The Filipino Cart

CLOSED

Location: N Vancouver and Fremont
Hours: Mon-Sat, 11am-10pm

The Story: Mexican, American BBQ, Mauritian and now Filipino. The lot at N Fremont and Vancouver is quickly becoming a melting pot of international cuisine. The Filipino Cart, one of the few Filipino vendors in the city, serves up lumpia daily.

Portland has had a few Filipino vendors come and go over the years. As a result, I’ve been introduced to the diverse cuisine the culture offers. With influences from both Asia and Europe and beyond, you’ll see items on the menu that may surprise you. At The Filipino Cart, the menu is extensive and may be daunting for some, so I recommend either asking for guidance or just picking something and taking a tastebud adventure. I always start with lumpia which seem like the national dish – a fried egg roll with shredded onion, carrots and pork. I almost ordered item number two, Salt and Pepper Calamari, but wanted to try something new, so read through the menu then asked for advice. Bopis! A quick answer from the chef. A spicy dish with pork and liver sauteed in tomato, chili and onion and served with rice. I haven’t been a fan of liver since I was a kid, but the way it was prepared here changed my mind. A great mix of meat and veggies.

Bopis

The Filipino Cart also offers Halo-halo, a popular Filipino dessert that is a mixture of shave ice and evaporated milk with various boiled sweet beans and fruits added. If that doesn’t entice a visit, I’m not sure what would. The vendors at this lot are staying open late into the night, so if you’re looking for dinner or late night nosh, drop on by. Let them know Food Carts Portland sent ya.

Sample Menu:

• Laeng: dried taro leaves cooked in coconut milk – $6.90
• Tocino: cured pork marinated in sweet red sauce and served with rice and eggs – $6.90
• Beef Stew: braised ribs slowly simmered in dark sauce with hot and sweetness – $6.90
• Bistek Tagalog: onions and strips of sirloin beef slow cooked in soy sauce and lemon juice – $6.90
• Letchon Kawali: pork belly deep fried in kawali, a deep frying pan, served with soy sauce and vinegar – $7.90
• Chicken Adobo: chunks of chicken or pork both cooked in soy sauce, bay leaf and garlic – $6.90

Phone: (503) 396-3452
Facebook: The Filipino Cart

Quick & Dirty

CLOSED

Location: SW Montgomery and Park
Hours: daily, 8am-2pm

The Story: Portland State has the luxury of the Portland Park Blocks that cut through the campus. Entrepreneurial food cart vendors know college students are hungry. Quick & Dirty knows they want bagels and coffee.

Quick & Dirty is the work of Roy Parr who built a cool little cart with a Colman stove and serves up a quick morning snack. With bagels from Bowery Bagel and french press or pour-over coffee from 5 Points Coffee, Roy offers an alternative to the coffee giant across the street. You’ll notice the cart is different than others around town. With new regulations that came into effect in 2012, his Class 3 cart is required to have hot and cold running water, so you’ll notice a little water heater on the side. A great design. Also, take a look at his sign. He’s spoting his NYC roots.

Everything bagel from Quick & Dirty

An everything bagel with cream cheese is a favorite breakfast food of mine and Roy chose a great partner in Bowery. If you’re in the area, drop on by and say hi. He’s there in front of the Simon Benson House daily and will expand to Saturdays once the Portland Farmers Market re-opens in March. Let him know Food Carts Portland sent ya.

Sample Menu:

• Bagels – $2; with schmear – $3
• Coffee- $1.75-2.75

Web: QuickandDirtyPDX.com
Twitter: @_QuickandDirty

Filippe’s Food Shack

CLOSED
Location: SW 10th and Alder
Hours: Mon-Fri, 11:30-4pm

The Story:

One bit of advice I give all budding food cart owners is to focus on one item and do it extremely well. We see some of the most successful vendors in the scene doing just that. Filippe’s Food Shack is doing apple wood smoked chicken.

Filippe’s Food Shack

The cart where Philip Stanton spends his lunch hour formerly served Thai, but when he took it over, he painted it flat black with a chalkboard style name and kept it simple. Philip, also known as Filippe has a smoker running daily with applewood to make his savory chicken. One can get a small plate with once piece or a large with two. Each dish comes with sides including whipped yukon gold potatoes, sauteed mushrooms, or a mixed green salad. Smoked chicken done right keeps the juices in and infuses the skin with great bold flavors. The sauteed mushrooms were so good, I almost went back just for them. Every part of the meal was put together with care for quality and taste.

Filippe’s Food Shack smokes their chicken daily, but in the past has offered other dishes, so keep an eye on their chalkboard for daily specials. Drop on by, enjoy a home cooked style meal and let Filippe know Food Carts Portland sent ya.

Hours: Mon-Fri, 11:30-4pm or until sold out
Phone: 714 655 7164

The Slammer Burgers

CLOSED
Location: N Killingsworth and Greeley, North Station
Hours: Daily, lunch

The Story:

The food cart pod North Station in the Overlook neighborhood has seen a lot of changes since opening in 2010. While the original vendors who called it home for a season or more have moved on, there are new players like The Slammer Burgers who see opportunity.

The Slammer Burgers isn’t necessarily a new vendor. The bright red cart was a fixture down on Belmont for a year before moving north. As you can imagine, the cart features burgers and a quick review of the menu points to a creative mind in sandwich making and naming. Maybe you’re a simple burger eater – get the ‘Solitary’ with just a burger on a bun. Or, possibly, you don’t want beef – get the ‘Jail Bird’ with a turkey burger. I wanted some bold tastes, so grabbed the ‘I Got the Blues’ with blue cheese, pickled cabbage, onion and pesto aioli. Served on a pub bun from Portland French Bakery, the mixture of the creamy blue cheese with the vinegared pickled cabbage was genius. We were able to pop inside Handsome Pizza on the lot and enjoy our burgers out of the rain.

I got the Blues from The Slammer Burgers

The Slammer Burgers joined just a few others on the lot and offers a great product for a good price. Drop on by and enjoy a burger or fries and let them know Food Carts Portland sent ya.

Sample Menu:

• The Slammer – burger with the fixin’s – $6
• I got the Blues – burger with blue cheese, pickled cabbage, onion and pesto aioli – $6
• Solitary – burger along on a bun – $5
• Jail Bird – turkey burger with fixin’s and avocado spread – $6
• I Object! – gardenburger – $6

Website: TheSlammerBurgers.com
Facebook: The Slammer Burgers

Kitchenette

CLOSED

Location: SW 10th & Alder
Hours: 11am-6pm, Mon-Fri

The Story: Kitchenette, a cozy cart located on 10th and Alder with a white interior clean and bright, beckons on a gray Portland day. Owner Nelly Ozgur moved here three years ago, but originally lived in Turkey and Italy. Her dishes are lovingly prepared, and one feels like you are hanging out in the kitchen of your big sister, waiting for a home cooked meal.

Nelly is very friendly and polite, and we spoke for awhile about her extensive menu. I finally ordered the Linguine with chicken while learning her husband Mustafar built the cart she now spends her days in. Another customer received his sandwich while I was waiting, and I couldn’t help but notice the large portions.

With the rain falling in earnest, I bid Nelly goodbye and returned to my office. The smell of my linguine wafted across the nearby desks, and everyone was asking what smelled so good. The linguine was cooked perfectly, with a delicate balance of flavors. I enjoyed the way the cheese, herbs and garlic clung to the pasta, with an occasional bit of sun-dried tomato to add a nice tang. The portion was huge and piping hot, exactly what one needs on a drizzly day.

Linguine with Chicken from Kitchenette

I look forward to returning and trying one of Kitchenette’s authentic Italian sandwiches. Kitchenette is cash only, so be prepared the next time you crave a homemade Italian meal. Let them know Food Carts Portland sent you.

Sample Menu:
Cash Only

Salad

• Italian Caprese Salad $5.50
• Italian Salad $6.00

Sandwiches

• Mufullatta—olive tapenade, dry salami, ham & mozzarella $6.50
• Italian Club—greens, tomato, Italian salami, chicken breast, cheese, olives & ham $6.50
• Italian Pita—tomato, greens, cucumber, cheese, chicken breast & balsamic $6.00

Pasta

• Penne alla vodka $6.50
• Linguine with meatball $6.50
• Linguine with chicken $6.50
• Penne with basil & pesto $6.00

Hours: 11am-6pm, Mon-Fri
Phone: 503.975.4421
Website: www.pdxkitchenette.com