Happy Bodega

Moveable sammy yumminess. Love that they come to my stretch of Chicago ave, which doesn’t have a ton of choices for lunch. The baquette bread is just soft enough, just hard enough to compliment the ingredients (I got ham & cheese — havarti, I think) but especially LOVE that dijon vinaigrette. Others have mentioned it, but I figured — how special can it be? But it was goooood.
My only criticism — I would have hoped for a bit more actual «stuff» (ham & cheese) in the sandwich, but this ain’t Potbelly’s, I know…

This is my favorite food truck. Everyone on the truck is very friendly. I enjoyed lunch from Happy Bodega at least half a dozen times this past fall. Now that we’re in the dead of January and Happy Bodega is on hiatus until the weather thaws, I’m really missing their tasty food.
I love the dijon vinaigrette that comes with sandwiches. The ham and the turkey are both delicious. The bread is perfect, crusty and thick. Towards the end of fall, I tried the ratatouille happy pocket and a cup of the short rib and barley soup. Both warmed me up on a chilly day and I loved the spice in the soup! The Seedling Apple Cider is so good, and the banana bread pudding with ‘nilla wafers hits the spot!
Yes, the sandwiches may seem pricey to some. But… they’re better than the average sandwich from a sub shop. To be honest, I didn’t find myself spending more than I would have on lunch at Hannah’s Bretzel, Potbelly’s, Pret A Manger, Protein Bar, etc.

I always get the turkey sandwich when these guys come around. I’m thrilled when a truck is near, simply because there’s not much to eat around 600 West Chicago, but this place is definitely good.
The bread is a liiiiittle tricky, and it’s this odd gray color, but it doesn’t taste bad. The ingredients seem to be pretty fresh, but the honey mustard vinaigrette dip makes all of them taste virtually the same.
For the price, I’d skip it and go to Snarfs, especially in the winter when no one really wants a cold sandwich over a hot one. I will say that I like their happy pockets. They’re very small, but delicious. I’ve yet to try their soup so hopefully that will swing my review for the better the next go round!

I’m all about the food truck trend train, and proud of it!
Happy Bodega is so cute! I love that there’s 50s music playing with flowers and bright colorful signs (mind you, the last time I visited was one of those oddly beautiful October days).
Their happy pockets are indeed happy. I love that there’s a heart on the bun! I had the «gotta guy» pocket which was exactly what was promised, «a grown-​up hot pocket».
Don’t skimp out on the banana pudding! The banana chunks and nilla wafers make it awesome.

Prices are high even if the quality of food on offer is very good. The soup portions for the soup and sandwich combo and the banana bread pudding portions are laughably small.
I’d suggest dropping prices by 40% or doubling the size of sides and deserts at a minimum. The Happy Bodega truck won’t last too long across the street from The Pasta Bowl truck unless some very serious adjustments are made very quickly.
A nice lady is behind this venture. I do hope that things work out for her.

i’m in serious love with food trucks and the freedom they give entrepreneurs. there are a lot of good cooks out there that simply don’t have the capital to get into bricks and mortar. food trucks mitigate that problem. also, i hold these trucks to a higher standard.
happy bodega is from new york and will be one of the first trucks to cook when/​if the city passes the ordinance. i hope the quality of their food improves – the potato soup I had tasted over-​salted and stale (dare I call it processed?) which is a major, major bummer.
i’m going to call this first encounter a strike out, but will give this truck another shot when they are cooking live and not selling pre-​made.

I am making the food truck rounds… huge fan of the concept. Happy Bodega’s offerings are not as unique or fun as the other trucks I’ve eaten from — Gaztro-​Wagon and Meatyballs — but they have good, normal sandwiches. The only thing that makes them different is that they are served w/​a French vinaigrette, which is admittedly delicious, but otherwise the sandwich is pretty plain and boring… turkey and cheese on a baguette. However, the banana bread pudding was really really yummy and such a great dessert to offer, but at $ 4 for a small serving, I wouldn’t get it again. Seriously, anyone can make a whole batch of banana pudding for $ 4…it’s like the easiest dessert to make! So I might get another sandwich from Happy Bodega, but with the other food trucks having much better options/​food for the same prices, I would likely get lunch from one of them over Bodega any day.

This little truck of happiness brightened my hungover stroll to the El this morning. I went with a sausage fennel concoction that was savory and life changing and filled with cheese and vegetable goodness. Fortunately I brought it to work and dined on white linen and china as devouring it on-​the-​go could have proven to be difficult. It looked like they could prepare any kind of coffee beverage you desired and their description of lunch offerings sounded unreal Amanda, the proprietor, is as sweet as sugar, a world class chef and easy on the eyes… a dangerous combo when it comes to slanging breakfast sandwiches and coffee. Overall the food is great, and it is a great idea that I hope succeeds– definitely something Chicago needs.

Crop to Cup Coffee and sweets in the morning, then sandwiches and snacks in the afternoon. The sandwiches are long and thin — coming on a crispy baguette. They all come with a Signature French Vinaigrette, which I like to dip my sandwich and my chips in. I think the turkey is the best, but it’s all good stuff. Food trucks are great! Follow them on twitter to track the HB down: