There’s a food truck renaissance in New England, and we’re all the better for it. Never have the choices for street dining been so varied or so good. Places like Portsmouth, Portland, and Boston are teeming with options during the summer months, and many great trucks can be found in more remote locations, too. Don’t […]
There’s a food truck renaissance in New England, and we’re all the better for it. Never have the choices for street dining been so varied or so good. Places like Portsmouth, Portland, and Boston are teeming with options during the summer months, and many great trucks can be found in more remote locations, too. Don’t know where to start? Here are our top nominees for New England’s best food trucks.
Take a pair of bacon-obsessed friends, add a food truck and a supply of thick-cut applewood-smoked bacon from Blackstone Smokehouse in South Boston, and you’ve got the Bacon Truck. The menu? Just imagine Monty Python’s classic Spam sketch but substitute bacon. There’s the Pork & Mindy (braised pork and bacon); a grilled cheese with bacon; bacon scallion hash; and even a side dish that’s just a bunch of bacon. For dessert? Choose from chocolate-bacon truffles, candied bacon, and Nutella-covered bacon. If you can’t find the truck, there’s now also a brick-and-mortar location in Charlestown.
Bite into Maine is a lobster shack on wheels. Photo Credit : Photo by John Buie / CC BY 2.0
For Lobster on the Go:
Bite into Maine | Cape Elizabeth & Portland, ME
Although Bite Into Maine has opened a brick-and-mortar location in Scarborough, it can still be found streetside in Cape Elizabeth and Portland. Started in 2011 by the married team of Karl and Sarah Sutton, the operation has always focused on lobster rolls, which are available Maine style (mayo and chives), Connecticut style (melted butter), picnic style (butter, coleslaw, celery salt), or jazzed up with wasabi, curry, or chipotle mayonnaise. The grilled cheese sandwich comes with lobster, naturally, and the BLT is more of a BLLT. Hmm, we’re detecting a theme…
In 2010, Patrick Lynch and Ali Fong entered a Boston food truck contest on a whim — and won. They launched their first Bon Me food truck the following year and never looked back. The Asian-inspired menu lineup is largely made from scratch and includes, of course, banh mi, a Vietnamese sandwich made with pork and pickled carrots; a miso-kimchi-ramen bowl; and Bon Me Bap, a spin on Korean bibimbap. Bon Me’s food trucks now number more than a dozen, and there are eight brick-and-mortar locations in Greater Boston as well.
If you haven’t had a grilled cheese sandwich from The Caseus Cheese Truck, you haven’t had a grilled cheese sandwich. Photo Credit : Photo by Michael Murray Photography / Courtesy of Caseus Cheese Truck
Since 2010, brothers Jason and Tom Sobocinski have been taking their act on the road, where they serve up the classic combination of grilled cheese and tomato soup. Theirs isn’t just any grilled cheese, however — it’s a knockout blend of Swiss, provolone, comté, Gruyère, Gouda, cheddar, and other cheeses on sourdough bread. Plus, it can be endlessly customized with add-ins like guacamole, pulled pork, and grilled onion. Check the website for weekly specials and current locations.
The sandwich creations at Daddy’s Bonetown Burgers are stacked high enough to challenge even the most accomplished of eaters. Photo Credit : Photo Courtesy of Daddy's Bonetoen Burgers
The menu at Daddy’s Bonetown Burgers isn’t deep, but it doesn’t have to be. Since 2013, this popular food truck has been turning 100 percent Angus beef into three kinds of burgers, each one seemingly better than the last: the All-American (lettuce, tomato, onion, homemade pickles, American cheese); the Lemmy (bacon, cheddar, smoked onion crisps, bourbon barbecue sauce); and the Die Muenster Die (sriracha pickles, bacon aioli, fried egg, and muenster cheese). For vegetarians there’s the Simmons, a black bean and quinoa burger topped with cilantro aioli, greens, and cheddar. Other burger variations make guest appearances, too. Check Facebook for current locations.
Falafel Mafia brings Middle Eastern flair to Portland’s street food scene. Photo Credit : Photo by Kate McCarty / CC BY 2.0
Dylan and Cam Gardner know a thing or two about Middle Eastern food, having grown up working at their parents’ falafel stand. It only made sense, then, that when it came time to start their own business, the chickpea didn’t fall far from the tree (so to speak). The “Falafel Mafia” name grew out of a family joke, but the Godfather pita pocket — chock-full of falafel, hummus, cabbage, tahini, and Israeli salad — is serious business. There’s mezze and bowls and slightly smaller pita pockets, each with its own mix of flavors. A side of shawarma fries is the perfect ending to a street meal you can’t refuse.
Since the summer of 2017, Kentucky native J.J. Hall has been serving up tasty surprises to customers at her regular location next door to Everett Arena in Concord, although she pops up in other places from time to time. Her menu includes simple fare such as corn dogs and a skirted cheeseburger (the cheese melts to form a “skirt”), but also some unusual twists, such as garlic Parm french fries and quinoa sweet potato tacos. Virtually everything is locally sourced, and you’ll taste the difference.
Although the menu at Rocket Fine Street Food has a playful science-fiction theme, the food is very down to earth. Owners Joe Meneguzzo and Patricia Nutter have been at this long enough to have achieved simple perfection. The burgers are quarter-pound patties of all-natural Niman Ranch Angus beef. The Rocket is the standard burger, with lettuce, onion, mayo and ketchup. For a change of pace, the Vulcan caramelizes the onions and adds smoked bacon and something called rocket sauce. On the hot dog side, Pearl all-beef franks are the springboard for a slew of creative options. Check out the Wookie, with sweet relish, onion and sriracha, or go to the Dark Side with caramelized onions and coffee barbecue sauce. This truck is always on the go, so check the website for current locations.
Roxy’s Grilled Cheese is redefining comfort food on the streets of Greater Boston. Photo Credit : Photo by Megan Marrs bostonfoodtruckblog.com / CC BY 2.0
This business has grown to include brick-and-mortar locations in Allston and Cambridge, but Roxy’s Grilled Cheese hasn’t forgotten its food truck roots. Inspired by a college wisecrack about being able to live on bread and cheese alone, founder James DiSabatino pioneered the return of food trucks in the city of Boston. And while the Allston and Cambridge restaurants have branched out to burgers and other fun fare, the food truck experience remains grilled-cheese-centric. One bite of the Green Muenster, with guacamole and bacon, or the Allston, with herbed goat cheese, fig jam, caramelized onions, and arugula, is all you’ll need to know these aren’t your mom’s grilled cheese sandwiches.
Shuck Food Truck’s lobster rolls are so good you won’t be able to eat just one. Photo Credit : Photo Courtesy of Julia Nadler / Shuck Food Truck
A seasonal menu featuring fresh ingredients isn’t necessarily what you’d expect from a food truck, but turn those fresh ingredients into lobster rolls and oyster po’ boys, and your only question will be “Where do I find this truck tomorrow?” From oysters on the half shell to the classic fish ’n’ chips, you can’t go wrong, and even the french fries, smothered in lobster or haddock chowder, are showstoppers. Visit the website to learn where the Shuck Food Truck will be popping up next.
Do you have a favorite New England food truck? Let us know in the comments!
Associate Editor Joe Bills is Yankee’s fact-checker, query reader and the writer of several recurring departments. When he is not at Yankee, he is the co-owner of Escape Hatch Books in Jaffrey, NH.
