carts pod and got the pork sandwich. It was crazy windy and the sandwich was giant and hard to eat, but holy shit, it was amazing. So when they opening up shop on the corner of 39th and Gladstone, I was stoked it was both in my quadrant and has indoor seating.

Obviously my first trip back I got the pork again. It’s adorned with papini, red peppers, provolone and an au jus and even inside, it’s a challenge to eat. Oh, and it’s a solid two meals. But on the second try I realized, it wasn’t really that exciting. Aside from the joy of having something to dip it in, the sandwich itself is kinda bland. But luckily, they have other sandwiches.

Since then I’ve tried the Italian sausage, meatball, chicken parm and my new favorite, the steak and eggs. The sauce-based italian style sandwiches are good, as long as you like garlic. They love that stuff here. Again, they’re two meals, I usually ask for half to be pre-wrapped when I get them. Don’t be scared, it’s a good move, and since it’s a $9 sandwich, a sound investment as well.

On my latest visit I got the steak and eggs, a breakfast sandwich which is served all day (yes, this place is THAT CRAZY.) It comes with greens, cheese and pickles in addition to the title ingredients and is served on a kaiser roll. This one is a one-meal sandwich and it is messy as hell, but damn it is good. However, the best part of shut up and eat? The homemade potato chips. Get them.

Location: 42nd and Belmont
Number of carts: 15
Types of Food: Veggie, Seafood, Korean, Norwegian, Ice Cream, Coffee, American, Mac and Cheese, Fried Chicken, etc.
Covered: yes
http://www.goodfoodherebelmont.com/

Tucked just off of 39th Ave, I mean, Ceasar Chavez Ave, lies the Good Food Here pod. This aptly-named pod boasts a maze of carts, many of which do indeed serve good food. (Seeing as I’ve only been there once, I didn’t eat at all of them, but we can always assume there’s a dud in the mix when you have anywhere over 5 carts.) Anyway.

The pod is pretty jam packed with options and in the middle is a covered portico with picnic tables surrounded by foliage. There’s an ATM and the vegetarian cart redeems itself by serving booze. It’s also crowded. On a Wednesday there was a steady flow of traffic and as Stan pointed out “way more hotties” than the previous cart pods. Over all, it’s a little overwhelming, but definitely a decent place to eat a meal.

As for food, I had heard rumor of the Viking Soul Food cart (who knew Vikings had souls?) and it being really, really good, so I went for a Lefse. Lefse’s are Norwegian potato pancakes, super thin, and then filled with all sorts of stuff. I had a special wrap that included chicken, collard greens, tomatoes and garlic-something. There was lots of garlic. As with any food that gets hyped up before I try it I had overly high standards, I was by no means blown away by my meal. It tasted really good, but for $8.50 (including a water cup and the credit card fee) left me a little unsatisfied. Next time, I’d go with the meatball and add some chips or something.

Veggie Reuben from Divine Cafe

Jared went to Divine Cafe and got a veggie Reuben that looked damn good for being, ya know, vegetarian. He also came back with Tofu tots, which while they looked amazing, actually tasted much like cardboard. I’m not sure if they purveyors of this cart know that potatoes are actually vegetarian and they could make regular tots just as easily that would have been filled more with delicious potato instead of what was basically air.

Kafta from Aybla

Stan went to the Mediterranean cart, Aybla Grill, as did our friend Kelly and at $5 a pop, both seemed stoked on their purchases. The cart that I’m mostly likely to go back for though is Namu, a combo Korean/Hawaiian spot. Most of the menu is plate lunches and from the pictures they looked damn good. Then when our friend Laura Lynn showed up with the vegan combo and it actually looked good, well, I’m sold on at least trying it. So that said, I’ll certainly return to Good Food Here.

Vegan Combo from Nabu

Location: Woodstock Cart Pod
Price range: $2.50-$8
Cuisine: American Mexican
CASH ONLY

Today I set out on a mission to  get a Danang Pork sandwich from Graffiti, but alas:

Vacation!? How dare you take a vacation!

Once I finished feigning outrage, I walked the two feet to the right, opting for a burrito from El Gallo. Mexican carts aren’t hard to come by in Portland, and as they go, this one isn’t my favorite. But, it’s also not really Mexican. As evidenced by the white guys working there, this place is Ameri-mex at best, despite the actual Spanish in its name.

So, as you can probably assume, this isn’t my favorite burrito in Portland, but it is somewhat unique. Inside is meat, cheese, cabbage and pinto beans, as well as some cilantro and presumably salsa. Then the whole package is grilled up all crispy and there’s more sauce to be had on the side. Their salsas are good, but nothing to write home about. I think the big selling point here is that all the ingredient are local, natural, blah blah blah. It’s cool to eat food at Monsanto in theory hasn’t fucked with.

Really, my favorite thing about this cart is that they have free water. I hate buying bottles of water, not just cause it’s terrible for the environment, but because I’m cheap. The cups and jug are a huge plus. Jared likes it because they have Mexican coke, which is exciting because as he wanted me to point out — not all coke in Mexico is Mexican coke.

Location: SE 50th and Divison
Number of carts: 14
Covered: Yes
Pros: Lots of entertainment options, wet naps, free wifi, good food choices.
Cons: Beer is only on weekends, really close to Los Gorditos.
Types of food (check their site for current carts): Turkish, burgers, coffee, seafood, Pork, Venezuelan, chicken and waffles, Pizza, Southwestern, Vietnamese, Korean, Thai
http://www.alacartspdx.com/

Ala Cart is much more than just a cart pod. It’s like a cart experience filled with fun for the whole family. What does that even mean? Well, I’ll tell you. In addition to some 14 food carts, there’s also a little playground for kids, cornhole for big kids, sidewalk chalk for beautifying the parking lot and trivial pursuit cards on the tables. Care about cleanliness? They have free wet naps and the port-a-potty has a sink in it. Oh and perhaps the most exciting for a nerd such as myself- FREE WI-FI! And that’s not all. There’s a hair salon (perhaps a trim while you wait?), an ATM and plenty of covered and uncovered seating.

Of course, if all the carts sucked, all this would be unexciting (although you could grab food at Los Gorditos – the best Mexican food in Portland right down the street and sneak it in) but that’s not a problem. There are several carts that serve interesting and delicious food. I’ll be honest, I fully judge a cart by its cover, and today I selected La Arepa because their menu was all pictures. The cart specializes in Venezuelan food, which is rice and bean based, but was sold me was avocado and plantains. I got the number 15, which was awesome because I didn’t have to attempt to speak Spanish and it tasted damn good. You can tell this place is muy authentico since the dude had a really hard time with my name and ended up calling out “Brulalala” or something.

Jared was not in tow so I don’t know what food was spicy but not too spicy, but Stan got a stuffed burger from the burger Guild with sweet potato fries. Including a drink, he paid $9 which is a damn value if you ask me. It was certainly not the neatest burger ever eaten, but his review was quite favorable, and like I said, free wet naps!

The pork chop cart hooked up Lemmy with a water bowl and even a treat, giving this cart high marks for dog friendliness too. Over all, I would like to go back and try more of the carts and Stan gave Ala Carts a hearty two thumbs up. Oh and I almost forgot to mention, how can you be mad at the fun play on words that is the name?

Location: Corner of SE 52nd and Foster
Number of carts: 11
Covered: Yes
Obligatory Score: 3

https://www.facebook.com/CartsOnFoster

The parking lot that houses Carts on Foster has come along way since it was All Pets Playhouse – a decrepit-looking animal boarding house that I never saw open. Now it’s a bustling cart pod, with a lot more carts than the one other time I awkwardly walked through and then decided to go somewhere else a few months ago.

Pretty flowersss!

I use the term bustling loosely, it’s not that crowded which is a good thing if you hate waiting in line for food like I do. (That’s one issue with food carts over all I have, is the amount to time it takes to get your food can vary widely if you decide to go to different carts.) The inside is filled with plants, there’s both a tent and a covered porch for seating when it rains. (I heard it does that here.) There’s enough variety in the carts that you have choices but not too many, and the drone of Foster Road is drowned out by the way it’s set up. Basically, it’s nicer than I thought it would be, but ya know, still eating outside in a parking lot. Kinda what you’re signing up for.

The falafel from El Sultan

As far as food choices go, there’s a couple sandwich carts, a Mexican/Mediterranean cart, a coffee cart, a pastry cart, a breakfast cart and a Hawaiian cart (which actually used to be at Cartlandia.) Again, this changes so don’t trust me on this one, check the facebook or at least, don’t get your hopes up for Mexi/Medi before you go there.  There’s also a bar, which is partially inside and offers an indoor-outdoor seating experience. It actually would be a kinda sweet place if you’re looking for a patio to drink on some sunny summer day.

A sub from Pressed.

On our visit Jared and I got falafels from El Sultan, which has been there as long as I can remember. Now going to a cart boasting cuisine from two non-adjecent parts of the world may be risky, but for $5 I was satisfied with my purchase. It came with chips and the pita was super soft and yummy. The fillings we’re kinda bland and there was way too much iceberg lettuce. Plus pickles. Who puts pickles on a falafel? Stan got an Italian sub from “Pressed” and was thoroughly disappointed. For $9 at least it came with deep fried french fries, but the bread was an even bigger buzz kill than the sandwich. Sorry Stan.

Over all, Carts on Foster is not the worst pod I’ve been to. Considering the location, it’s decent. That said, it’s not a must-visit cart pod by any means. According to Stan, if he had people in town, he wouldn’t bring them there and I’d have to agree.

Location: 45th and Woodstock Ave
Number of Carts: 3
Covered Section: No
Obligatory score: 5

Note:  This was supposed to be my introductory post, but I spazzily posted about Cartlandia first.

I may start writing about every cart individually and inserting Jared’s “spicy but not too spicy” input in each one, or more likely just highlight the ones I like, but I really want to start with the pods themselves. After all, part of dining is the experience and I don’t care how good the food is if you feel icky eating there.

So let’s start with the neighborhood I claim to live in (even though my house is technically in Brentwood/Darlington), Woodstock. This pod popped up a few years back and has gone through a few carts, but the line up as of August 14th, 2013 is Graffiti Sandwiches, El Gallo Taco and a breakfast cart, Yolk, which I’ve heard is run by the same people that own Toast.

I really like this pod. One of the best things is there’s not actually too much choice to be made. Three genres, breakfast, Mexican and Sandwiches. I can handle that no matter how my day is going. Plus all three are actually good. I’ve never gotten anything at these cart I’ve been bummed out. Oh yeah, cause not all Food Carts in Portland are the stuff of Food Network legend. There are a lot of them that were opened by people who have no idea what they’re doing.

As far as ambiance, this place is great. There’s no flapping tarps or major thorough-fares, just the cute, Reed College influenced Neighborhood. The tables are wood picnic tables, but not like the crappy kind. They’re heavy duty and feel handcrafted and all Portland-y, and the Mexican cart even has an a house plant.

Basically, this is the perfect cart pod. Not too big, not to small, good choices and a nice place to sit. Of course, if it’s raining you’re grab and go only, but I guess, who goes to Food Carts when it’s raining?

This cart gets a 5 out of whatever number I decide to give the best cart pod I’ve been to. I guess I’m setting the bench mark here. EXCITING.

PS. I’m gonna stick to Southeast Food Carts. That way I don’t have to leave my quadrant.

PPS. Anyone know of any Food Cart blogs I should be reading for inspiration?

PPPS. I don’t remember the log in info for the FTP of this site, so the rebrand may take awhile.

Location: 82nd Ave at Spring Water Corridor
Number of Carts: A lot
Covered: Yes
Obligatory Score: 1
http://www.cartlandia.com/

Despite it’s adorable kitschy name, Cartlandia is about the least “Portlandlandia” place in Portland. Yes, it claims “bike-centric” and is on the Springwater Corridor — a Portland-y bike path lined with wild blackberries– but the PDX stereotypes end there. There are tons of carts, but this must be the cheapest place to rent space in Portland, because is seems it’s mostly people who probably shouldn’t own restaurants and are just “trying it out.” Some I’ve tried are fine, but certainly not food you’d drool over and want to seek out again.

My biggest issue with this place is the sheer number of carts. I NEVER know what I want for lunch (hence the Lunch blog – it was supposed to provide direction) so I’ve already suffered with one decision by the time I make it to Cartlandia. Then I get there and have to decide all over again. To make matters worse, there’s always new carts which means I have to walk by awkwardly and try and look at the menu without actually talking to people. (For some reason I feel bad when I don’t get their food if I’ve spoken to them, ok.)

As far as genres go, like you’d expect on 82nd ave, there are a bunch of Thai places. There’s also a few carts representing various Central American countries, and at one point there were two Hot Dog carts. There’s a crepe and wrap place, and pizza. There’s also a sloppy cart that I’ve never seen open. Oh and there’s a British Pastys cart that I almost forgot about. I’m just not interested in bready English food, sorry. Anyway, it changes a bunch so for the current list go here.

Anyway, once that is taken care of and I get food, the atmosphere feels much like the county fair. I mean, I don’t really know what else I’d expect from a cart pod on 82nd. They have a beer garden with giant blaring TVs, you’re sitting in a shitty parking lot surrounded by like shady car mechanics, and there are tons of tables full of normal, non-hip people eating with the occasional tweaker mountain biker thrown in for good measure. Finally, with so many carts, the whole place smells like fried food.

My hope is that it will get better, as now that I am an 82nd aver, I’m cheering for urban sprawl and redevelopment. According to the Cartlandia blog they just cleared out 7 new spaces maybe someone will put an epic cart in there, but for right now, Cartlandia is kind of a bummer. Oh shit, I just came up with the best idea! Maybe they should start hosting Bingo there, really play off the fair theme! I heard that’s getting hip again on the news, which is where I learn about everything hip, so it could work to be the tipping point for 82nd. Just an idea.

Photo via EatAdventures.com

So you may have guessed I got bored with trying to eat lunch on Hawthorne every day. It was expensive, we ran out of restaurants we weren’t specifically avoiding, and oh yeah, I moved my office to felony flats. Well, technically we’ve rebranded it the “Flavel Arts District” hoping it’ll catch on like Alberta did, but apparently white trash people are harder to gentrify. Anyway!

I was just in a heated debate with Stan about our two nearest Food Cart pod locations (actually it wasn’t heated at all, we agreed) and realized, I could start food blogging again, but about cart pods. I’m way better at keeping these things going when I have some sort of structure (or it’ll at least give me entertainment for the next couple weeks until Winter starts.

So get hyped! I’ve got thoughts.