More than 7,000 individuals attended the second annual Taco Truck Throwdown (TTT) at Chuckchansi Park to eat street tacos provided by local taco truck vendors, Aug 30. The doors opened a 5:30 p.m. and the plaza was filled with hungry stomachs and thirsty mouths.
The Fresno Grizzlies game was also a part of the evening itinerary but didn’t start until 7:05 p.m. Even during the game, most people stood in long lines that started from the entrance, just to eat some tacos.
After last year’s hit, the TTT came back; bigger and better. More than ten taco trucks lined up on the northeast corner of the stadium to serve up their best tacos. The winner would be determined by how many votes each truck received by the end of the night.
Over 8,000 tacos were served by well known taco trucks around Fresno, which included: La Elegante (Fresno) located on 1423 Kern St, Fresno Ca., La Mexicana (Centerville) located on 15901 E Kingscanyon Rd, Sanger Ca., Taco Sinaloa (Fresno) located on, Ortega’s (Reedley), Tacos Mazatlan (Fresno) located on 103 N Broadway, Fresno Ca., Tako BBQ (Fresno), El Mexicano (Fowler) located on 2833 E Manning Ave, Fresno Ca., Taco El Rey (Selma), El Super Antojito (Sanger) located on 628 O St, Fresno Ca., Tacos El Palmar (Fresno) located on 101 N Cypress Ave, Fresno Ca., El Premio Mayor (Fresno) located on 3139 N Maroa Ave, Fresno Ca., and Dusty Buns Bistro Bus (Fresno).
The plaza was filled with people pushing and shoving trying to make their way to the taco truck of their preference. While hopping from one truck to another, Juan Ruelas, ’13, Greg Stobbe and I bumped into KMPH’s Kopi Sotiropulos and and had the chance to interview him.
After about two hours of constant interviewing, we finally decided to take a break to eat (well, we should’ve eaten earlier). There were monstrous lines that intertwined with other lines, confusing me, and others. After a 45 minute wait, we finally ate from the Taco Sinaloa truck. I was so hungry I could feel and hear my stomach growling because it was below empty.
I ordered two street-style tacos from the truck: the taco de adovada and taco de barbacoa. Both tacos consisted of two mini yellow corn tortillas stuck together with shredded and cubed pork, in a deliciously hot red chili that dripped off the taco as I took a bite.
The taco de adovada consisted of shredded pork with ice cold cabbage, cilantro and onions. The other taco was primarily the same but with the exceptions of cubed meat instead. The two tacos were complimented by a slice of cold lemon to be squeezed on top for a zesty taste.
I still wasn’t satisfied with only two tacos, so our next stop was Taco Sinaloa from Fresno. Surprisingly, this line went faster; we only waited about 20 minutes in line but it was well worth it.
From the second truck, I ordered their best taco they could make. The crowd couldn’t stop chattering about this truck, so I knew my taste buds were in for a ride. During my additional 20 minute wait for my tacos, once ordered, I couldn’t help but notice that the line was getting much longer and people were fighting for their spots, literally fighting with words.
After receiving my tacos, I went straight to the condiment bar and put cabbage, lemon, chili, beans and a unique avocado sauce that gave my mouth a tingle.
Hearing all the chatter about a duck taco made me hungry again, so Stobbe, Juan and I ventured to Dusty Buns where everyone was in awe of their duck taco.
Sadly, when I got to the front of the line to order they told me they were all out of the duck taco and that they sold out and hour ago. I was in fact a little frustrated, but what could I do? I decided to order the next best taco; their chicken taco.
Eww, I hated that taco, it was disgusting. The taco consisted of a small tortilla, shredded chicken, cilantro, cabbage, watered down chili and a nasty pickle slice that was pink and soaked in vinegar. The vinegar was overpowering and made me want to stop chewing and throw it in the trash can. My mouth was bitter sweet now, and I didn’t like it at all. In fact, I wasn’t the only one who disagreed. A Fresno Bites critic also retweeted a tweet that mentioned the chicken taco was not up to par.
Even though I was full, The Korean Taco truck piqued my interest because I had never heard of Korean tacos. The word Korean and tacos do not mix, but apparently the owner made a way to have the best of both worlds.
After eating to my capacity we decided to walk around and talk to random people there. More than half of the people we talked to were newcomer’s to TTT.
The plaza was filled with laughter and loud music, which contributed to why I had a great time. Although, I wouldn’t recommend that children under the age of 13 should attend due to the mass consumption of alcohol at the event; it is very easy for little kids to be lost in a crowd.
It was exciting to watch all the different taco trucks gather in unison and compete to make the best type of taco they can. Remember, these are veteran taco makers; they have been in the business for quite a while and they know what they are doing. Even though I will be attending college next year, I definitely want to make room for the Taco Truck Throwdown 3.
For more information, contact Mike Osegueda or follow him on twitter at @Mikeoz.
For more features, read the Aug. 30 article, Bimat juggles multiple jobs, energizes leadership class.
