Off the Grid: Serramonte

This is an amazing event! It occurs every Tuesday (unless it gets cancelled, so keep your eyes out for their twitter account) in the parking lot near the Giant electronic billboard, you can’t miss it! Literally, you can’t miss it.
I am a huge fan of this event because it is convenient to have a handful of food trucks gathered up for you. And who wants to go on a scavenger hunt when they eat? I sure don’t when I’m hungry! The only downside to this is that it can get fairly cold sometime because it is out in the open of a huge parking lot, so there isn’t any buildings to block the wind. A word of advice from me would be to bring a jacket /​coat and maybe a good ol’ cup of hot coffee-​or-​tea to warm yourself up.

This used to be a Tuesday tradition for me and my best friend until she moved away to go to college. At that time there were easily 10 – 12 food trucks. It’s a little different today. A little slower and less crowded. Only 7 trucks today. It’s the cold weather, perhaps?
Either way there are some pretty good food here. There’s a seating area in the middle decked with cute string lights. Nice vibe too.
Some of my favorite food trucks are:
Koja Kitchen — Kamikaze Fries are a must have
Frozen Khustard — Warm champorado with ice cream is a dream
Senior Sisig — Tosilog burrito is a winner
Chicken & Waffle Truck (not sure the official name) — The chicken and waffle sandwich is uhhhmazing

Tried this off the grid location with friends. There were about 6 – 8 trucks.
«An the Go» — chose this because of garlic noodles. Ordered the combination garlic noodles/​shrimp/​pork/​crab puff for $ 14.00 ($ 15.25 with tax). This is a such a disappointment! The garlic noodles can’t even taste the garlic at all. Seems like garlic powder was used only as I didn’t see any garlic pieces. And even if they use only garlic powder, there’s no garlic taste. The texture of the noodles is over cooked… the shrimp and pork are good. Crab puff is definitely good so I might just order this ONLY. This is not worth $ 15 at all.\
«Seoul of Taipei» — We tried the short rib tacos. you get 2 tacos for $ 7.00. I really liked this even though the tacos was «mini tacos» instead of the «regular Mexican tacos» The short ribs is very tender and juicy. Next time will try the bowl or burritto.
«Hongry Kong» — ordered 2 Flaky tarts (the Butter tarts was sold out by 6:30pm) for $ 6.00. It was flaky and warm; however, it tasted bland.
Overall, it was an okay experience… maybe i’ll come back to try other food trucks.

Great location with plenty of parking around. There’s a good amount of food trucks to choose from, and I like how the selection changes each time.

I’m glad OTG is available every Tuesday evening at Serramonte (5pm-​9pm) as it’s close to home and parking is easily accessible. What’s even better is they moved from Daiso’s parking lot to Macy’s parking lot, which provides more space. Bring a jacket to stay warm while you wait in line in the fog & cold.

Yum yum yum!
I normally dread driving to Serramonte, but the food truck scene is worth it. I love everything about it – the selection each time, the music, and the general atmosphere.
Trucks I look forward to seeing: Waffle Roost, Seoul on Taipei, Crème Brûlée Cart, 3 Brothers Kitchen.

+ THE FOOD
I’ve always wanted to try so many different trucks but I can only eat so much! I settled for Kamikaze Fries from Koja Kitchen and the New England clam chowder from Sam’s Chowdermobile. Needless to say, I was so impressed by both. The fries were delicious because there was a mixture of so many different flavors in there. The meat wasn’t the best quality, but I loved how it was seasoned, as if it was a true bulgogi dish. The kimchi was minced into tiny pieces and sprinkled on top of the crisscut fries. The red sauce and Japanese mayo served as delicious sauces on top. The chowder was delicious as well as it was really flavorful. I loved the little bacon chunks inside the soup. Both were a bit too salty for my liking, but hey, what can be expected from food truck food?
+ THE ENVIRONMENT
Plenty of seating in the center of all the food trucks. Beautiful string lights are hung around the seating area, providing a very cool vibe. A live band is also present so it’s a really relaxing environment. I only wish there were some tables so you could put stuff on, but I realize how that can get pretty messy too.

Weekly a circle of trucks rolls up to the mall car park in Serramonte, like some old wild west caravan camping ring and they open their doors for business.
But instead of a fire and a pot of beans, the center you’ll find a musician singing and dotted chairs.
And the trucks are food trucks — each offering a selection of fantastic street food from a selection of different cultures.
I believe there also hold this in other car parks through the city and it’s a fantastic idea. We have something very similar in London called ‘Street Feast’, However London’s one is more static. I do wonder if the idea for one spawned the other?
Imagine food trucks offering gourmet delights; amazing and great quality and fresh flavour combinations.
Some great treats and I loved everything I tried — I got the bug and as a result just kept going back for more!
However of everything I did try, I’d recommend:
Me so hungry: Amazing American burger sliders with a twist (I chose the Cali ones) and shoe string fries (with Garlic Parmesan, Parsley)
We sushi: Yummy and colourful rainbow rolls
Saji: Mediterranean food, I’d suggest sinking your teeth into the steak shawarma.
Hiyaa: Korean /​Chinese /​Vietnamese Spicy fried chicken bites — you’ll want to pop as many as you can of these!
Go, go, go… it’s well worth the car ride!

It was my first time here. I ended up ordering a crunch burrito from kometruck. It did not disappoint. I will definitely come back and try the other food trucks! Only downside today was that it was too was too windy and cold to be able to sit down to eat and enjoy the music.

Fun vibe! First time experiencing a live dj surrounded by a variety of food trucks. I had fun walking around and exploring my options. Asked for samples from a few trucks and tasted them. Friendly workers:)
My truck of choice, however, was definitely sams chowder mobile. A togo cup of chowder was a bit pricey, but the chowder was soooo good! Huge, and i mean HUGE chunks of clams that werent too chewy or flavorless. Everything tasted just right. I guess you can almost say its worth its price. I wish id received more, though.

BRING A COAT. Seriously even if you live in the area and became accustomed to the Daly City fog bring a jacket or a sweater. This area of Serramonte has some biting wind even in the middle of summer.
Bless this OtG location for its space and parking for days. Okay there are a lot of parking spots, but you are competing with people actually going inside of Serramonte. Many of the trucks accept credit cards these days, but if you are in need of cash there is a B of A ATM and a Wells Fargo branch in Serramonte. (Bucket) Seating may be harder to come by with so many families and groups swinging by before they get home.
I recommend checking out the Unilocal pages of the trucks coming for OtG that day before you make your decision to come over. Sometimes it isn’t worth fighting all of that wind.

Great food but awful weather! I wish the food trucks will start serving earlier than 5pm to solve this problem. Daly City is pretty foggy after 5.
We came hungry and one of the trucks that doesnt have people lined up was the WE SUSHI: tried the lobster sushi (blahhh, too oily) and takoyaki which was spot on!
The Shortrib Koja Burger and Kamikaze fries were superb and now i know why people line up and wait up to 30mins to get their hands on these deliciousness! AND do not skip dessert! their MOCHIMISU which is a combination of chocolate mochi and tiramisu was sssoooo goood and sooo right! i could eat 10 of those!
Wanted to try the señor sisig but the line was ridiculously long! they should figure out how to fix this, because lining up for an hour in a foggy afternoon isnt fun…

One of the smaller OTG’s. I like how it’s at serramonte with plenty of parking. Came here last time just to get Koja. Kamikaze fries are always so delicious and we just ate in the car because it was freezing outside. You know, that daly city fog. Señor sisig was also there and their line was super long. Chairman bao, sam’s chowder house and others were also there.

Out of the three (out of many) food trucks I went to this night, all of them did not fail to disappoint.
The first food truck was the one with the Koja burgers. My sister showed me a picture beforehand and gushed about how good the fries & koja burgers were. Thus, my friend and I tried the Beef (Bulgogi) Koja, Teriyaki Koja, and Kamikaze Fries. The Kamikaze Fries were the BEST fries I have ever tasted, and I don’t even remember what they put on it. All I remember is that they were pretty darn good and we scarfed it down within two minutes, I’m not kidding. I would DEFINITELY recommend these fries if it’s your first time going. Also, the Bulgogi Koja has a garlic rice bun that is very unique, delicious, and adds a nice touch to the tender marinated beef. I’d also recommend the Bulgogi Koja. The Teriyaki Koja, on the other hand, was not as exciting to my taste buds and I wouldn’t recommend getting it.
Second food truck, destination: The Crème Brulee Cart. SO many options to choose from, but as the night gets later, the options get smaller! We ordered two flavors: one salted caramel & one strawberry nutella. The salted caramel one was delicious and had the perfect amount of sweetness, while the strawberry nutella was good as well, but was much sweeter than I expected. Definitely recommend going here for a tiny dessert!
Last but not least, we went to the Filipino food truck that sold Sisig fries! We were pretty much in food comas and even though our stomachs were full, our eyes most definitely weren’t. We couldn’t even finish this last entrée, but it was a great entrée as well. The meat they use is super flavorful and tender and goes well with the salsa, guacamole, melted cheese, and other ingredients that coat the fries.
By the end of the night, I didn’t even feel guilty about the calories; these entrees were just too good to pass up! I’m definitely going here again.

We got to OTG at about 7 pm, and the only truck with a significant line (20 min wait) was Señor Sisig. Totally worth it though. Sisig Burrito was AMAZING.
This week’s lineup also included Chairman, Seoul kitchen, chimney cakes, frozen kuhsterd (spelling?), An The Go, and KoJa. I may be missing one; not sure.
There was no wait at An The Go this time… The first time I went when they were new at serramonte, the line was horrifically long and they ran out of noodles– this was redemption. Lol. The noodles were delicious and the chicken was so tender and flavorful.
The live music was this cool dude that beatboxed, sang, and played cello… Cello Joe I think… He set a pretty cool mood.
The new location was terrific in terms of beating the crowds and having ample parking.
The only downfall, which kinda isn’t their fault, was the weather. As with any typical Daly City day, it was cold, foggy, and WINDY.
All in all it was worth the wait and weather– the food and atmosphere were both great!

Who doesn’t love them food trucks doe?!
Pros:
— Located in Daly City, my beautiful foggy city. Don’t gotta bust my buttocks to go to OTG in San Francisco.
— Moved from the Daiso Japan parking lot to the lot near Macys = more space.
— Several amounts of food trucks that vary every other week.
— Some food trucks accept cash & credit.
— The parking lot is huge so parking is usually available.
— Near Serramonte for your shopping pleasure.
Now for duh Cons:
— Since it’s always at 5pm, Daly City gets cold as hell.
— Not enough seats for the massive amount of people that come to eat.
— Lines get so long. But what do you expect lol.
Food trucks are awesomeeeeee.

It’s amazing how a change of location can make things for the better. In this case, OTG Serramonte’s relocation to the parking lot near Macy’s has made it so much easier for people to park and walk without having to worry about getting hit by a car or causing traffic since the old location near Daiso had an express road going right through it.
Because of the bigger space provided, the area isn’t as tightly packed and there’s plenty of room for the long lines to spread out and not clash. Though after a couple months, the only real long lines still belong to Señor Sisig and Koja Kitchen. So prepare to wait a while if you’re visiting those two trucks. Otherwise, it really shouldn’t take you a long time to pick up anything from the other trucks. In my last couple visits, I’ve been able to walk up to Architect’s Kitchen, The Chairman, and Hapa SF and only had to wait maybe 2 – 5 minutes for my order.
The truck lineup is still solid and with the additions of ArKi Truck and Hapa SF, two of my favorite trucks, it’s already become a weekly event for me.

I’m really grateful that OTG had chosen to plant their butts near my home. Going to SF for OTG is hard for me especially with the driving and the parking situations. At least at Serramonte there’s parking spaces all around.
Now, the food trucks seems to switch every other week. Except for Señor Sisig and Koja Kitchen. Try to get the schedule down if you can so you can see your favorite food truck.
It’s cold, too. Bring a jacket or a blanket or something with you cos you’re sure to freeze your butts off while waiting for your food.

oh hell yeah.
OTG in DC is long overdue,
and judging by the warm reception (albeit in the fog),
I’m hoping it becomes one of their permanent spots.
My long lost cupKates was there
and I renewed my appreciation of their baked treats
by buying ½ a dozen diet destroying delights.
I finally got to try some Kinder’s BBQ
and must say that their BBQ sando
lived up to my overly magnified expectations.
The wife got a rice plate from Seoul on Wheels
and now wants to try KoJa’s take on Korean fusion.
But what got me was the line for Señor Sisig
— it was easily twice as long as any other line there.
dang y’all. you know you are in DC right?
I mean you’re bound to find a couple Filipino spots if you try.
But I digress,
I can think of no better way to start a perfectly foggy DC evening
than by grabbing some grub at my new fav OTG site.

Date of event: Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Of all the OTG events that’s held throughout the Bay Area, this one needs the most improvement.
Going to this event made me realize that Daly City is too dang small. I saw the same ugly Pinoys here that go to my gym. Really? I don’t wanna see you’re ugly ass here. Why don’t you go back home and make steamed rice, you Manny Pacquiao-​shirt-​wearing Mader Packers.
I’m kidding of course… not really.
OK…where do I begin?
Location — Serramonte is huge and has a vast amount of parking lot space. I don’t understand why they set up the event in front of Daiso where parking space is limited, and the stupid Meter Maids were giving parking tickets to any vehicle «illegally» parked. I suggest they move the next event behind the Target parking lot where it’s more spacious and less congested.
Food Trucks — There’s not enough vendors and what they do have there, they ran out of food real quick. There’s a Fish Truck that had everything «Sold Out» within minutes of opening. The lineup included The Chairman, Koja, An the Go, Curbside Grill, Rib Whip, Curry Up Now, Fish Tank and Candy Bar Truck. There were a bunch of angry Filipinos that went home hungry.
Lines — I’ve been to other OTG events and lines are always a given. HOWEVER, the lines here took forever to move and most remained stagnant. People that were in line for An the Go for Garlic Fries at 5:30 PM did not get to the front of the line until 8:30 PM. Yes we expect long lines at these events, but this was just ridunkolous.
Quantity of food — I’m not complaining about the quality since the quality will always be there, but there simply was not enough food for everyone. I mean almost every Food Truck ran out of food way earlier before the closing time of 9:00 PM. I don’t know if they anticipated a low turnout because of the weather or what, but God dang it people were hungry. It’s Daly City, we’re used to cold weather and you won’t hear me complaining about the weather. Pinoys will line up for good food and events cause it’s in their nature.
If this is gonna be a regular weekly event, I suggest they make improvements and implement my suggestions.
This message is for Matt Cohen, founder of Off the Grid.