Le Truc

I first visited this truck at the Treasure Island Flea Market. We had a voucher for a free special and it was a grilled guyere with a tomato basil soup. We also got a side of truffle fries. The sandwich was good, but without the tomato side I don’t think I would have been as impressed. It was a nice experience though because the truck is actually a bus and they have inside seating — very nice on a chilly, windy day.
Then, we realized that they actually park near my apartment during the weekday lunch rush. So, my boyfriend and I headed over there. Unfortunately, they were out of a lot of the items we wanted (that’s what you get for eating at 1:45). But, we did end up getting a steak sandwich, a burger, a side of pepper slaw and a casar salad. Everything was ok, but I think we would have been more pleased if one of our first options wasn’t sold out.

Dear Le Truc,
I hope you read this. As you can see from my first review, I adore you guys. I really do. You have given my office mates and I hope of a delicious dining option just mere steps from our humble worker abode.
BUT, I have a slight problem. It’s your website, and more specifically, the lack of updates to the menu. We check it weekly and get excited as soon as we see that the Tilapia tacos are back or that your panko crusted chicken salad is once again being offered and then we all pile down to the truck to find, NEWP, not the same menu as the website.
Now I realize that if you change the menu up daily, this is a tough request to honor. However, you don’t change it daily, so why can’t ya update it. for the months at a time that you are serving what you are serving. We seriously LOVE you guys, but c’mon. This has been 4 times now and each time we mention it to the gal collecting the cash and she says it’s going to be updated very soon, it never is.
The time is now Le Truc. You serve yummy food and we are craving searching people, so when the wires get crossed, it’s a sad sad rest of the day. Okay, maybe not the whole rest of the day, but it sucks.
Please update and I will toss ya back a few stars up where I know you truly belong.
Thanks,
SOMA Lunchtime Admirer

29-​November, Thursday
The hand-​cut fries tossed in truffle oil had a savoriness to them that also helped to moisturize my chapped lips for a few hours after consumption, with a great mouth-​feel that also left me with the sweetest smelling breath. Rarely do I ever hit 3 birds with one stone such as I did after these truffle fries, but would have been a bit better in my opinion if they had more time in the deep-​fryer which ideally would result in slightly more of a crisp to them.
Quick (most of the time), easy (parking available a la Wells Fargo), cash-​only (but as with the former the ATM is right there), and great value for truc cuisine.

I’ve never thought I’d write a positive review anywhere about blue balls but there is a first time for everything. They were savory, spicy, filling, unique, and absolutely delicious! I can’t wait to get them again!

I was fortunate enough to attend Rock Wall Winery’s recent Food and Wine Pairing Featuring le truc. le truc is their new partner in crime now offering up fancy burgers and fries during regular winery hours. If the flavor of their veggie burger is any indication of what the rest of their menu aspires to be, this will be a match made in heaven.
The winery itself is a bit off in the cuts, located in Alameda on the old Naval grounds. Once you make your way past the dilapidated buildings, some still eerily functioning as housing, you will find an oasis of wine available to you. Their tasting room is as nice as I’ve seen in Napa, Livermore or any other wine growing region. Then again, I’m a wine total n00b so take that with a grain of salt, but it is really nice. You can carry your wine out to the deck, sipping away while enjoying beautiful bay views.
The dome like structure is what stands out for me with all of it’s potential available to be rented out for private functions. It’s pretty awesome when lit up at night and has a killer view of The Bay. Throw in a DJ and a light show, you have the makings of one helluva party on your hands. Just add wine and mix.
I never thought of becoming a wine club member before but their club is free to join with a reasonable two bottles of wine every two months minimum purchase. Not too shabby… Thanks to fellow Unilocaler Ed V. for giving the heads up on this one. As for the wine itself, again wine n00b speaking, but the Super Alamedan was really, really good in my opinion. I can see sipping a glass of this while sharing a veggie burger on a warmish summer day while enjoying the view and the company of my sweetheart.

I had Le Truc’s offerings at the Rock Wall Winery Pairing event. I must say, some of the best food I have had from the truck scene so far. Here are my thoughts on what I had from the pairing event:
1. Old school Fries with Mustard Aioli, cayenne, fresh basil — Amazing fries! Very crispy and the mustard aioli and basil combines well, finished with a kick of just the right heat! I can eat this all day!
2. Thai curry pulled pork taco, sweet bell pepper slaw, pepperoncini aioli, cilantro, lime — WOW! This is one of the best fusion tacos I have had! I thought the curried pulled pork would overpower it all, but it doesn’t! The aioli definitely balances out the richness of the pork curry. The pork was amazing; I can eat the pork all day!
3. This was actually pretty good, and I was told some of the ingredients came from the garden at the winery. I do not eat a lot of veggie burgers, but this was pretty good.
4. Turkey Meatball Slider — This was amazing. Although I don’t think they used goat cheese, I had a hint of a resembling flavor, which was pleasant! Meatball was juicy! The slider was pretty tall because of that meatball!
5. Bistro burger slider — WOW. The gruyère, crispy fried onion and truffle aioli was just perfect. I wanted to keep grabbing more, but refrained! I will be ordering this for sure! One of the best burgers I had recently. I really want to get a full size version of this.
Great food!!! I want to go back this Friday just to eat and drink more wine!

Imagine a McDonald’s dollar menu double hamburger. Now replace the bun with one that’s slightly sturdier but not quite brioche status. Take the hamburger patties and put them in the microwave for 5 minutes. Add 2 minutes to the timer. Reassemble bun and dried out patties and throw some slaw in between. Now charge me $ 11 for it.
That’s literally what I got at Outside Lands this past week. I mean, I get that it’s a festival and you gotta prep for the masses. But the line wasn’t even long and I would expect a food truck that insists on calling itself ‘le truc’ to at least have enough pride to maintain some standards no matter what crowd it’s serving.

Friday at the office! It’s the only day we don’t get catered which means, it’s the perfect day for getting my SF food fix!
I was really surprised to find Le Truc so close to work and it sounded pretty promising so I headed over right away!
I ordered the bleu cheese steak, old school fries, and a coke, which (with the Unilocal deal) came out to just over $ 14. A little pricy for lunch, but it was completely worth it. I never thought I’d like blue cheese, but added such an amazing dimension to the sandwich. Also, the old fashioned fries were really delicious! I’m usually not into spicy foods, but the chili powder on the fries made all the difference. Definitely down to come back again!
Note to self: come back so you can try the Fresh Squeezed Mint Lemonade!

I think this «truc» has potential. Having seen the decent sized line and people waiting all around I opted for some quick french fries. That took about 15 mins so I probably should’ve ordered more.
The menu is fresh and offers a wide variety for the health-​conscious to the glutenous adventurer in all of us. the fries were delicately seasoned and well ordered. I believe I will go with the hamburger on the next time around.
You’ll notice inside the bus it has seating for a few and calmly extends an invite in. With picnic tables outside it’s hard to resist the SF sun, but on a cold day I think I’ll hop on in and take a ride.

Le Truc strikes me as a grade level above your standard food truck since it isn’t a truck but a bus, a repainted schoolbus like a fashion-​forward Partridge Family who was more into Gucci than Modrian. Because it is a bus, they actually provide seating enough for a dozen if you have a hankering to dine in a converted schoolbus. Given its size, it’s understandable that it remains more stationary than other food vehicles — letting the mountain come to Mohammed if you know what I mean. But this mountain only had to stroll over to the Rincon Hill Dog Park at Beale and Brannan, where Le Truc was parked for the grand opening last Saturday.
They had plenty of temptations on their handwritten menu, but the one that got my attention was the $ 8 Butt King Sandwich, which had strands of pulled pork marinaded in a Thai curry sauce mixed with a spicy Asian slaw, scallions and tapatio aioli, all on a soft roll covered in provolone (see photo). It had a delicious twang that made me more than curious about the rest of the menu. Later on that afternoon, I was able to share a side of their $ 3 Old School Fries which was drizzled with some kind of spicy cheese sauce that preempted any need for ketchup (see photo). The owners apparently have greater aspirations since they’re starting to offer private, four-​course dinner parties in their bus. Gee, why not?
FOOD — 4 stars… the butt king kicked my butt and a few of my taste buds
AMBIANCE — 3.5 stars… a tricked-​out schoolbus deserves more praise than your regulation food truck
SERVICE — 3 stars… not that personal considering the goods served
TOTAL — 4 stars… a gourmet bus worth seeking out

I’ve been meaning to stop by this black school bus and I finally got a chance to try their turkey meatball sandwich with the new school fries (butter and garlic). Everything about this place was neat, a gutted out schoolbus where you can sit inside and watch the chefs do their thing. They’re very friendly. My friend and I enjoyed our warm sandwiches with our garlicy, buttery fries.
My turkey meatball sandwich had provolone melted on top. Nothing can go wrong with that

The food was decent but pretty overpriced. We tried the 3 hand burger and the philly blue cheese sandwich. The burger was nothing special for sure. The philly cheesesteak was pretty flavorful. I must admit that as I saw the guy next to me eating what looked to be a delicious reuben it made me wish that I got that instead.
Sandwiches are about $ 9 – 10 before drinks and snacks so pretty pricey for a food truck but at least they have seats in the truck for you to eat!

I love seeing Le Truc around town. It’s a mobile reminder of how unique and innovative the Bay Area is when it comes to food and keeping things local.
Having spotted Le Truc parked right by our office I decided to finally try their fare. The guy serving me was very personable and patient and I decided on their Veggie Burger — made with a lentil and mixed veggie patty and topped with sun dried tomato aioli and red bell pepper slaw, and a side salad with sweet walnuts and a light vinagrette dressing. I decided not to get cheese on both my salad and my burger, and I’m sure that had I decided to keep the servings of cheese with both, that each would have had more well rounded flavor.
I appreciated the concept behind the veggie burger, but I wasn’t such a huge fan of the taste. I didn’t end up finishing it. The salad was also a little too oily for my liking. That being said — I saw a wealth of other formidable options whisk by me — and saw many a satisfied customer consuming everything from burgers — to tacos — so I think I just must have ordered the wrong thing.
I’m planning on making another visit here — but it sounds like the meat dishes are the real standouts, and for an even better glimpse into this rolling restaurant — I imagine that it’s well worth dining inside their intimate bus dining area.
Trust.

Well, you have to try their breakfast!
It is a friday tradition with my friends to go down there and get the breakfast tacos– you get two for $ 5 and that is plenty. It’s egg, potato, grilled onions, magic sauce, and either bacon or chorizo. I think they have other things for breakfast as well, but i love the tacos. They also do a veggie option I think.
The owner there is really friendly as well. I’ll be back for lunch.
aj

I FINALLY got to try this food BUS the other day. Situated a few feet from the Wells Fargo parking lot on Brannan, there sits the bus and a single picnic table for whoever wants to sit and eat their lunch while it’s fresh off the grill. I’ve walked by LT several times before, but nothing on the menu ever caught my eye. This time, however, the words «burger» and «tacos» made my mouth start to drool so I quickly got in line and placed my order…
«Butt King» tacos, 2 for $ 8 (
)
Now I’m not sure where the name comes from, but when I saw «thai curry pulled pork» in the description, I knew this was a must. The price is a little steep for street tacos, but I still think it’s worth it. These are some good effin’ tacos. Filling, very juicy, and the mixture of red jalapeño and aioli make them extremely flavorful with a little bit of a spicy kick. I’m kinda craving them right now.
«Three Hand» burger, $ 8 (
)
They use a ¹⁄₃ lb chuck of house ground Niman Ranch beef in their burgers. Again, I’m not sure where the name comes from, but this tasty make-​you-​wanna-​go-​to-​sleep-​after-​inhaling-​it lunchtime treat came with red bell pepper slaw, mustard aioli, and cheddar cheese. It wasn’t juicy like a Marlowe burger, but it still made me go, «Mmmmmmm» and devour it in record time. I’d love to have one again.
I also got an order of their «Old School Fries» for $ 3 (
). I don’t know what makes them old school, but they were pretty good as well. I think they’re covered with the same mustard aioli and some seasoning. Whatever it is, they’re skinny, a lil crunchy, and pretty damn good. Only thing is, I couldn’t finish them all and thought I’d eat them again later. But later they smelled funny so that was that. Anyways, I’m not sure how often they change their menu, but for the items I had so far I’d definitely go back.

Exhausted from day 1 of moving, and starving from not having eaten all morning, my sister and I had limited options for close, quick, and supposedly tasty food. Anna D mentioned having just gone to Le Truc, and realizing that they were but a mere block away, we begrudgingly dragged ourselves there right before closing, ordering a chicken parmigiana, chicken meatball, and their spicy mustard aioli fries for a flat $ 20.
Their shoestring fries pack a tasty kick, but their sandwiches, while decent, aren’t particularly interesting, and not something I’d find myself craving often. But the portions are generous, the prices aren’t exorbitant, the staff is friendly, and they’re close enough that I can see myself coming again.
A few notes: they charge a 3.25% surcharge if you pay with credit, so cash is your best bet, and while the truck itself (a modified school bus) isn’t wheelchair accessible, you can order your food to go, or eat at the one table they have nearby.

For a food truck, Le Truc…
— is more pricey
— has smaller portions
— but has much better quality food
butt king tacos pulled pork butt, corn tortilla, thai red curry, cilantro $ 8
— Loved this, absolutely wonderful fatty moist tender pork, and the curry is a delicious touch.
bleu cheesesteak niman ranch tri-​tip, portobella, grilled onions, sauce bleu, pepperoncini $ 9
— Yummy, buttery, oily, fatty, delicious. meat was great (though could’ve used just a little more of it.), bread soft and toasted just right, blue cheese yet another delicious touch.
my co-​worker got the chicken meatball — looked YUMMY and i must get that next time!
also like that you order from the waitress (i guess thats what you’d call her) who stands right by the food truck window and gives the order to them. adds to the classiness factor. makes it slightly more efficient.

I had a chance to try out this truck when they were parked outside a semi-​private event in SOMA. I had the killer butt king taco and a chicken meatball sandwich. The chicken sandwich was good but didn’t rock my world.
The taco on the other hand — WOW. Super red curry flavor, and a serious kick. I couldn’t believe how much shredded beef they put into a single taco. I also like that they grilled the tortilla a bit first, so that it wasn’t all soggy.
I was a bit skeptical when I saw that it was $ 4, but this was definitely a taco worth $ 4.
They also had samples of their ginger and sea salt chocolate chip cookies. Both were delicious, but the ginger was the star… sweet up front but then the ginger kick — POW.
Talked to one of the owners outside, super nice guy. His dog Dylan was hanging out and being very sweet as well.

Yes the food here is prepared quite well. Yes it tastes good. Yes it’s fancy for a food truck. Why only three stars? Mostly because everything I’ve had has onions all over it and there’s no way to know they are there from the menu, so now I have to ask everytime. I just don’t like onions. Any of them.
While it took Le Truc a few weeks to get their ordering system down, I think it’s much better now. It was a bit too chaotic before and confusing. I do plan to eat there again and if this time the «no onions» request is fulfilled, I’ll probably bump this to 4 stars.
Note — I only really eat breakfast here.

Blake’s (owner) message to me:
Paran: I am sorry to hear that you did not enjoy your Bleu Cheesesteak. I wanted to let you know that we have increased the portion size of the Niman Ranch Tri-​Tip and portabello used in the sandwich. The 8″ Amorosa Bread that we use in the sandwich is made in Philly, however, there have been a few times were we did not get our delivery and had to use different buns for the day. If you get a chance please come back by and give us another try — on me. I hope you will find that the sandwich is bigger and thus a better value. Thanks for taking the time to Unilocal about us, Blake
Anyone in the restaurant industry should take a lesson from Blake on how to treat customers. Blake you complete me.

I love coming here for breakfast. The food is delicious, the people friendly, and if you have time, there is space to sit down!
My fav is the breakfast bowl ($ 5) which is basically scrambled eggs with a ton of stuff on it. The bacon is the best part. It’s cooked to perfect crunchy-​ness! And if you ask for it, they will spice it up for you. What more can you ask for to wake you up?
Sounds like I really need to come back for lunch!

I tried this food truck… er…uh…bus…when they were featuring a menu created by Chris Cosentino of Incanto along with celebrity chef and host of Bizarre Foods, Andrew Zimmern. Both chefs were inside the bus cooking up a storm and taking a few breaks here and there to talk to folk. (They were filming for the Zimmern’s show Bizarre Foods.)
Three items on Le Gut Truc’s menu: (1) vitello tonnato — a veal tongue slider, (2) gut truc taco — crispy «chichu» with tomatillo salsa, and (3) hoof & mouth — pig’s head, trotter tots and brain-​aise sauce.
I ordered all three items on the menu and Andrew Zimmern was personally cooking my gut truc tacos and brought them to the pick-​up window. All three items were good, though I didn’t really want to know or remind myself what I was eating or more specifically what parts I was eating. My favorite of the three items was the hoof & mouth — it was excellent tasting savory fried pig parts — I actually went back when the line died down a bit to get a second order.

On Saturday this new mobile food vendor debuted at the Eat Real festival in Oakland. This is the 2^nd bus-​conversion in the bay area after the Diamond Lil restaurant bus (Free Range Dining) that debuted in April 2010. Or food bus #3, if u include the nationwide roaming bus from Jim Denevan’s Outstanding in the Field, based in Santa Cruz.
The exterior was different than expected, many months ago blogs reported it’d be painted black (not finished yet). I was very curious to see what this new «bustaurant» had to offer, since LA already has a double-​decker bustaurant named Worldfare (with a former Michael Mina sous chef).
LT has a fully working modern kitchen, and supposedly dining space for 12 inside (haven’t seen that part yet). At the moment, the prepared plates of food comes out thru a panel opening on the side of the bus. The menu has more elaborate dishes than the average converted taco truck — meals similar to current trucks Spencer on the Go and 51^st State. Basically, it’s a gastropub on wheels making asian fusion food, and paired with craft beers (one thing no other food truck has yet).
A sampling of 3 small dishes ($ 4 each) were available for the inaugural menu: a shrimp salad enhanced with yuzukosho (Japanese lemon pepper sauce/​paste),
with pulled organic pork (from Llano Seco Ranch) & prik king curry sauce,
and Stoopenkuchen («kuchen» means cake in German, often refers to a coffee cake).
The last item is a savory cheesecake from Elizabeth Faulkner (Citizen Cake/​Orson), made with Hop Stoopid ale from Lagunitas and Bellwether Farms ricotta. Beers available this time: Magnolia Kolsh, Odonata Saison, & Lagunitas IPA.
The plan is to have guest chefs preparing meals. Reservations start on October 6^th. 5-​courses for $ 40, Wed-​Sat, 7−10pm.
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) and Facebook.