The lunchtime rush takes a lot of heart & Seoul

 Food carts are gaining popularity, popping up all over the DC Metro area.  On any given day of the week, you can find food trucks a-plenty parked on N. Lynn Street, prepared for the hungry Rosslyn lunch crowd.  Crepes, Hallal food, cupcakes - all sorts of delicious options.  I had always been drawn to the SeOUL FOOD truck that I’d seen carting around Korean delights with a twist.  I got lucky today when I ventured into Rosslyn on the hunt for this truck, and there it was, serving the masses.

From all the lunch-goers in line, I could tell that it was popular – but when I heard the truck owners greeting patrons personally, I knew that this truck was worthy of earning loyal regulars.  The questions asked were not, “do you know what you want?” but more, “will you have the same thing today?”  This was a good sign.

The Seoul truck has a fun menu, sort of a healthy Korean fusion collection of choices to please vegetarians and meat-eaters alike.  Take, for example, the Kalbi Burrito, a mix of rice, avocado, fresh kimchi, and your choice of chicken or beef wrapped in a four tortilla ($7).  Or try the Korean Superbowl: sticky rice, jalapeno and Serrano relish, caramelized kimchi, scallions, cheese, Korean salsa roja, and chicken or bulgogi marinated steak ($8).  Wow. Their special soup, made of curried chickpeas and potato, can remain vegetarian or supplemented with a choice of meat.

The online menu has more options than the truck serves on a day-to-day basis because Seoul Food offers what is seasonably fresh and appropriate for the day’s weather.  For example, when I visited on a rare warm day, getting a hot soup was not an option and some of the warm rice bowls had been canceled for the day. Instead, they offered things like the Seoulfood Smoothie, which is a blend of Korean sweet potato, Greek yogurt, honey, and milk.  It was perfect for a sunny, unseasonably warm day and it totally hit the spot.  I’ll be going back on a day that feels more like February to get a Bibimbop or pork stew.

Their weekly schedule is consistent and they have an active twitter feed (@SeoulFoodDC) that can keep you up to date on where they’re servin’ up some Seoul in your neighborhood.