Eats

Meals on Wheels

Drive-thru Mexican Fare Abounds on Oakland's Taco Truck Strip

    In a world of fast food, there aren’t many healthy choices. But in Oakland, taco trucks stand as exceptions to the rule in speedy dining.
    Making great Mexican-to-go that you don’t have to run for the border to enjoy, these mobile taquerias serve cheap, substantial food; and with a city ordinance requiring each taco truck vendor to operate with a health permit, diners get a bit of quality assurance with their drive-thru meals.
    International Boulevard and its thriving Latino community have seen an increase in taco truck traffic since 2004. That February, Oakland City Council members passed an ordinance allowing taco truck and pushcart vendors to lease land from vacant lot owners. Councilmember Ignacio De La Fuente spearheaded the measure, his Fruitvale district being where a majority of the vendors operate. While some councilmembers opposed this use of the city’s vacant lot space, the ordinance has spawned a style of working-class cuisine that has helped immigrants get on their feet. Now, Oakland hosts some 60 vendors, all of whom sell their tacos for a little more than a dollar.
    In the newspapers, online and on the street, people who eat at the trucks give their reviews at the drop of a sombrero. Joe, a friend who does Web design by day and DJs by night, calls himself an adventurous foodie. “You don’t know taco trucks until you’ve tasted tripe,” he insists. “There’s a truck on the Goodwill lot that fries it until it’s really crispy and tastes like bacon.” Joe’s favorite truck, called Mi Grullense, is on International Boulevard between 29th and 30th avenues and sometimes shares the lot with other vendors. But Joe says that you can easily see his fave from the strip: “Just look for the long line.”
    Right off the main drag is a truck I visited on a tip from a guy who works at my neighborhood Radio Shack. I went in to buy batteries, and we struck up a conversation about one of two El Ojo de Agua trucks. This one parks in front of a shuttered building across from the Tamale Queen’s World Cup Coffee on E. 12th Street and Fruitvale Avenue. The building bears the taco truck name in bright colors. “They have great tacos,” he claims, “and since they serve the best chicken of all the trucks, I always ask for it instead of the standard shredded beef. Their portions are generous, and their menu has a great selection.” Indeed, it has several unique items to choose from (like Sangria Senorial, a sangria-flavored soda) and the widest price range, with the most expensive item, the Alambre—a torta packed with steak, spicy pork, pineapple, bacon, bell pepper, onion, cheese, rice and beans—for 10 bucks. It’s the most expensive listing I’ve seen on an Oakland taco truck, but with El Ojo’s fruit salad, granola and smoothie selections, it earns kudos for being the healthiest.
    I first discovered taco-truck dining just weeks after the city passed the ordinance. My then boyfriend José and I would drop by Tacos El Gordo No. 2 after we’d get off work at a local soul food restaurant. Parked at 42nd Avenue and International Boulevard, El Gordo No. 2 makes the best chorizo tacos east of San Francisco’s Cancun restaurant. The long lines indicate that this truck goes over and above the typical side dishes of jalapeños, cucumbers and radishes. For $1.50, you get a soft corn tortilla loaded with Mexican sausage and topped with chopped onion and cilantro sprigs. El Gordo No. 2 stands out on the block more than other trucks; not only does it park right next to an Interstate 880 on-ramp, but its sign also lights up at night. Oakland’s ordinance mandates that taco trucks shut at 2 a.m., but until then, El Gordo’s neon letters beckon workers coming off a late shift.
    For those who want a consensus before venturing to what some have called “The Comida Corridor,” yelp.com and tribe.net’s taco-truck communities offer from-the-gut reviews covering International and beyond. Tribe.net leader Tony says, “I started the Taco Truck tribe because I eat at them often, and I wanted a place for myself and others to list and rate local taco trucks.” Sites like these are good places to get the skinny on how not to gorge yourself with bland or less-than “fresco,” or fresh, tacos. Oakland’s ordinance requires that vendors who don’t operate out of restaurants must prepare their truck food at two centralized locations. Located in the heart of the Fruitvale, vendors pay the city roughly $100 a month to use the facilities and pay for their upkeep.
    Some taco trucks have become so successful that they’ve cooked up a restaurant. Taqueria Sinaloa, at 2138 International Blvd., is one example. Its restaurant and two taco trucks have caused a stir online and in the newspapers, with best-of awards popping up on Web sites like aol.com and in the East Bay Express. Sinaloa’s eatery occupies what looks like an old diner or hot dog stand. Copious outdoor seating serves both the restaurant and the two trucks. For less than five bucks, you can get a burrito “con carnitas” or vegetarian. Either way, it’s numero uno on the strip. They neatly pack the standard ingredients—beans, cheese, rice, sour cream and salsa—so that one doesn’t overwhelm the other. And each flavor comes out at first bite, unlike other at trucks in the area that sell burritos with the cheese buried in the middle. Sinaloa also serves the most delicious horchata in the city. This iced, rice-milk drink comes seasoned with ground almonds, nutmeg, cinnamon and sugar. Horchata’s most popular with kids, but I see adults pull out the $1.75 for it on warm afternoons. Sinaloa’s version of this agua fresca has a robust flavor with none of the grainy, silty taste of some other horchatas along International. And what other vendor can offer you that and the occasional mariachi band?
    The next time you’re hungry for some quick, cheap Mexican, give Oakland’s taco trucks a try. They do more for your four-square meal than any local fast food franchise, though here’s a warning: Contents may make you gordo.