51st State

I was devastated when I discovered that 51^st State has ceased operations. Those guys that ran the truck were really cool and their food was pretty unique.
Their Patty Melt was good.
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The Banana Cream Pie was OMGYUM!
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It was a chilly night at Off the Grid Upper Haight, and their Brunswick Stew was just what I needed.
(Sorry no pic here, ate it too fast!)
But their Mochiko Chicken was the best!
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This will be the one thing that I will truly miss!
Hopefully, there won’t be any other good gourmet trucks that will meet the same fate as 51^st State. I do wish those guys luck with their endeavors. It was a really cool truck! RIP 51^st State!

On a diet? Trying to lose weight? Self discipline?
All these thoughts vanish out the window at 51^st State. So be prepared that if you venture to 51^st State, all thoughts except how yummy the food is will vanish.
So don’t say, I didn’t warn you.
PS — For those that need to be productive in the office in the afternoon, be warned. If eaten, you will crash. Guaranteed.

I have a confession to make: i’m quite enthralled by this whole food truck business. I mean, FOOD! OFF A TRUCK! Faster than a restaurant, able to travel throughout the city in a single bound!
My friend and I were actually at the Treasure Island Flea when we spotted the 51^st State truck. After standing in front like idiots reading their menu, we decided Yes! We want to try this! Especially this delicious sounding mini banana cream pie! …Too bad they were sold out of it –_​–
Sadness! We had a grilled portabella mushroom melt too, but alas, we still had the banana cream pie on our mind. No, but seriously, the melt wasn’t bad. A little greasy for my taste, but they definitely don’t skimp on the portabella mushrooms!
The melt was $ 7, which I guess is a standard price when it comes to food truck sandwiches. Some other trucks are worth it, but I don’t think I’d pay that again for the 51^st State portabella melt.
If I passed this truck again, I think I’d still stop by (still need my banana cream pie!), but I wouldn’t purposefully seek it out.

I went & try 51^st State food truck on Fri 6÷10÷11 outside Newpark Mall. I’m glad they were there.
I tried their Bruswick Stew $ 7 — a small container, but they do put alot of meat like chicken & sausage & other stuff so it’s pretty filling. Also, comes with a small slice of a roll. Menu says: «Smoked pork, chicken, spicy sausage, potatoes, corn and lima beans in a rich tomato broth, garnished with bacon and green onion»
I’ve tried their banana cream pie before which I liked ok. $ 4.
If you use a credit card there’s a .50 extra charge. I paid Cash.

I’ve always associated food trucks with international cuisine on the go. With places like Seoul on Wheels, Hapa SF, Chairman Bao, and the countless falafel tracks, it’s kind of hard not to. When 51^st state came up to the Lawrence Berkeley Lab, though I was surprised to discover a relatively creative and tasty creation from the good old USA.
I found the mochiko chicken to be the most appealing, so I ended up ordering that. For $ 8, you get crispy ginger-​scented, Shoyu marinated chicken served with white rice, macaroni salad with kimchee. The kimchee was kind of out of place, but since I don’t eat it (I know, I’m a terrible wannabe Korean) it didn’t really matter to me. The chicken itself was pretty good. Very tender on the inside and very lightly fried on the outside. The one thing that annoys me about fried chicken is thick overcooked breading, so this was a great break from that. Everything else was very standard. Typical rice and typical macaroni salad, both of which I can easily make at home. Because of that, I was a bit disappointed. Also, the portion is relatively small for that price. I’d say this is more of a 3.5 due to how good the chicken was, but everything else just takes away from that.

So I haven’t really had actual food here. The only thing I ordered was a drink and dessert from OtG, but even those was good. So even if you’re disappointed by their menu, please please please just get a drink and dessert. You won’t regret it!
The Banana Crème Pie was a bit small, but that tiny thing was the tastiest banana crème pie I’ve ever had. I’m a huge fan of Nation’s Burgers and their banana crème pie, but this topples it like no other. For one, it’s actually not that sweet. And thought it’s a bit hard to eat with a plastic fork, it has an amazing texture and banana flavor.
Besides this, the staff here were super helpful and super nice. Then again, I have yet to meet a foodtrucker that is mean and disrespectful. Just saying.

This is just for the mochiko chicken, which is the only thing I’ve tried so far. I would not be opposed to trying something else but would not get this again.
The chicken was a little soggy and not very crispy. The ginger flavor was nice but couldn’t rescue the whole thing. I thought the idea of kimchee and macaroni salad was interesting — I could see how the vinegary kimchee could cut through the creamy pasta salad — but instead it was just cabbagey, bland pasta salad. Add white rice to the whole thing, and… not too exciting.
The people were super nice and I would try something else instead!

Mochiko chicken FTW!
I was glad to be able to finally get the chance to try 51^st State at OTG Haight. And can I just say that spending $ 8 on the mochiko chicken plate is so worth it!
The chicken is marinated in shoyu (soy sauce) and very crispy on the outside and nice and tender on the inside. It comes with rice, mac salad, and kimchee. Everything went together perfectly. It reminded me of a chicken katsu plate, but ten times better than anything from Hawaiian Drive-​Inn, L&L or Ono.
If they’re near you, please give them a try! Delicious!

After seeing some of my Unilocal friends check in to this food truck at lunchtime, I decided to check them out yesterday at 1^st and Howard. They alternate their locations daily.
The Mochiko chicken was perfectly crisp on the outside and juicy on the inside. It came with a macaroni salad, kimchi, and white rice with chives sprinkled on top. I was not expecting this kind of quality from a food truck — much better than the Hawaiian Drive-​Inn quality I was expecting. Portions are very generous and everything on their menu is around $ 7-​$ 8.
Their banana cream mini tart was a little bite of heaven. Fresh sliced of banana atop a flaky graham cracker crust, with a layer of chocolate in between. My husband opted for a patty melt with bacon and mushrooms which was definitely restaurant quality with tons of flavor. I could have eaten the mushrooms all by themselves and I normally don’t even like mushrooms.
51^st State is definitely a food truck with personality. Not only is the staff really friendly, but they have the most awesome Nacho Libre bottle opener — hee hee!
I’ll definitely be hitting them up again.

Food trucks come and go, but this… hey wait a minute, food trucks actually do come and go, and this one now arrives near my office for about 2 ½ hours on Mondays and Fridays. That’s a good thing since there is a dearth of lunch-​hour dining options in this part of SoMa. It appears to be run by three young colleagues who describe it in Kerouac fashion as «a metaphorical road trip bringing home some of America’s most quintessential regional dishes.» That means their focus is on comfort food but with some latitude to experiment. Only four options are offered of which I have tried two.
Both were pretty good. One was the $ 7 Brunswick Stew, a hearty mix of pork, chicken, spicy sausage, potatoes, corn and lima beans in a tomato broth (see photo). Garnished with bacon and green onion, it definitely had the right flavor though I would have preferred a more stew-​like consistency. I also would have liked a side of rice to sop up the soupy goodness rather than the wedge of crusty bread. The second dish I tried a week later was better even though I was forewarned by colleagues that it was mediocre. It was the $ 8 Mochiko Chicken which I’m happy to report did come with some welcome rice.
I think if the concept is truly a culinary road trip, then this must be the Hawaii pitstop because it reminded me a bit of what you would find at a Zippy’s in Honolulu. It consisted of slices of tonkatsu chicken, dark thigh meat that they described as «crispy ginger-​scented, shoyu marinated». It also came with the unlikely combination of Macaroni Salad and Kimchee (see photo). This is the kind of food I actually crave if I’m ever on the islands because it’s just greasy and carb-​filled enough to satisfy. I like this truck and will come back for the patty melts and even the mini-​banana cream pie when I have a particularly intense day of meetings.
FOOD — 4 stars… solid road-​stand food, hoping they offer more variety soon
AMBIANCE — 3 stars… it’s a truck after all
SERVICE — 3.5 stars… nice enough and a tad slow but who am I to complain… ever been to Sushirrito?
TOTAL –4 stars… not such a novel concept but executed well enough

Don’t worry; when I first heard about this food truck, I, too, thought it was called «50 First Dates.» You know, like the movie with Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler? Yeeeeeah, no.
I’ve tried a few food trucks and visited Off the Grid, but have never really been very impressed with any of the businesses. Recently my coworker R raved about 51^st State, so I decided to give it a shot and was pleasantly surprised.
Not many menu options; you’ve got essentially what is a $ 7 salad, an $ 8 fried chicken plate with rice, mac salad, and a dab of kimchee (part of what is holding me back on 5 stars — pls provide more kimchee!), a $ 7 pork sandwich, and, for dessert, a $ 4 banana cream pie. I went for the chicken plate and the banana cream pie. The chicken plate, which, as a whole, was quite plentiful, reminded me of Japanese chicken karaage, and the macaroni salad, full of green onion, was quite tasty. The only pitfalls? Rice was a bit hard for my taste and, as already stated, not enough kimchee. The banana cream pie was actually pretty good (chocolate lined crust filled with banana pudding and banana slices), but slightly on the dinky side. I’m not entirely convinced it was worth its $ 4 price tag.
All in all, I’ll likely return, especially since 51^st State parks right outside my office twice a week (points on convenience factor!). And, yes, I will be requesting a larger portion of kimchee on future visits.
P. S. 51^st State actually accepts credit cards, but do not be suprised when you are hit with an additional fifty cent charge.

51^st State is a food truck that serves regional American cuisine.
It can be found at several regular stops around the Embarcadero area,
and also at some OTG events.
It’s the only food truck nice enough to put a few tall round tables for customers to eat (sometimes, not always), and even have their own recycling and composting bins.
I like this food truck because they make elaborate meals rather than just a tortilla with some toppings like other taco trucks. The menu changes every couple of months, a good thing because after 2 or 3 visits I had already sampled everything they had.
Their menu during the Eat Real Festival in August was minimal, a Cajun sausage with maque choux ($ 4), and cactus fries ($ 2).
Both were okay, but didn’t showcase the kitchen’s ability.
One of their first menu items was a Brunswick stew ($ 8),
similar to a hearty chili, made with beans, pork, chicken, sausage and bacon. I was told the «authentic» version uses road kill or squirrel. The included thick slice of buttery garlic bread was delicious.
The Texas caviar side dish, a black eyed peas salad ($ 3),
has an interesting name, but I wouldn’t order that again.
The most expensive dish so far was the crispy quail with cheese grits at $ 9, it tasted good. But the price scared most customers. In case anyone is looking for quail, I should mention that at most Chinese restaurants in SF, u can find a popular 5-​spice quail appetizer for about $ 5 – 6.
The S’mores Twinkie ($ 3)
was a winner. It’s not a store bought Twinkie, they make their own version, a moist cinnamon cake filled with a chocolate cream filling and a torched marshmallow fluff topping.
I think that the ratings will vary depending on what u order.

11.05.10
$ 8 Mochiko Chicken.
Crispy ginger scented shoyu marinated chicken. Rice. Mac salad. Kimchi.
Up the portion size and I’ll be a much happier camper.

Cuban like pressed Floribean sandwich!
Hot pressed, Sofrito Pork and pickled veggies. Tasty, savory, tart, and some kick. Looking forward to trying the Mochiko chicken which wasn’t on the menu at the time. Oh and the Banana cream pie too…

Love the idea of a food truck serving up different regions of food all in one spot!
I was able to try their Crispy Quail with Cheese Grits (not on their current menu). The quail legs were lightly breaded and fried to a delicious crispiness. The meat was tender and juicy. I could’ve eaten 10 of those in one sitting! The side of maple syrup for dipping was a nice complement. The cheese grits were a bit bland for my taste. But I’d still give them credit because this was the first time I’ve actually enjoyed eating grits, so bravo!
But for portion and size, $ 9 was a little steep. I wasn’t even full afterwards! =(
3.5 stars

51^st State — is this a Puerto Rican food truck or a food truck soapboxing on American hegemony and American foreign policy?
Regardless of the message the truck is trying to send (if there is one), it seems to have a changing menu serving foods unique to specific regions of the U.S. often representing the confluence of cultures through cuisine within that region.
They only really had two items on the menu when I saw them at the McCoppin hub for Off the Grid so naturally I ordered both — the Floribbean hot pressed sandwich featuring sofrito pork (from Florida) and the mochiko chicken plate (from Hawaii). The Floribbean sandwich was a tasty panini-​like sandwich, but also very much resembling a traditional Cuban sandwich. My tastes, however, were more in tune with the mochi chicken plate. My mom cooks up some killer mochi chicken and 51^st State’s version certainly impressed me. It also came with a serving of white rice, kimchee and their version of some excellent mac salad.
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On a more recent 2011 visit I had the Brunswick stew which featured smoked pork, chicken, spicy sausage, bits of bacon and numerous vegetables in a tomato broth served with a mini-​baguette as well as ordering a mini banana cream pie to satisfy my sweet tooth. The stew was pretty tasty and hit the spot on a brisk day. I can hardly pass up a chance when banana cream pie is offered, especially when it is advertised as having a Nilla wafer crumb crust with chocolate at the bottom of the crust. It was good!

My sister and I shared an order of the Mochiko Chicken, which came with crispy chicken, rice, mac salad and kimchi. I wasnt a big fan of the mac or kimchi, but loved the chicken. The portions were decent and the chicken was hot and tasty!
I didnt see a lot of items that other Unilocalers are raving about, so hopefully they’ll be back at City Hall next week with additional items on their menu.

I’d already packed a lunch to bring to work, but the big blue truck beckoned. I ordered an entrée-​sized «Pacific Northwest» spinach salad with house-​smoked trout, blue cheese, filberts (a.k.a. hazelnuts) and marionberry (a.k.a. blackberries — not the former mayor of D.C.), and it was fantastic — the briny smokiness of the trout and the rich saltiness of the cheese was nicely balanced by the sweet berries. Service was friendly, too. Can’t wait to see what other regional dishes are up next. (May I suggest Wyoming?)
My only problem with 51^st State: I can already tell that the truck’s proximity to my office two days out of the week is going to spell trouble for me.

I read about this place last week on several foodie blogs/​newsletters, and was excited to have the opportunity to lunch with a friend there today. I was impressed with the service, concept, and execution, and will be back as soon as possible!
I was torn between the Pacific Northwest – Spinach salad topped with blue cheese, filberts, marionberry dressing with smoked trout, and The South – Crispy quail dusted with housemade cornmeal mix, served with jalapeño cheddar cheese grits and spiced maple syrup and hot sauce on the side.
Daniel, very friendly guy, helped me decide on the quail, likening it to something of a quail lollipop. I also had a helping of the Texas caviar – black eyed peas with sweet bell peppers and cilantro. It all went perfectly with their strawberry basil lemonade. I wish I had the cojones to get the dessert, which is a s’mores twinkie – cinnamon graham yellow cake filled with chocolate ganache and topped with torched marshmallows. Next time…

First were foreigners selling their indigenous food cheaply from broken down jalopies. Then came tweeting fresh blood in shiny trucks fusing different foreign foods together to make innovations such as Korean tacos and Indian burritos. Now, finally, we have real Americans serving American food that celebrates regional favorites with a slight foodie twist. As Americans can appreciate, the food is very hearty unlike some measly bits of kalbi on top of a seaweed «taco shell». Even the sodas are from small cities across the U.S., except for the illegal Mexican Coke (which will have to be promptly ousted from the menu if they start serving any dishes from Arizona).
Wild Rice & Potato Pancake: This is no latka! The wild rice gives the normally uniform potato pancake a nice chewy and firm texture. The generous scoop of sautéed mushrooms add a similar heartiness to it as if you had some nice beef stew on the side. I like both individually, but the pairing seemed off. Almost like you were begging for something creamy, sour or spicy to break through the salty and umami flavor profile.
Crispy Quail: More gamy than the Colonel’s. Hearty crust with nice spices. Was really digging the maple syrup dip, kind of like the American answer to the Americanized Chinese-​derived Sweet & Sour nugget dip. Be warned though, the quail has bones and that surprised me on first bit since they look like tenders. The cheese grits were an indulgent side. Tasted great when you got a big chunk of cheddar and scallions in the same bite as the grits, but the grits were a bit bland for the portion left uncovered. They should totally smoother it all!
Texas Caviar: I’m not too familiar with the ways of Texas, but I imagine many Texans wouldn’t appreciate real caviar. This is basically black eyed peas in a salsa (tomatoes, peppers, onions, cilantro). Not something to really seek out individually, but a filling side and probably lovely at summer picnics.
Brunswick Stew: Any stew with crispy bacon is a win in my book! A protein lovers dream also with tender chicken, spicy sausage and that magical succotash combination of lima beans and corn. A strong tomato base with some kick of its own beyond what the ingredients dribbled in. The potato slices were too large and too boring. Okra probably would have been a more traditional and tasty choice for a veggie filler. A thick cut of toast buttered and griddled to order came with as ‘Garlic Bread’. I appreciate the to-​order freshness but it could have been cooked longer for a firmer texture. Also, it had very little garlic taste compared to the butter soak.
S’mores Twinkie: I was a good boy and saved this for last. Freakin’ amazin’!!! A marshmallow topping superior to, though reminiscent of, Fluff. A graham cracker cake shaped like a twinkie with chocolate ganache underneath. The marshmallow topping was only partially roasted on the side. Not sure if it would improve the dessert, but it would have been interesting to have a more encompassing roasted top. Technically the chocolate was under the twinkie, maybe try for an authentic filling inside next time?