Kogi BBQ Truck (Naranja) @GFTBestBuy in Orange 8.6.14

So, after my somewhat disappointing experience at 118 Degrees the previous night, I was elated to find (through check my twitter feed @Chez_hsieh) that the Kogi BBQ Naranja Truck was going to be @GFTBestBuy (Gourmet Food Trucks in the Best Buy Parking Lot on Tustin St. in Orange, every Wednesday 5:30-8:30).  It was a pretty epic gathering of trucks including the Burnt Truck, Lobsta Truck, Barcelona on the Go, Jogasaki Burrito, Bakery Truck and Longboards Ice Cream.  Luckily, I was not actually in the midst of all this deliciousness as I likely would have camped out in the parking lot all night and sampled from each truck until someone had to roll me to the car.  No, I was actually home with my son and texted my husband to do a ride by on his motorcycle to get us some food on his way home.  He is a great husband and once he heard there were pescatarian options, he was in.

We decided to try all of their tacos and get a Blue Moon Mulita with salsa on the side for my son. Oh, the deliciousness.  I wish I were eating it right now (instead of eating a hot dog on a white bread bun with ketchup.  Now you know how I live for the meals I'm not blogging about).  Let's start the review:

Blue Moon Mulita

If you're not spice averse (or 8-years old), this is generally served topped with Salsa Azul (which we asked for on the side--it's spicy) and sesame seed, but between these grilled corn tortillas is melted chesse, grilled onions and chicken.  My son gave it a thumbs up.  There are only two times that we've eaten out that he's eaten faster: 1) first Umami kids burger; 2) Yellowtail roll from Sugarfish sushi in DTLA.  Yes, I'm raising a little foodie, but he doesn't do spice yet.  For other parents who don't want to line up at multiple trucks, this is a great kid option.  

Tofu & Calamari Tacos

In the description on Kogi's website, it says that the tofu tacos are "the kind of vegetarian taco that even carnivores would drool over." This is totally true.  I mean, I'm an omnivore, but I generally hate tofu unless it's done really well.  The Kogi marinade is amazing and the texture of the tofu is perfect.  It's neither overly mushy not super firm.  It's perfect.  I would actually consider ordering a tofu taco (well, except I already have an action plan for next time Kogi crosses my path).  

The other part of my husband's plate was a calamari taco.  So, I have a textural issue with edible cephalopods. I've never met an octopus I enjoyed eating and calamari is about 50/50, but this calamari had the most amazing flavor and texture ever.  If I weren't such a wimp with spice (and maybe in spite of the fact that I am), I would order one of these every trip to the truck.  The taco is spicy but the calamari is perfectly cooked and just slightly sweet.  My husband preferred the tofu taco, but hey, that's more for me. 

Chicken, Spicy Pork & Short Rib Tacos

Now, for the taco trifecta.  The chicken taco was good.  Kogi's site says that the chicken is marinated in a light ginger-soy marinade and it definitely had a light marinated but mostly grilled flavor that was delicious.  I moved on to the Spicy Pork next.  That was delicious.  The pork was spicy, but the spicy wasn't overwhelming and I really liked the texture of the various pork cut mixture.  Really tender and a nice blend with the slaw.  I saved the best for last though.  The short rib was amazing.  Slightly sweet, the perfect blend of flavors, tender meat--I can't even imagine how good this would have tasted right off the grill since after a 20-minute motorcycle ride, and the 5 minutes it took me to eat the other tacos (literally, and I'm a slow eater), it was incredible.  Mmmm, short rib, I wish I were eating it right now.  

So, my plan of attack for next time is a Short Rib burrito, maybe with some extra meat.  Until we meet again, I'll be dreaming of my new best friend, the Kogi BBQ truck. Hope your next meal is as delicious as this one was for me.