Food Truck Race–I’m in a K-State (state) of mind

Hello!  I hope everyone had a nice holiday weekend.  Last week on The Great Food Truck Race, we lost our Cuban food, Café Con Leche.  At the end of last week’s show, Tyler told the teams they were heading to Manhattan!

Yay!!

Manhattan, Kansas.  HAHAHA—Tyler pwnd!

So we open up this week with our teams driving through the beautiful farm fields outside Manhattan, KS—population about 52,000 people.  And we get our first insight on what the teams think of competing in a small town in the Midwest.  Roxy’s Grilled Cheese is confident and happy because although Manhattan is not a big city—it is a huge college town.  They are used to setting up right next to Boston College, so they’re pumped.  They also know they have to adjust their menu to more of a college palate.  Serving Taco Bell would take care of that.  Hodge Podge is also excited, saying this is meat and potatoes country and the only thing they really want to worry about is adjusting their prices, to fit more the college student budget.  So, these two trucks are already strategizing.  However, The Lime Truck is just talking about how ridiculous this place is and they are questioning their headbands.  Just now?  They don’t see some frat guy coming up to their truck to buy food from three guys with headbands.

Yeah and I’m sure pretty sure you won’t see this either.

Seabirds wonder how many…wait for it…wait for it…VEGANS there will be!  They decide to just focus on great flavors like BBQ sauce and don’t really stress the Vegan focus of their truck.  Korilla is happy because BBQ is very big in Kansas, with Kansas City only a couple of hours away.  They’re all pumped up about introducing Korean BBQ and they’ll get everyone hooked on it.  All five of them.  HAHAHA.  So, in summary—The Lime Truck are the only ones being whiny about going to a small place.  Well, them and the local restaurant owners who will be losing a bunch of money over the weekend…

Thanks a lot, Food Network.  We had the sell the youngest boy, but thanks for coming to town…

As the trucks roll in to town, Tyler is there to greet them.  He tells them Manhattan is a mix of two kinds of people—solid, hardworking folks and students.  In fact, Kansas State University has 23,000 students.  Tyler tells the teams they will have to rethink their menu and their pricing.  The Lime Truck pipes up with “We’re clever”.  Tyler smirks at them and says yes, they are very clever and asks them what they’re going to do.  The Lime Truck says they’re going to dumb it down a little and everyone nervous laughs and stutters.  What a jerk.  Yes, please dumb it down.

Because you are way too cool for the Midwest.  Tool.

At this point, I was really hoping some of the college athletes would just come in and kick his ass, shoving his stupid headband up his…ahem.  Back to the show.  His own teammate is appalled that he said that also and he’s worried it will come back to haunt them.  Fingers crossed.  Tyler moves on to explain the Truck Stop for this week.  He goes on and on about how poor college kids are—shaking sofas for change and hoping Grandma sends them $5.00 and stuff and good night, Tyler—this is the most entitled generation ever!  I’m pretty sure they’re not all starving.  But to make his point—they all have to be able to cook cheaply.  He gives each team a $5.00 debit card (from Uncle Tyler) and they have to make something delicious.  They have 30 minutes to shop, plan and cook.  They will be judged by a Kansas City food critic.  Tyler warns them they do NOT want to blow this.  I would crack up if just once he changed his tune on that.

Or you can keep the $5.00 for a tall boy—I don’t care—this challenge doesn’t matter.

Roxy’s is more worried about the time, then the money.  Hodge Podge isn’t worried either.  Chris says, “When you’re Hodge Podge, you can make anything for $5.00.”  Well, that clears it up.  I think the Golden Corral can do that too, so okay….So, everyone scrambles in the store and in the trucks to get their dish finished in time.  The food critic is Charles Ferruzza.  Roxy’s is up first with their egg sandwich and Charles tells them there are too many tans and browns in the dish.

Coming from this guy.  Seriously.

The Lime Truck is up next and Tyler can’t wait to tattle on them, so he tells the critic what Dan said about “dumbing it down”.  Charles is not thrilled with the appearance of their dish.

Yep—still coming from this guy.

He goes on to say he could have made this in an EZ-Bake oven.  HAHA.  The Lime Truck bitches to us that this guy knows nothing about cooking—he just eats for a living.  Okay, I’ll agree the guy is not the most stylish in the world, but basically, that is what food critics do.  They eat food.

Then he eats the food and like…critiques it!  It is crazy!!

Hodge Podge doesn’t come off much better with their fish and chips.  Charles said it was too easy of a dish.  Seabirds are up next with a Kansas cupcake.   Charles asks what makes it “Kansas”, instead of responding, “Well, we made a real cupcake and sucked the intelligence, style and class out of it—that’s what makes it Kansas!”

That sounds delicious

They actually responded they made a semi-sweet BBQ sauce for it.  Charles likes it.  Korilla is up next with a King Korilla Burger and a history lesson on King Korilla, because as Korilla explains to us, the critic probably doesn’t eat much Korean.  These teams and their opinions are killing me.  I’m from the Midwest and ever since we got satellite and the interwebs, we are getting pretty wordly.  I mean, now I can watch “Green Acres” on 4 or 5 different channels.  Sigh.  Charles makes his decision and goes with the Seabirds!  The Seabirds finally won a challenge and get a huge advantage!!!

We can’t wait to squander our advantage!!!

Tyler tells the winning team their advantage.  They get to set up their truck in Aggieville, which is pretty much the center of town with all the bars, shops and restaurants.  Only one truck can be there all weekend and it is all Seabirds, all the time.  So good for them.  Tyler tells the other teams they can’t set up on campus because it is commencement weekend and it is off limits.  He gives them their seed money—highest of the season at $400.00 and tells them to keep their phones on and they are off!!

Roxy’s does a smart thing by calling ahead to a grocery store to place their order on the phone and save a ton of time.  The Lime Truck shops and tells us their burgers will be so awesome, they’ll just wash away the nasty comment they made earlier.  Korilla is thrilled to have found a Korean market.  Seabirds shop at the People’s Co-Op Market which specializes in fresh veggies.  Shopping by all teams has been completed.  Seabirds pull up in Aggieville and are shocked to find a crowd already waiting for them.  They tell us that because it is a small town, everyone knew they were coming.  They start preparing their menu of pulled “pork” (actually jack fruit), spinach dip and beer battered avocado tacos.

The Lime Truck wants to partner up with Hodge Podge and find a park.  Korillan BBQ is upset there chance at Aggieville is gone, so they are also heading to a park.  Specifically, City Park, which is only a few blocks away from Aggieville.  When the three trucks pull in, they are stunned to see a huge crowd waiting for them.  They all start preparing and Korilla is yelling at the crowd they aren’t dumbing anything down for them—what they serve in the Big Apple is what the Little Apple will also get.  The crowd cheers!  HAHA.  Roxy’s goes a different direction and decides to pull in next to a small college.  People actually follow them there.  James starts working the crowd, yelling what The Lime Truck said and telling them they should send them back to Orange County!

Yeah!  Let’s go get the torches!!

Back at the park, The Lime Truck is doing a bunch of burgers and talking about how this is probably the biggest thing to happen in Manhattan.  Tyler decides to do the speed bump a day early.  He calls the teams to announce the twist and reminds them what he said in the beginning—“Not to do anything fancy and I wasn’t sure all of you were listening”.  The Lime Truck is all, yeah, yeah, we’re listening.  Tyler tells them each team has to reduce their menu prices and nothing can be sold for over a dollar.  HAHA—now, that is a good speed bump.  Understandably, the teams are not happy about this turn of events.  This pricing must last all weekend.  The teams immediately change their menu boards and announce to the crowds that everything will be sold for a dollar.

Ask not what Hodge Podge can do for you.  Ask what you can do for Hodge Podge.

All of the teams struggle with how to make their ingredients last and how to make the most money.  Roxy’s decides to quarter their sandwiches and essentially sell sliders.  Korilla is using just one tortilla and making tacos—scrapping their burrito offering.  Korilla also comments they’ve never seen this many people gathered in a park.  Really?  I guess Central Park just doesn’t get many visitors.  Hmm…There I go again with my Midwest stupidity.  Seabirds are also doing half sized sandwiches but unsurprisingly are taking so long serving people, the line is moving very, very slowly.

All of the trucks have huge lines.  The Lime Truck is really struggling to simplify their gourmet menu and they decide to announce to the crowd they have to leave and re-work some things and they’ll be back.

We’ll be back, simpletons!  Just wander around and think of how much culture you don’t have!

So, they’re back at the grocery store, just disgusted with their options.  They can do junk food and deep fry stuff and their all concerned about losing their culinary integrity.  They should be worried about losing fans and regular patrons.  What a bunch of whinebags.  As the evening arrives, Seabirds decides to simplify their menu to appeal more to a bar crowd and are just doing jack fruit tortillas with slaw on the side.  Their goal is to make it easier on them to serve too.  What a novel idea!  Roxy’s is getting low on ingredients so they shut down to get more and when they come back, people are still there waiting for them.  James from Roxy’s just raves about the crowds.  Korilla is banging it out as usual.  And then this happens:

Wow.  Good thing wiping your snot on your friend’s shirt doesn’t hurt your culinary integrity.

Nasty.  The next day, everyone is back in their original spot.  Seabirds are doing pancakes, hummus and guacamole.  And guess what?  Yep, they are moving painfully slow.  Korilla’s line is really long and Jacquelyn from Hodge Podge goes over to take some of Korilla’s customers at the end of their line for her truck.  This does not make Steven from Korilla happy and he actually leaves the truck to go confront her, right in front of the crowd.

This would be so much more compelling if he were holding a big meat cleaver.

He is telling her that is crossing the line of Food Truck etiquette and she should have asked him.  They argue, he leaves to go back in the truck and she continues to take orders from his customers.  She doesn’t feel bad about it at all.  And with that, day two is over and it is time for the Elimination.

I saw this movie and the book was SO much better

Tyler greets the teams and announces first place—Korilla!  With total sales of $5245.00.  Wow—at a dollar a piece, that is pretty impressive.  In second place—Roxy’s at $5132.00.  Good for them!  (I’m kind of rooting for them).  In third place (and kind of a distant third) is Hodge Podge at $2880.00.  For being right next to the Korilla truck, that is a huge difference.  They should probably re-think their menu items or something.  That is just a huge disparity for going head to head with the same crowd opportunity.  So, the bottom two trucks are The Lime Truck (HAHAHA) and Seabirds.  In fourth place, The Lime Truck at $2768.00 and the Seabirds with $2332.00 in sales are going back to Orange County.  They really struggled most of these weeks because they are so ridiculously slow serving people.  They were nice enough and their food looked pretty good, but there is no way they can just plod along and expect to compete with trucks like Korilla.  So, good-bye our Vegan friends!

Try to do over 50 mph on your way home…

Next week, the teams are headed to Memphis and a Vegan (or Vegetarian—not sure) challenge.  LOL!  Oh, that’s just sad.  Also—someone else gets accused of cheating….Gosh, I hope it is The Lime Truck.  Can’t wait!!

Thanks for joining me!