Eat Real: Food Carts Are How We Roll

A little late, but here's my rundown of Eat Real, the three-day food fest that went down in the land of Oaks last weekend. As mentioned in my previous post, one should and must plan out food fests. This time, I was eager to hit Homeroom, Chairman Bao, and the Crème Brûlée Cart. Mission accomplished! Here's my account of said success:

Homeroom: Yet to open, this place is already getting a lotta buzz in the food blog circuits. Apparently, they got sued by McDonalds for including "Mac" in their original name (Little Mac). Companies really need to stop suing others for the use of words because if this continues, language will probably die. Anyways, after a contest that asked locals to come up with cute new names, "Homeroom" was chosen. Macs devoured on this glorious day: Trailer Mac and Spicy Mac. Trailer Mac was filled with hot dog goodness and topped with POTATO CHIPS. Spicy Mac was as the title would suggest: spicy. Which do I prefer? Hard to say, but probably the Spicy Mac because it was seasoned quite tastily.

Chairman Bao: Speaking of places that are getting sued, Chairman Bao has also had it's share in ridiculous lawsuits. Some NY chef is suing the cart for taking the name of his best-selling item. Word has it, that said chef finally trademarked his precious Bao. In the words of Christian Bale, "Well, good for you!" Bao devoured: Tender Pork Belly with Pickled Daikon. A very tasty bao indeed! It's a little different from your usual dim sum bao, since it's wrapped the same way as Peking Duck. The Pork Belly was flavorful and the daikon balanced it well.

The Crème Brûlée Cart: By the time I was done with the other two, I was pretty damn full. But there's always room for dessert, right? Well, there has to be at a food fest! K.yo, Special K, and I missed out on the Cart at SF Food Fest cuz we opted for funnel cake, so I was determined to hit it this time around. Crème Brûlée devoured: Mexican Chocolate. Because I'm a nerd, I will admit that I love cracking the tops of Brûlées like Amelie. Analysis of top: good amount of crackily-crunchy-ness. Analysis of stuff underneath: noms, but a bit of pot-de-crème-y. Not a bad thing, but I feel like I should have tried the vanilla bean one, since the chocolate distracted me a bit...but that's my own fault. :)

Mission: Street Food

Dudes, I've been attending food fests like no one's biznet lately. First up: SF Street Food Festival in the Mission. Not going to lie, but I planned this to a tee. I printed out a map and literally circled every place that I wanted to swing by. A little crazy? Slightly. But, K.yo and Special K will agree with me, when I say that you really should plan food fests. It's quite easy to get distracted because let's face it, almost everything at the festival is going to be pretty noms. Just make sure that you know where a few of the to-die-for spots are, and head to them first! BECAUSE THEY WILL SELL OUT.

First Stop: Nombe

• K.yo and I have been wanting to go to this place forever, but like any other izakaya, it's expensive. It's also in the Mission, and we don't really hang around there too often at night. Nombe probably had one of the longest lines at the festival. However, it was admittedly worth it. Bathed in sweet-and-sour sauce with green onions, basil and/or cilantro, the fried chicken wings were extremely delicious. The flavourful sauce really made it. Nombe ftw.

Second Stop: Endless Summer Sweets

• The K's and I decided to split a Funnel Cake from Endless Summer Sweets after said wings. I believe that this place is associated with La Cocina, and according to their website, they're served at certain Farmers and Flea Markets. Perfectly fried and topped with cream, strawberries, and powdered sugar, the Funnel Cake was freaking amazing. Definitely a good dessert to split.
  

Third Stop: Ritual

• You have to admit that Ritual's little trailer is pretty damn cute. I go to their coffee shop pretty often, so I wasn't planning to purchase anything that day...until I heard about their Coffee Pops. It's exactly what it sounds like. COFFEE POPSICLES. They cooled me down and kept me well caffeinated. :)

Fourth Stop: Kung Fu Tacos

• Who doesn't love that name? Major points for that before even trying it. But yeah, it was pretty good. And spicy...but I may have gone a little crazy with the sriarcha. The line was also quite long, but they are definitely worth checking out. Pictured: Mu Shu Veggie. It was mushroomy-goodness.
  

--The panda has spoken.