Just a few weeks ago was the Third Annual La Cocina Street Food Festival, a glorious event that takes place on Folsom Street down here in The Mission neighborhood of San Francisco. For those of you who are unfamiliar,
La Cocina is a non-profit organization that incubates food entrepreneurs, allowing small food businesses to rent commercial-grade kitchen space. The Street Food Festival gives the public a chance to meet most of the food businesses cultivated by La Cocina, as well as showcasing established fine-dining restaurants in a casual festival atmosphere.
What I love most about the La Cocina Festival is the consistent price point—each booth offers a $3 Small Bite, an $8 Big Bite and a $3 Beverage (or something close). It's an incredibly easy and affordable way to try a variety of inventive dishes.
Last year felt somewhat like a competitive eating event with the crowds and all, but this year was a bit more organized and relaxed. I intended to eat a lot of food, that goes without saying, but just one dish was my priority.
The Scotch Egg.
Oh! The delicious Scotch Egg! I was lucky enough to share one of these gems at the festival last year, and it plagued my mind ever since. Check this out: it's a hardboiled egg encased in sausage and then deep-fried. At first bite, it was like the heavens opened up just for that moment, and God patted me on the tummy. Needless to say, it was the first course.
The only challenge about the Scotch Egg, made by
Chiefo's Kitchen, is that it's not readily available. Sadly, Chiefo's Kitchen is not a restaurant, and their products are available at just Whole Foods Market on Franklin & California. When the owner, Chiefo Chukwudebe (who is lovely), worked an event at my Whole Foods Market location, I was able to tell her how much I adored her product and how it left a lasting impression with me. Perhaps with my enthusiasm, she'll expand her availability.
After the Scotch Egg, we happily consumed Meatball Sliders with a lovely and refreshing Ginger Mint Lemonade all from
Beretta. The slider was tasty (the Scotch Egg was better), but the lemonade was simply delightful! Beretta gets the best drink award for the whole day. Perfectly executed.
We then made our way down the street to seek the infamous Korean tacos, and we thankfully were able to compare two:
Namu and
Kung Fu Tacos. While Kung Fu had my heart with their whimsical branding (and Sriracha), Namu won out with flavor. We especially loved the seaweed wrapper, it added a nice salty dimension that the Kung Fu taco lacked.
Very sound advice for the day.
One surprising disappointment was
Il Carne Rosso.
I adore their Ferry Building location, but was really unimpressed with the Peach & Ginger Porch Tea. It was essentially over-steeped peach tea stuffed with mint leaves and a few slivers of ginger on the bottom. From what I saw from other patrons, the Grilled Spareribs & Bruschetta was a pain to eat. I'm never a fan of dishes that are difficult or taxing to eat, especially in a festival setting. Again, I was surprised by such a big miss.
Cesar Chavez looking over us all with approval of our gluttony.
On a design side-note, I loved the style of the food truck by the Southern Sandwich Co. It had a rich, luxurious feel while staying casual and rustic. There was quilted metal on the exterior, big chalkboards with wooden frames, and the color was bold (especially compared to the others) and masculine. Loved it.
Overall, it was a very successful, delicious day! I, of course wish I had more time and space in my belly to enjoy a few more dishes, but there's always next year! Thanks La Cocina.
::: end transmission :::
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