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P L AT E S
Favourite Street Eats
Words and photos by Mijune Pak
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Z O O M I N G T H R O U G H VA N C O U V E R ’ S
STREET FOOD SCENE
Who would have thought Vancouver would be
a leader in the street food industry in Canada?
But, we are. Actually, we are known for our
impressive food truck scene in general even
in the context of North America, and it has
become part of our food culture.
The city has over a hundred food trucks opened
by cooks and professional chefs, and the
options are diverse, just like our restaurants.
Besides offering eclectic and sophisticated
menus, food truck owners are also taking
social responsibility. Many are supporting
local ingredients and taking environmentally
friendly initiatives in their day-to-day
operations.
M O G U J A PA N E S E S T R E E T E AT S
Mogu means “to chew” or “munch” in Japanese, and “mogu-mogu”
is a Japanese saying. This Mogu offers a few mainstay sandwiches
including a Pork Miso Katsu, Chicken Teriyaki and Kabocha
Korokke, which come in a fluffy potato bun sourced from a local
bakery. While their Japanese-inspired sandwiches are good, my
favourite item is actually their Sweet & Spicy Chicken Karaage. It
is marinated deep-fried, crispy chicken with house-made sweet chili
sauce, and it’s a flavour bomb for your mouth.
Relative to other North American cities,
Vancouver’s street food scene is quite
glamourous. It is popular with locals and
tourists alike, and while street food is meant to
be convenient, many go to seek it out.
I’m not a fan of “best of ” lists since food is
personal, but I’ve tried most of the food trucks
in the city and these are eight of my favourites.
TA C O F I N O – T H E O R A N G E TA C O T R U C K
Tacofino is a leader in Vancouver’s food truck scene. They originally
started in Tofino and brought their food truck business to Vancouver
in 2011. Since then they have opened Tacofino Commissary, a sitdown restaurant, and another food truck – The Blue Burrito Truck.
They specialize in West Coast-style tacos and their Tuna Ta-Taco
features lightly seared sesame-soy albacore tuna, wasabi-ginger mayo,
shredded cabbage, mango salsa and seaweed salad on a fire-toasted
flour tortilla. Their Chocolate Diablo Cookie made with fresh ginger
and chili, milk chocolate chunks and salty sprinkles is a grown-up
dessert that sells out often. Many items here sell out often for good
reason, too!