Meatyballs Mobile

I ordered a take out because I was in a hurry. Good thing I spotted this place while I was on my way to an important meeting. The BBQ balls were good but not that exciting for my taste. Still it did serve the purpose of filling my stomach that time. I’ll try out the rest on their menu the next time I spot this place.

UPDATE: Foss is giving up the truck to concentrate on indoor dining. See:

I will dearly miss the Hot Brown special they introduced last summer, if not third grader nutsack jokes. R.I.P. Meatyballs, it was a good run.

So this place was at Ethyl’s for the Thursday night food truck-​aganza.
I was a virgin to this experience so I was really excited about trying all of the food trucks.
The guy serving the meatballs was really nice… however, the meatballs failed to deliver :(
We tried the original and the thai’d. Both didnt really have that flavor that you wanted from a meatball and they were surrounded in bread so I think the whole thing just tasted pretty bland. Boo. No yummy zing in flavor or spicy-​ness to these
The guy that was there said that the BBQ was his favorite so maybe we should’ve tried that one… but for me… it wasnt anything that I would try again.
For $ 3 a pop, the price wasnt bad.

Torpedo Thai Balls for lunch today, the turkey balls, coconut sauce, and sweet pepper went really well together.
I hated the bread. It was too much bread and the insides soaked up all the sauce becoming extremely soggy, then the sauce became overly thick. Ended up just eating the balls, threw away about 95% of the bread.

MBM, as I used to have to called it, was a risqué, naughty name I couldn’t say, let alone visit. I wanted to, oh how I wanted to. But how was I supposed to visit this elusive food truck if I couldn’t even utter the name of the sandwich I so desired? I blushed at the thought of whispering the dirty play on coq au vin, nestled into a submarine roll, that I so desperately craved. I even felt dirty following them on Twitter. The sexual inneundos made me feel devious just reading them.
So many scenarios played through my mind, «What if I wrote it down on a Post-​It and just handed it to the driver? If I actually say the name… I can’t possibly still wear my pearls anymore, right? My grandmother would die… oh but the sandwich looks so incredible… maybe I’ll just say ‘red wine chicken, please!’… no that’s just asking for ridicule… I’m not a prude, I’m just… okay I’m a prude. But I really want that stupid sandwich…»
In the end, a hectic Friday morning coupled with horrendous hunger pains and a FourSquare check-​in coupon led me to that sordid vehicle of phallic implications, where to my astonishment, I ordered the infamous poultry. I won’t lie, I still said «the chicken torpedo, please!», but it’s okay. The driver knew exactly was I was referring to and said the name for me.
I’d like to say I’m now able to shout Meatyballs Mobile from the rooftops with no hestitation, but I can’t. It’s still the MBM to me, but that’s just fine. Because now I know they can interpret Prude, and I can enjoy coq au vin without disgracing my dear grandmother, or losing the pearls :)

I have enjoyed Meatyballs selections on two occassions. The first time I ate the Schweddy Balls (fortunately the wacky nicknames are topped by the excellent taste!). Schweddy Balls are made with Tunisian-​style lamb and chicken with zesty tomato sauce, so the sandwich tasted like an amped-​up Subway meatball sub (this is actually a compliment!). BBQ Balls are made with pulled pork shoulder, topped with red cabbage, a smidge of apple and cola-​bourbon BBQ sauce, yum. Amazingly, the sandwiches never seem extremely messy to eat — the ingredients somehow hold up well. I also sampled my friend’s coq au vin-​style balls, good but not as good as Schweddy or BBQ. I also sampled his chocolate salty balls dessert item, again good but not great. This entire review probably sounds bizarre and sketchy at face value, but it is actually all good news so look for the Meatyballs Mobile! Just do it!

I’m a big fan of the food truck. So the day before I left for Chicago this week I made sure to check out some of the food trucks driving around town. Meatyballs was my first food truck in Chicago and boy is it a tasty one.
I opted to try (3) different balls (grenades) as opposed to one hero (which they call a torpedo). For about $ 9 they filled me up for the next few hours and tasted great.
First up was the BBQ Ball… pork shoulder with red cabbage, apples and a smoky bbq sauce. Hit the spot for sure. Next I tried the MeatyBall… pork/​beef combo with a cheese truffle sauce. Totally delish. Loved the sauce. Third but certainly not least was the Buff Ball. I think this one was my favorite… buffalo chicken, celery, hot sauce and crumbled blue cheese. The chicken was so soft and moist it fell apart. And the fact that they put on actual crumbly blue was a big plus (I realllly don’t like creamy blue cheese dressing. Yuck)
My only complaint for the MeatyBall Mobile truck is that the grenades and torpedoes aren’t made right there in front of you. It looks as though they make a few dozen of each in the morning… wrap them up, label them and put them in the back of their truck (which doubles as warm oven). When I first read about the truck I was visualizing a guy with 6 pots of meatballs… all heated by water underneath … and each sandwich made on the spot when you walk up. I know this could be time consuming… but I think it would really kick the balls up a notch. While my grenades were delish… they were messy and the bread a little soggy.
Overall though a great find in the Windy City. Glad I stopped by. Definitely recommending.

I am fortunate to work at an intersection where several food trucks tend to congregate. I have enjoyed subs from here several times over the past many months since they began. The first (before I turned veg) was the booya balls made of crab and I found them delicious, as I did the truffle chips. Since then I have also had the risotto balls and the Beaty Balls (both vegetarian, and not sure if i am totally right about the name of the second one), both also very good. Yes, they are a little pricey but I think they are good quality and in this economy I like to support smaller entrepreneurs. Uh, not that their balls are small. I just like to avoid big boxes. Wait, that didn’t sound right either.
Just go and grab em and savor.

QUICK ONE-​LINE SUMMARY: Gourmet meatballs galore with variety — they’re better when you get there early and yes, I dig the chips!
First — Meatyballs Mobile popped my Chicago Street Truck cherry. I went to their Dearborn /​Monroe (MB1) location which is placed in a nice spot if a line forms, cause then you’re not blocking passing pedestrians. The truck server was cool and how can you not chuckle a bit when all he does is yell out puns on «gettin’ balls.» I’ve been here a couple of times and have gotten the BBQ Balls & the Thai’d Balls.
Warning — the BBQ Balls can get a bit sloppy with the sauce, which is soaked up in the bread. The mix of red cabbage and apples brings the flavor of the sauce out and really does a number for the pork. Meatballs were soft and since I’ve had this a couple of times, definitely better when the truck first arrives.
Next — the thai’d balls were actually less on the true Thai food stylings of heat. I was expecting a bit more spiciness, but that fell short. The turkey balls were a little dry and for this particular sub, there was probably more bread than meat. We need more «balls to the walls» action!
Lastly — each time I’ve gone, I’ve gotten their chips and always enjoyed them. Crunchy crunchy crunchy. A bag of these with a meatball torpedo, is more than enough food at the usual Chicago downtown lunch pricing ($ 7 — $ 10).
Overall, I enjoy the fact that MB1 isn’t too far for me and doesn’t get too crazy with a line. I like these balls and look forward to trying a new one out soon.

I like the concept and I want to try more of the sandwiches.
Meatballs were flavorful, bread was soggy and the sandwich was very heavy (literally and figuratively)
I’d go back to try more kinds.

I want to give a 5 because it’s my new Thursday meal and it will stay that way for a long time. I’ve had 4 of their sandwiches now and I can say I’ve liked each one I’ve tried. Particularly, I love the meatyballs and buff balls torpedos.
Only reason for a 1 star deduction is the thought that the product could be a bit better if made on the spot like if the truck. This is by far my favorite Chicago food truck.
So good… If only they had a small shop in the loop… I’d be so happy…

I’m lucky enough to have the Meatyballs Mobile parked pretty close to my office on a regular basis. I’ve tried a few more meatyballs in the past month or so.
The menu changes slightly, which is good because I like to try new things. I’ll try anything twice. So far, my fav meatyballs sammich is the Thai’d balls. Yum. The Booya balls are pretty good too.
The chocolate salty balls weren’t as good as I’d hoped. The truffle chips are pretty addictive though.
I can’t wait till the weather is nicer and I can enjoy a meatyballs lunch outside in the sun.

Much like watching the movie Homeward Bound my Meatyballs Mobile experience was an emotional roller coaster, though thankfully I did not cry public.
I am a food truck stalker, I just came across the Droid AP truXmap which puts all the twitter feeds from Chicago’s food trucks in one spot, there is a God! Meatyballs Mobile was one of my last food truck conquest and my excitement has been building over the past few months to get my hands on some of Foss’s balls… okay, I have met my quota for balls jokes, I’m done.
There were about 15 people in line for these delicious Meatyballs and the line moved oh so slow in those frigid winter temps, though I can’t complain because Foss himself is such a nice guy and took time to converse with his customers. They do take credit cards but bring cash unless you want everyone behind you in line to HATE you, learned this one the hard way!
2 Girls
1 Meatyballs — Mushrooms, Shallots, Farmstead Cheese Sauce, Truffle Oil — ($ 8) AMAZING !!! Great texture and great flavor thanks to the rich cheese sauce!
1 Lobster Balls– ($ 9) just okay flavor and the texture was too soft, pass on this one
1 Truffle Dusted Potato Chips — ($ 2) very large portion though slightly inconsistent with their garlicky deliciousness.
1 Chocolate Salty Balls — ($ 3) They look like delicious little truffles and I do love the added flavor of the sea salt sprinkled on top though would pass on these next time, not sure how to explain them, not worth the calories.
$ 22 total so $ 11 each and I think its safe to say a food coma was had by all.
UPDATE:
Got three Grenades today and they are definitely the way to go since you get to sample multiples. The Meatyballs seemed less saucy than the Torpedo version, the Club on special was good but my favorite was the BBQ balls !!
I would definitely hit up Meatyballs mobile again as its a great value and the original Meatyballs sub was amazing, though next time I will be skipping the sides, its just too much food!

Meatyballs anyone? They’re truly yummy ya know. The meatyballs mobile came by the AON today and I tried the «sweddy balls» sandwich. outside of the cool name for a sandwich which obviously made it attractive to try, it tasted very good. one of the best sandwiches i’ve had in a long time. really meaty, great mix of Indian and american flavors into one. made up ground up lamb, chicken, and potato meatballs in a steawy sauce that included eggplant, onions, tomatoes, and other vegetables. bread wasn’t too thick or thin, it was just right. and for a sandwich that came from a food truck, it was really good.
I also hear that the BBQ sandwich is also really good and that the buffalo chk version is just ok. Gotta try more — but not too crazy about the price — $ 8/​sandwich.

After two sandwiches from the Meatyballs Mobile, I’m ready to declare my fandom. So here it goes: Yay! I’m a fan!
Meatyballs Mobile is one (actually two, there’s a Meatyballs1 & a Meatyballs2) of the growing number of food trucks around Chicago. From my perspective, this is a most welcome trend! More options for lunch and snacks/​desserts can only be a good thing. And the best part is that putting it in a truck drastically lowers the barriers to entering certain markets (like the Loop). It also allows them to serve multiple areas without needing to maintain a costly physical presence in each. What I’m getting at is I’m a fan of the basic concept of mobile food!
Speaking of concepts, MM’s food concept is pretty simple. They serve balls of various types of food on bread and a couple basic sides. That’s it. Their menu is available online.
So far I’ve tried the BBQ Balls and Meatyballs. Both are very good, but I liked the Meatyballs a bit more. Perhaps it was the cheese sauce & truffle oil adorning those delectable balls of beef & pork! They do have a vegetarian (Ricotta Balls) and a fish (Honey & Mustard Glazed Salmon Balls) option for those who aren’t big on meat. Oh, and they have Not Yo’ Daddy’s Ball, which assumes you’re not a cow I guess, as they’re bull testicles! That’s one I’ll probably leave to those more adventurous than I. The sandwiches are a hearty size, and cost $ 7 – 9 a piece.
The side options are truffle dusted potato chips («homemade», $ 2) which are excellent and chocolate salty balls ($ 3) which I’ve yet to try.
The reason for 4 stars? Well it’s not entirely fair I suppose, but I can’t bring myself to love premade sandwiches. The bread gets soggy, there are temperature issues, etc. Of course, it’s not MM’s fault that they have to premake their sammies… all the food trucks in Chicago premake their food. Nevertheless, the fact is the sandwiches would be better served up fresh, and suffer a little by being made and wrapped up in advance.
But that won’t stop me from coming back for more!
You can find where the MMs are by following them on Twitter @fossfoodtrucks or going to their web site.
If you’ll excuse me, I have to wipe the sweat from my brow. Getting through this review without a single double entendre on my part was a Herculean effort! But really, the jokes are just too easy, and I prefer a challenge!

I finally got my hands on some Meatyballs today.
For some reason I could never get it together to actually find any of the several food trucks I follow on Twitter, but today the stars aligned. I logged into Twitter and the first thing that popped up in my newsfeed was from @FossFoodTrucks telling me the Meatyballs truck was touching down about 10 mins from my office. Granted, it was only 11:15am, and I had a nice, healthy lunch all packed and ready to eat in my office fridge, but I thought, «F it. I want huge, delicious sandwich and I’m going to get one.»
The truck is pretty small and non-​descript. It actually looks like a water cooler delivery truck except for the little sign propped up on the sidewalk advertising the various balls. Just a little heads up if you’re expecting something big, bold and, well, really noticeable. Because I was.
Being my virgin trip to Meatyballs Mobile, I decided to go with the classic Meatyballs sandwich. The very nice dude working at the truck also sold me on some truffle potato chips. I grabbed my $ 10 lunch (they do accept credit cards), stuffed it in my bag and trekked back to the office.
My Meatyball sammy (meatballs, mushrooms, shallots, four cheese sauce and truffle oil) was gooooood. The meat to topping to bread ratio was perfection. My balls were incredibly moist, the shallots and mushrooms were nicely sautéed and the cheese sauce was sinfully delicious. It’s a hearty portion, too. As I’m typing this I’m pretty sure I’m going to slip into a coma soon. It’s a definite culinary step up from Subway.
The truffle chips were not bad, either. Normally housemade chips are soggy and oily, but these bad boys were pretty crisp. I didn’t really taste much truffle, but that’s neither here nor there. The chips were a delightful accompaniment to the Meatyball sandwich.
Should I be ready to go when Meatyballs Mobile lands in my area again, I’m on it.
Sandwich win.

Put em in my mouth!!!
So happy that they have a stop down the street from where I work. I’ve passed by a number of times and there is always a line. So I actually decided to stop and read the awesomely hilarious menu and did the deed — got me some meaty balls!
They have a good variety of meatball sandwiched, seafood, vegetarian, and just a lot of different combos of topppings.
The Meaty ball sandwich had a four cheese sauce, mushrooms, shallots, and truffle — doesn’t that sound heavenly!!!
At first I thought the sandwich was a little on the pricey side — but for fresh yummy gigantic balls – not so much. Loved it. The truffle chips — great flavor—
Can’t wait to try some other yummy balls!

I love the model of an inventive kind of food truck that uses Twitter to announce its location for the day. Okay, so Meatyballs isn’t all that «secret» about it, and they do update their website as well if you don’t give a hoot about Tweets!
A casual lunch visit with the lovely Kate M. was slated, and Meatyballs was the perfect grab-​n-​go choice. Plenty of sandwiches to choose from on the menu, I even saw «Schweddy Balls» (SNL) just as I hoped. Wait, that came out wrong. The joke is not lost on the owner, who couldn’t have been nicer.
We got two sandwiches:
Thai’d Balls– texture kind of mushy, but the turkey with coconut and green peppers was really tasty.
BBQ Balls– Pulled Pork with red cabbage and a cola-​bourbon sauce. Excellent!
The chocolate salty balls were a bit of a disappointment, and reminded me of a Butterfinger candy bar, but made with soggy cake. They weren’t the belle of the balls, oh well.
Check their Tweets, downtown worker bees. The next time someone tells you to get a pair, you can say «I just might, I just might!»

Social media is delicious! I received a tweet meatyballs was in my area so I hopped on my bike.
My first impression rolling up to Lawrence and Ravenswood was a bit sketchtacular as there was an unmarked food truck with no signs or meatyball branding like the truck on their website. I did a quick ride by and it was meatyballs but they only had a small white board sign.
I had already decided upon the BBQ balls and some chocolate salty balls
The BBQ Balls I would give 3.5 stars — My first initial meatball was sorta dry and the whole time I was eating it I was thinking I would do some sort of slaw or onion compote because I know from experience pork can dry out quick. When I made it to the middle meatball I hit some delicious onions and more sauce! That brought the awesome and the rest was a delight.
Chocolate Salty Balls 0 stars — Only because I didn’t get them! When I opened the bag there were no Chocolate salty balls (how many jokes can you make with that sentence!). I was pretty bummed but alas there were amazing truffle chips instead. It must have been a simple mistake and I do have to say the chips paired up amazingly with the sandwich.

The newest food truck to hit the Chicago scene, chef Phillip Foss has left the kitchens of Lockwood to join the latest craze in the restaurant world. Chef Foss was there to talk with us and was very laid back. We talked a bit about social networking and such before taking off. No line, but it was the first official day, so hopefully word of mouth spreads.
My co-​workers and I each got the meatball sub, which he said was his favorite. Lots of cheese, very aromatic, and the bread was perfect. The inside was softened up from the sauce (but not too saucy), while the outside remained chewy. The meatballs were filling and juicy.
While $ 8 feels like a lot for a sandwich (and it is, honestly), it was pretty darn good quality. I’ll be back if he’s ever in the Loop again… and if they can get their Foursquare working. I want my badges!