Truckin’: Portland

When it comes to the food truck revolution, Portland, Oregon has long been at the forefront. And with over 500 carts parked in clusters around the city, there’s no shortage of inexpensive but insanely tasty Latin eats. It’s not all tacos, either. Sonoran-style hot dogs, pork belly arepas, and Argentinian bratwurst are just a few of the Central and South American style dishes you can find all over Stumptown.

La Cocina de Chepe

Like any good food truck, de Chepe proves that high-quality, authentic grub doesn’t have to be pricey. For less than $5, you can get two (extremely filling) pupusas and a drink for lunch. Each pupusa is made fresh with filling options that include beans, cheese pork, squash, and loroco. I recommend putting your diet on hold and ordering a side of Yuca con Chicharrones – yuca root served with fried pork rind bits.

Los Roast Hatch Green Chile

Ah, hatch green chile season – there should be a national holiday in its honor. Los Roast owners Marshall Berg and Jesse Sandoval import them, roast them on-site in a custom built roaster, and package them up for you to take home. Of course, this cart is only open during hatch season (August through September). But it’s nice to cut out that roasting step before whipping up some homemade hatch chile salsa.

Angel’s Cabana

The Platanos con Carne at Angel’s is a perfect example of great street food – kind of messy, kind of heavy, and seriously satisfying. Think grilled, split plantains loaded with spicy ground beef, beans, grilled veggies, and a healthy spoonful of crema – all for less than $7. Same goes for the Baliadas, beans, chorizo, eggs, and cheese stuffed in flour tortillas with avocado and crema. But my favorite dish here is the Yuca con Chicharrón. It’s hard to go wrong with yuca, tomatoes, peppers, and cilantro topped with the crunch of fried pork rinds.

Pupuseria La Miguelena

After years of turning out perfect pupusas at La Cocina de Chepe, Zoyla, a San Miguel native, opened a cart of her own. Choose any three ingredients for your pupusa from a long list that includes pork, chicken, loroco, beans, cheese, spinach, mushrooms, and more for just $2.50 each, served with a side of crunchy slaw and your choice of medium or hot sauce. The menu also includes their fluffy and flavorful Tamales Salvadorenos (left), Yuca Chicharrón, and a plate of Bistec Encebollado (steak and onions) that’s big enough for two.

Argentina PDX

While this truck has tasty empanadas and a great lomito (sandwich with beef, ham, cheese, and eggs), the star of the menu for me is the Choripan. The beef and pork bratwurst for this sandwich is made in-house with plenty of chimichurri. If that’s not enough protein for you, try it with a side of papas fritas with eggs.

La Arepa

An arepa is a type of Venezuelan sandwich consisting of a cornmeal patty filled with beans, cheese, meat, or seafood. At La Arepa, the shredded beef and chicken arepas are great, but I’m especially a fan of the shredded tilapia. For the vegetarians, the Domino is a great choice as it’s filled with black beans and cojita cheese.

Papa-Pau!

This little cart serves up Mexican hot dogs (right), Sonoran-style – perfect for those who love their dogs loaded up and messy. You get your choice of pork or beef  wrapped in bacon, then stuffed in a unique bun with closed ends, which somewhat helps keep all the goodies inside. Choose from pinto beans, tomatoes, onions, peppers, guacamole, cojita cheese, and more.

Fonzi’s Bakabana Cabana

While plenty of food trucks in Portland serve up great tacos and pupusas, not many have a menu with Bakabana or Jungle Chicken Spaghetti. At Fonzi’s, the specialty is Caribbean and South American grub, like their fabulous roti (curried chicken and potatoes with chapatti bread). The Bakabana takes fried plantains – amazing on their own – and increases the flavor tenfold with the addition of tangy peanut sauce. That sauce is also featured in their Jungle Bowl, served on top of sweet African chicken, rice, beans, and curried potatoes.

Fuego de Lotus

Arepas with pork belly and a chili maple sauce. These guys take the traditional arepa and kick it up a little, with fillings like green chili chicken with cojita, chorizo and plantains, or tilapia with cabbage salad. The prices here are a little higher than most arepa carts, and the portions are a little smaller, but this is gourmet street food at it’s finest, and well worth a try.

El Cubo de Cuba

As the name suggests, this is the cart to visit if you need a classic Cuban sandwich. But to really get the most deliciousness for your dollar, go with either the Cubo de Puerco or the Cubo de Pollo – a box weighted down with marinated pork or chicken, beans and rice, and your pick of tostones or sweet potato fries, all for only $7.50.