Southern Speciality on Ice: Izzie's Ice

We had the 2nd Edition of Food Truck Friday at work yesterday. I missed the food part (I'd made other lunch plans) but wanted a refreshing treat on such a hot day. (Seriously--it's really already nearing triple digits? It's not even July yet!)

Luckily, Izzie's Ice was on hand.

This 100% natural, preservative-free Italian ice cart that serves up refreshing frozen sweets. If you've never had it, Italian ice is smooth and creamy like frozen yogurt or gelato but not milk-based. (Think of it almost like very finely chopped snow cone.)

On Friday, Izzie's was serving up lemon, mango, and peaches and cream, among several other flavors. The peaches and cream was made with coconut milk, which gave it an interesting twist on a standard flavor. The sample was delicious! However, I opted for mint tea, a Southern speciality. I'm not kidding when I say it was "iced" tea mixed with fresh mint. So yummy and refreshing!

Izzie's Ice mint tea ice!

Izzie's serves up 3 sizes--small, medium, and large--for $3, $4, or $5, respectively. The generous portions and unlimited free samples make it worth the price. (By comparison, those ubiquitous fro-yo shops charge at least that much and all the toppings aren't nearly as healthy!)

Next time you see the little orange ice cart under the perky umbrella, be sure to stop and sample some of Izzie's Italian Ice. You'll feel refreshed right away. A perfect summer treat!

Fresh From the Food Truck: Rollin' & Smokin'

The first week of my new job ended with a relatively new Nashville tradition: Food Truck Fridays.

Definition: a fleet of food trucks set up shop in a corporate parking lot, enticing employees out to try a variety of options, and donate a portion of the proceeds to a charitable cause.

In the first edition of our Food Truck Fridays, the one option I'd been dying to try was Rollin' & Smokin'. I'd spied this truck parked outside of Friedman's Army Navy store several times but had never had the chance to try it.  When I checked out the menu, I knew it was right up my Alabama alley.

This truck touts itself as GoreMade Southern Cuisine, and every dish is named after a member of the Gore family, an Alabama icon, or someone special to the Gores. (All of this is explained on the menu.)

My dad and I can eat barbecue together at pretty much the drop of a hat, so I knew I was going to enjoy this truck. When I read about Skyline's Mac & Cheese, with 3 different kinds of cheese and truffle oil, I knew I was going to love this truck!

Rollin' & Smokin's special of the day was a delicious concoction of Southern-ness: the HoDownHoCake. It started with a base layer of cornbread griddle cake, piled on the truffle oil mac & cheese, and topped it all off with my meat of choice--pulled pork and sweet barbecue sauce. It was Alabama in every bite.

Rollin' & Smokin's HoDownHoCake

Although my hair smelled like barbecue smoke for the rest of the day, this was definitely worth the $7 plus tax I paid and the bonding over food I did with my new coworkers. Next time you see the yellow truck rollin' down the street, stop and indulge in some good ol' fashioned feel-good food.

Hoss of a Burger

A friend was talking to me this morning about the disappointment you get when a meal isn't as good as you'd remembered it being. It had happened to her during lunch today, and sadly, it happened to me as well.

With no concrete lunch plans, I was excited to learn that the Hoss' Loaded Burgers truck was parked near my office today. It has been a long time since I've eaten one of their juicy, stuffed, grass-fed beef creations and, since I'd already treated myself to fancy coffee yesterday, why not continue the trend? (Yes, I know this is perhaps not the wisest money-management decision to make, but I am also supporting the local economy...right?)

The Hoss Burger boys endeared themselves to me last fall and I'd been anxious to get back to their truck. So I took advantage of a beautiful day, walked the short walk to the truck, and picked out a burger from one of their four specials, each stuffed with cheese and topped with appropriate fixin's.

For the record, I have NO idea why this keeps posting sideways...

I ordered the Big Kahuna burger, a patty stuffed with Swiss cheese and topped with a pineapple slice and teriyaki  sauce. Sounded delicious for only $7. A sign in the window said for maximum juiciness and deliciousness, all burgers were cooked to medium-ish. They even asked before they through my patty on the grill. I said that was fine because, well, they are the burger experts and who am I to argue with them? I should've requested more medium-well. It was pretty raw in the middle. I won't post a picture of that, but I will say (in case my mother is reading), I did put the patty in the microwave back at the office to get it edible by Jessica standards.

Again with the sideways...ugh!

Other than that, and the fact that it was supremely messy, the burger was pretty good. Although, not as good as I remembered it being.  Not as stellar as I'd hoped for my lunch. But, compared to the $7-9 you would spend on fast food, this was a much better use of my money and probably healthier too, minus the fries and Coke.

Do try it out, though. Don't give up on them! Just make sure when you do venture to Hoss' Loaded Burgers, that you are not about to go into a meeting, eat in your car, or otherwise trying to impress the person with whom you are dining. I have tried both types of fries, sweet potato fries or their unique rosemary-parmesan, and they are both delicious. A small order is only $2 and is plenty when paired with the large burger.

 

I do apologize for the lack of cooperation with my photos. I have no idea what's going on with them.

Coffee from a Truck

You know those days when things don't go exactly the way you planned them? When something is not quite right, but when someone asks what is wrong you have nothing specific to say? I felt that way today, and have for awhile actually. Which partially explains my blogging hiatus. (Hiatus? Oh, you didn't notice...well, in that case, forget what I just said and keep reading!) 

Some people (the movie Office Space, the author of The Phantom Tollbooth, wannabe psychologists looking everywhere for a diagnosis) might call this feeling a Case of the Mondays, or The Doldrums, or Seasonal Affective Disorder. Whatever it is, I might have found a cure. At least for today!

Today, I heard about a new food truck. Food trucks seem to be the new cupcakeries of Nashville and I have had great intentions of posting about my favorites and my not-so-faves.

Quick list: 

• Brake For: Hoss' Loaded Burgers, Grilled Cheeserie.
•  Keep Rollin' For: Mere Bulles, Ken's Hot Spot. 
• I'm Looking to Stop For: Mas Tacos, Deg Thai, and Smoke Et Al 

Anyway, thanks to good ole' Twitter, I learned of a new truck today: The Coffee Truck. The perfect thing to cure my Moody Monday. Yes, there are 5-7 great coffee shops within a 5-mile radius of my office that I theoretically could patron anytime I choose. But something about knowing The Coffee Truck was in my vicinity today raised my spirits. So I changed my lunch plans to include a  direct route passed where the mobile coffee shop was parked and off I went. 

The Coffee Truck, courtesy of thecoffeetrucknashville.com

I'd done by research ahead of time and learned that it is run by a passionate bro & sis duo from Costa Rica and the truck boasts a "One Planet, One Coffee" motto. I was immediately impressed by the true coffee house feel the truck exudes. Dark wood cabinets, shiny silver coffee equipment. You'd never  guess this place rolls around Music City! 

The menu offered your standard fare: cappuccinos, lattes, Americanos, etc. All for about $2. I could've gone the more frugal route, but I can get that anywhere! At The Coffee Truck I wanted to try the specialty, so I shelled out $3.57 for Today's Special, the Cubanito. A blend of espresso, sweetened condensed milk, and steamed milk. Automatic pick-me-up!

I was disappointed in the size. 6 (or was it 8?) oz. for $3.57? The other cups were much larger and only $2. But the taste certainly didn't disappoint! (I mean, when you're buying coffee to brighten your mood you want to make sure you get something good, right?) Coming from a girl who typically drinks only black coffee, or a cafe au lait if I'm feeling really frisky, the sweetened condensed milk (Pet Milk) could've been too much sweet. But it was just the right amount to make it stand out from my morning coffee without making me want to bounce off walls. The coffee was rich and left you without a bitter aftertaste. Really, with all the sweet I couldn't have had a much bigger cup, it would've been dangerous. But you'd better believe I savored those 6 oz. of sweetness for a good hour at my desk!

My coffee, Cuban-style!

Apparently The Coffee Truck will be back at Friedman's Army Navy store on 21st Ave. again next Monday. I predict this working out very well for my spirits and not-so-very-well for my spending habits. I do want to return and try the coffee for coffee's sake, not muddle the flavors with rich milks and sugars. Stay tuned, I'll let you know how that goes. 

Until then, drink up! Slow down, and stop for a food truck or two. And be sure to let me know what you like.