Chi’Lantro

Went for my first time today to the location by the post office downtown. Got spicy pork rice dish. This was absolutely delicious. I recommend it and will bring friends there.

Ironically, I don’t eat kimchi, but my friend ordered the kimchi fries, so I tried a few of the fries without the kimchi and it was pretty good! The sauce that they use on the fires gave it a tangy taste that offset the ketchup but somehow went well together. ONE THING ABOUT THIS PLACE IS ITS SO EXPENSIVE. DON’T order tacos. We paid $ 7 for two tacos, and expected a lot, but its not enough for even one person in my opinion. There was too much lettuce that you can barely even see the meat, but there is a lot more meat at the bottom than you would expect. If you come to chi’lantro try the chicken wings and the kimchi fries! I loved the gangnam wings and they weren’t too badly priced either!

Kimchi fries are love, kimchi fries are life.

I like the food when enough, ideally when drunk. However one of the chilantro food trucks just sped up as I was crossing the street on riata trace with my dog, truck was far away enough to where I wasn’t worried he would hit me, but I had to run to avoid being hit. Watched the driver grin as he drove by.
Not chil, chilantro.

3.5 stars. I guess this is what passes for Asian fusion in this part of the world? It’s just that I’ve had so many meals with real, live Koreans in LA’s Koreatown… The food is edible, but hardly exciting. It’s also kind of expensive for what it is and for the portion sizes. Plus one star for the novelty of hearing one of the burly, tattooed, and bearded chefs twang out «bulgogi.»

Excellent food but definitely on the rich side. Had one of their bowls and thoroughly enjoyed it. Love when restaurants sprout from food trucks.

The meat in the beef tacos were pretty tasty: mostly salt, nothing too exciting, but not bad. The tortilla was pretty bad, not fresh and not sufficiently warmed. The tacos hit the spot, but weren’t memorable.
The service was so-​so. They had a long line (and drastically reduced menu), but they weren’t hustling at all.
$ 4 bottle of water, talk about sticker shock! This is the same price as inside the convention center because this truck is actually part of the convention center.

Austin is always there for me when they keep a promise to their «keep Austin weird» slogan.
Chi’lantro Korean bbq is one of my favorite food trailers. You must try the original kimchi fries with ribeye bulgogi that are pictured. One of the most delicious, psychedelic things that you can obtain here in the bat city. It’s so good that it’s bad.

WORST SERVICE, NOT JUST ONCE, BUT 8 TIMES TRYING!
I love the food at the food trucks, but I have to give a one star review because of the service. I have gone to the location at The Picnic off of Barton Springs about 8 times now, and every time I have gone the service is terrible. There are always two people working, and typically the guy that is taking the order is great.
The other employee, who is typically cooking, is possibly the rudest person I’ve ever dealt with in the service industry. The first couple of times I went here, I thought he was probably having a bad day, or was really swamped with orders. But after that I realized that it’s simply the way he treats people.
Having worked in the service industry for 6 years while in high school and college, I find this behavior unacceptable. Every time I put in my order, he comes over to the window and tells me that my order will take 20 – 30 minutes and tries his best for me to cancel my order. He doesn’t say «would you like something else» he just says «it’s going to take a long time, so you probably want to go somewhere else» or something similar, but he says this every time. I am typically ordering quesadillas, but he says this, even if I’m the first person in line when they order. Please note, it’s never taken anywhere close to this long. It almost feels like he’s just annoyed at having to do any work.
Typically I will say, «no that’s fine, I’m not in a hurry» but then he’ll come back with «well, we may not have enough supplies for it» and then will typically tell the guy taking orders to cut the orders off. This is really annoying when I’m the first person to order, because then everyone I’m with typically has to order somewhere else.
I use to love going here when I worked in the domain on Fridays. Everyone who worked that truck was nice and polite, even if they were letting me know it may take a little while when they got backed up. But at this location, I feel like I’m seen as an annoyance more than anything.
It took me a long time to finally get fed up enough to write this review. I gave them so many chances. But this is the last time I will ever go to this location, and probably the last time I will eat at Chilantro.
I love the quesadillas, which they only serve at the food truck, but with this service and being treated this way, it’s not worth it. Especially with a bunch of other options at The Picnic.
I would just go to the brick and mortar location, on South Lamar, but they don’t serve the quesadillas! It’s the only time I’ve ever heard of a food truck having more selection than the brick and mortar.
So I can’t get quesadillas at the brick and mortar, so I won’t go there, but the service is brutal at the food truck, so it’s not worth going there. At this point, I won’t go to either and I’ll recommend going to other places any time my coworkers suggest Chilantro.
I’ve never stopped going to a place that I liked the food at due to service, but I guess there is a first for everything.

Tried this place out on a whim while driving by, and now I am hooked! One, the place is new and clean, yay for clean! There were quite a few items I couldn’t pronounce, but no worries, the cashier was extremely helpful and full of reccomendations.
Now to the food, HOLY FLAVOR. I never thought fries could be that flavorful and filling but they were great. My other half got the tacos, also a great choice. I am looking forward to going back!

I work somewhere new now and they have food trucks almost daily. Chi’lantro was here today so I thought I would give them another chance. Still not impressed. I ordered the fried chicken sandwich with garlic fries. The piece of chicken was huge! It stuck out at least an inch on each side of the bun. Unfortunately it was also flavorless. Panko breaded chicken with just no flavor. It had a schmear of magic sauce and some Korean pickles which boosted the flavor just a little bit.
I will say the garlic fries were good, hence the 3 stars. They came with the magic sauce which added a nice kick.
All in all, not a truck I will seek out.

So I’m in line for my first visit to Chi’Lantro and I’m serious craving an Asian burrito. But then I see all the raving for their Kimchi Fries… «As seen on Food Network»… «Something something award winner»… etc. I’m only a little hungry though, so naturally, I order both entrees. Smh…
I’m glad I ordered the Kimchi Fries, because they are definitely what makes Chi’Lantro one of the most popular food trucks in Austin. When I later told people I ate here, I was immediately bombarded with the question, «Did you get the Kimchi Fries??»
I did, and they were delicious. I don’t even know how to explain them other than a type of Korean nachos… with french fries. If that sounds like the most glorious and backwards marriage you’ve ever heard, it is. Absolutely delicious and completely unique.
The Spicy Chicken Burrito was also very good, but was best as a «side» to the Kimchi Fries. No doubt, Chi’Lantro is serving up the type of awesome and wild creations which make food trucks so much fun.

The bulgogi burger is amazing!
The people are friendly, the price reflects the quality of the food. We were beyond pleased with our order it was delicious.
It’s very interesting, not like something you get just anywhere. I can’t wait to go back and try other menu items!

One week after we went to Hey! You Gonna Eat Or What? We decided to come back to the area and try Chi’Lantro’s Kimchi Fries, it seems to be their most popular dish as it is listed first in their menu and I’ve already seen at least 100 pics of the fries on Unilocal.
So the line was about 10 minutes, but that’s to be expected for lunch on a Friday. I thought we’d have to wait a while after taking the order to get the food but they came right out. The appearance is spot on, very colorful and rich. The taste was great, fries were crispy and tasty, not overly salted. Nice balance of toppings with the cheese, meat, siracha sauce, sesame seeds and a couple other toppings. Personal preference though it could have had more cheese on it though, but I won’t knock them for that.
I’m looking forward to coming back and trying the ribeye quesadilla.

Kimchi fries, and bulgogi tacos. Sounds pretty good right? Nah. The fries are soggy, and absolutely lacking in Kimchi. I swear, I only tasted a couple of pieces of Kimchi here and there. The tacos are not nearly enough food for the money, not to mention they’re not that great to begin with. The corn tortillas aren’t very good either, although I don’t like corn tortillas in general.
There is, without a doubt, a food truck near you that has better food for the same or less money. I don’t understand how this has become so popular. This truck was super busy at SXSW when I went (and the place was seemingly swarming with Chi’Lantro trucks), and looked busy again when it showed up to my office building today. Maybe I just got unlucky.
Service was nice though — the guy that took my order was pretty chill and friendly.

Honestly, does this place really need another 4 star review?
No, so I’m gonna keep it short and simple!
Get the kimchi fries and the burritos!!! The tacos are good but I think they are a little pricey!

After trying Chi’Lantro’s food truck many moons ago at Nocturnal Fest, Fun Fun Fun Fest and this past SXSW I am finally writing a review.
My most recent experience with the food trailer was their catering menu during the Class of 2015 #RepublicSX. There were so many hungry festival goers yet the line moved super smooth, the Chi’Lantro crew definitely knows team work. The first night of the event I had the chicken sliders which is a catering menu item. The chicken was well seasoned topped with magic sauce. The hint of spice, toppings and soft bun were perfect. The second night I had their freaking amazing beef street taco. When I indulge I want it to be amazing and their streeet tacos were oh so worth it. The rib eye bulgogi was rich and flavorful. The cilantro, onions, Chi’Lantro salsa, sesame seeds, and lime wedge and fresh corn tortillas complimented the meat perfectly.
They also serve tofu as a protein option and they have some gluten free menu items. Chi’Lantro is known for their gorgeous original kimchi fries and for a first time visit these are a must. The fries come with your choice of ribeye bulgogi, spicy pork, spicy chicken, soy glazed chicken or marinated tofu, then topped with caramelized kimchi, cheddar & Monterey jack cheese, onions, fresh cilantro, spicy magic sauce, sesame seeds and sriracha.
Last night I finally tried their brick and mortar on South Lamar, review to follow!

Chi’Lantro war definitiv der Foodtruck, der uns in Austin am häufigsten begegenete. Das mag aber auch daran gelegen haben, dass er direkt am Eingang zum convention Center, dem Herz der SXSW stand — Pole Position. Auch auf dem nahegelegenen Foodtruck Market «Southbites» war er zugegen und punktete bei vielen von uns mit seinen Kimchi Fries.
Kimchi Fries? Genau: Fritten mit Kimchi und Saucen — sehr lecker, ein wenig scharf und immer gut für Foodporn! Am Anfang dachten wir noch, wir würden hier jeden Mittag landen, das taten wir schon allein aus Gründen der sich mittags bildenden Schlange nicht.
Aber einmal reichte es doch zu Kimchi Fries und lecker waren sie allemal. Sie kamen glaube ich auf 9,50 §, was ein stolzer Preis, wenn man die Berliner Preise im Kopf hat, woe sie um die 4 Euro kosten, aber definitiv eine Sünde wert! Dazu eine Runde tacos und das ganze geteilt — lecker Lunch und mit all dem Kimchi (fermentierter Kohl) auch ein bisschen gesund :)

So I ate a TON of Chi’lantro during SXSW… I swear they were everywhere, and I definitely was not complaining about it.
What I tried:
* Beef tacos — my favorite thing of theirs. Their beef has an amazing, Asian flare marinade and was extremely juicy.
* Kimchi Fries — second fave. Not sure how much they usually are but I got them at Fader Fort for $ 9 which I thought was a little steep considering the portion size. It is filling though! Just wish I had not shared it. But my gosh they were so good! Great flavors
* Beef and chicken sliders — Loved the bun on these but after awhile I took off the top because it was too much bread and didn’t want to mask the flavor of the YUMMY meat
* Chicken tacos — these were wonderful as well, just hard to beat the juicy beef
Overall great food truck option in Austin, and I am glad I got to try it so many times over the past week. Seems like they have a lot of trucks so it should not be too hard to find a location. Also a brick and mortar location on South Lamar.

:SXSW Food truck review: After waiting almost an hour in line for Chi’Lantro’s amazing kimchi fries I see the health inspectors roll up. they then take about 20 mins inspecting the truck… then proceed to shut it down! I’m not 100% sure why but I heard the workers say something about not having running water.
Watching one of your favorite food trucks get shut down is a scary thing!

After much hype over this place and longstanding accolades, I joined the queue of hungry festival goers at FFF to try some Chi’lantro.
Their kimchi fries are certainly the most well-​known item on the menu, and I probably should’ve ordered those, but at the server’s suggestion I went with the fried tofu tacos. Anything taco + sriracha + kimchi is bound to be delicious. And delicious they were although not as astounding as I had built them up to be in my mind. Perhaps it was the fact that the truck was at a festival and they were constantly churning out tacos, but they weren’t as fresh as I had hoped. The flavors were good overall, but the fried tofu was a bit dry. The tortillas were soft and fresh and the cabbage added an extra crunch but it could’ve benefited from more sriracha.
I would probably go back to try kimchi fries but will satisfy my taco cravings elsewhere.