Subs N’ Bubbles under the sun…. well, cross out the bubble part. As I mentioned in my Sunfest post, I’m going to be chronicling how I ended up eating a Bulgogi (in this context, Korean marinated pork) Vietnamese submarine sandwich despite already had a snack at the volunteer headquarters… nah, that’s wasn’t what I said. Now that you’re here though, let’s go ahead with the review and of course induce hunger with close-ups of a Viet sub, food truck style.
Here in Cowtown, satay beef/chicken or lemongrass chicken tend to be the most common meat options for what is known as a Bánh Mì sandwich. With that in mind, a bulgogi sub option sounded like a food truck innovation to me, especially since I’ve never seen Korean and Viet cuisine fused together (I could be wrong).
In terms of sizes, your sub comes with the option of having a 6-inch or a footlong sub, something you don’t see often in restaurant offerings, although I think that the small price difference more or less justifies getting the bigger size. The available toppings like pickled carrots are mostly everyday fare, but in addition, jalapenos are added into the mix as well (just don’t blame me for not having the guts to try it). The only gripe I have though is that cheese costs extra; I believe it was $1 more, but the price escapes me at the moment.
Yes, let’s get to showing you the real footlong deal instead of having you read my nondescript text description.
Through the first bite, the baguette was toasted to perfection with a nice balance, although they don’t appear to carry an option of having white or brown bread. As I got to the meat, however, despite being very flavorful, it didn’t quite taste like bulgogi, lacking the sweet taste and aroma (from the pear sauce in the marination process). I would personally say that it leans closer to a satay flavor more than anything. This one isn’t necessarily a bad buy; it’s just that it falls short slightly of its name. The toppings are excellent as always with Viet subs.
I read on their Facebook page that they offer Saskatoon berry bubble tea, so I guess it’s just that I wasn’t lucky enough and should try to chase them down. Anyways, here are the ratings –
Service – 4/5 – Above average service.
Food – 3.5/5 – In terms of how it fared as a bulgogi sub, I would give it a 2.5. On the other hand though, in terms of the sub as a whole and putting that fact aside, I enjoyed the sub to its fullest and would give it a 4, so I suppose the 3.5 reflects a bit of both.
Value – 4/5 – The average price point for a Vietnamese sub that I’ve seen is around $6, so while this is slightly more expensive, it’s not a deal breaker or anything.
Food truck character and design – 5/5 – I wanted to showcase you the food first, but the cartoon creations on the truck who are eating subs and have cups of bubble tea on their hands are adorable! I enjoy the humorous almost caricature-like figures, especially the astronaut who has a worried look on his face in the first picture. With a lighthearted name comes a lighthearted image, I suppose. 🙂 This is one of the more creative designs I’ve seen, simliar to the Family Fry Guy truck design where the food they offer is cleverly featured.
