DesiPDX

A friend and I stopped by today for lunch and shared the cardamom chai chicken (drumsticks that are brined in chai, steamed in chai, fried and finished in coconut sugar chai and toasted cardamom salt) with a side of cabbage coconut slaw and seasonal pickles, the pakora waffle (garbonzo bean flour, drizzled with a spicy green chutney and an amazing raita, and a cup of dahl. Every single dish was packed with flavors both strong and subtle that settled on the palate like little bits of heaven. We ate slowly, savoring each morsel. To round out the meal, we each had what is in my opinion hands down the best Chai I have ever tasted. I bemoaned the fact that I didn’t have a mason jar on hand, because I really wanted to take some home with me. Owner/​Chef Deepak was a delight. All in all, the best meal, cart or otherwise, I have had in some time. I will be back to sample everything!

How the hell have I not seen this cart, I walk past it all the time. Stopped to try a couple hours ago, had the Vegan Thali platter to go. Dahl, rice, cabbage slaw. All incredibly awesome. I was making mmm sounds while eating. Super stoked, I live close enough that I will be stopping by a bunch.

I had been looking forward to trying this food truck for a while due to all the great Unilocal reviews, but only had an okay experience this time around… Mainly due to the fact that at 530pm, all the food that was served was dry and overcooked, and the truck is supposed to close around 830!
The rice was interesting with cranberries and spices, but it was very dry. The chicken dish came with 5 drumsticks, which was awesome, but the chicken itself was overcooked and on the dry side as well. However the marinade tasted really good. Im sure it would have been really scrumptious had the chicken and rice been more moist and tender.
A nice potential thing is that there’s a covered seating area outside with a heating lamp. Sadly the day we were there, it was close to freezing and the lamp was out of fuel and not working. Maybe it was just a bad timing day for us in this overall.

We stopped here on a rainy weekend while waiting for our turn for brunch at a near by restaurant.
I had tea and veggie savory waffle (made with chickpea flour). Enjoyed the waffle that came with green chutney.
Tea with coconut milk was fine. I am looking forward to try the other options from the menu. The chef mentioned he would try some fusion India. desserts. Looking forward to try them as well.

Oh my goodness, SO delicious! I want to try everything! Excellent and friendly service! This place is top notch & a fabulous option for anyone eating paleo!

Just stumbled upon this truck. I ordered the chicken cardamom with a side of a cauliflower/​pea dish. I’m a happy camper :) Definitely will be back.

Finally went here last week for the first time. I *love* indian food. It’s the best. I got just the beans and rice bowl, and it was flavored so well. It was a tiny bit spicy, which was great.
The person running the cart (the owner?) was incredibly knowledgeable about all the ingredients, and it wasn’t busy so we started to talk a little. He knew what was in everything, whether he made it or not.
I also got a hot chai tea and that was very good as well. I can’t wait to go back!

Deepak opened his cart in April 2015 and has been experimenting with the fusion of authentic Indian combined with the local vegetables from the Pacific NW. I do have a bit of bias as his friend but have also seen and tasted as his flavors change throughout the year with the seasonal produce and foods available.
Do not pass up the pork dishes nor the chicken. Flavors that will make you salivate as you are eating. The side dishes change from week to week so come back for more and experience a great meal every time.

Great vegan options! IMHO this place wins the prize for best Indian food in the Portland metro area. I’ve traveled a lot throughout northern India and have been looking for a place to satisfy my cravings. Excellent options. Friendly staff. So good!!!

This cart is amazing. OMFG so good and the friendliest cook. Go today. The rice was really good. Usually rice is boring but his was full of flavor. The chicken was heavenly the dall was unbelievable.

Delicious and high-​quality food! DesiPDX offers a «Portland take» on traditional Indian dishes, so don’t expect exactly the menu that you would normally find at an Indian restaurant. Lots of vegetarian and GF option as well!

My life is so much better since DesiPDX arrived in my neighborhood! I’m vegetarian, love Indian food, and like to limit my gluten, white flour, and sugar… which means finding quick, healthy meal options on Alberta has been a challenge up to now. Everything at DesiPDX is fresh, flavorful, and made with love. So graet to get my favorite Indian flavors with «local flair» and sensitivity to Portland-​style food preferences. Whether you’re gluten-​free, paleo, or vegan, DesiPDX has something for you.

Desi PDX takes an interesting twist on indian food. It is not your typical indian food (i don’t think it’s authentic) but it’s a modern and probably healthier indian food.
I ordered the cardamom chai chicken with fried rice and raita. The chicken was delicious and not spicy at all! the fried rice was overcooked/​fried and I did not like it. To be honest, It was hard to eat.
I also ordered chai and it was not your typical indian chai. it had dandelion root and was bitter than usual. Not a big fan of it.
I would recommend visiting it at least once to try. But I hope the owner could fix the overly fried rice and bitter chai.
I would give it 3 stars but gave it an extra star because the owner was friendly. There are actually some tables and chairs for you to sit and eat. It was only a 10 min wait as well.

One of the best Indian food trucks.
I loved the vegetarian bowl, pakora waffles and Chai.
If you like eggs, deepak has a snack item with quail eggs, great ones.
He is a chef with creativity.
Certainly try this truck out.

this place is ridiculous. The food is so amazing – not like the Indian buffet most of us are used to in the West, but a remarkably architected use of Indian flavors with gorgeous local ingredients. The fried chicken was wonderful, the pork
belly was over-​the-​moon. Eat here before it gets impossible without an hour wait in
line.

«GLUTEN FREE»
I’m always amazed at the really outstanding food carts don’t have 500 reviews, I chalk it up to people are to busy grubbing on the chow and go into a food coma after and have amnesia until the next visit !
Come one, come all because this little authentic Indian food cart has some of the most bomb cardamom chicken legs I have ever laid my lips on!
By the way this isn’t like the mini legs either these are nice meaty legs, the kind your grandma fries up!
Now don’t get me wrong the rest of the food is off the chain too, the rice is cooked to perfection with lots of Indian spices and currents and what ever the others little morsels of goodness that are packed into a perfect portion. Also the Dahl is just freaking delicious too.
I would love to see some really yummy mango chutney on the board, but I am totally satisfied with all the homemade pickled veggies that you can taste the time care and love that went into each veggie, while it’s also a gluten free zone so hello this is like winning the Indian food lottery on Alberta …
Once you try it you will be hooked, God knows I am!

If you like Indian food and despise the generic, orange gravy of dime-​a-​dozen Indian restaurants, you need to come here. Their chicken wings has the most amazing cardamom crust. And a single serving has a very generous portion of five wings. The fried rice is plain and simple and tasty, with the cranberries a nice added touch. Excellent dal. And on top, super friendly owner. We went in a group of nine near their closing time. But the owner was super accommodating and had some really good suggestions. If you’re in the Alberta area, definitely check them out.

Everything that I tried was amazingly good, including the accompaniments. Chai Chicken and Lamb Khadi highly recommended! Well worth a trip across town.

SO glad we tried this place. We had a hankerin’ for some Indian food, so I pulled out my phone and did a search in my trusty Unilocal app and voila — DesiPDX it is.
This magic cart of yummy is hidden away in a tiny food cart pod on Alberta and 14^th. It was not busy at all and the service was great. The chef, Deepok, was very friendly and answered our questions. He said he opened a few weeks ago, I have a feeling once the word gets out — it is going to be a lot busier.
I ordered the chicken bowl — $ 9.75. It came with FIVE large drumsticks, rice, root vegetable salad and a kale slaw. Needless to say, there are left overs.
The rice was spiced fantastically with cranberries (i think) and a hint cardamom, and I don’t know what else — just really really good.
The chicken was perfection itself. Crispy and slightly sweet on the outside and moist and delicious on the inside.
My husband got the pork belly al a carte’ which came with the kale slaw and some pickled vegetables. He said it had great flavor — just right on the spicy factor.
For dessert — Cupcake Jones just a block south!

For 14 years I’ve lived in the Alberta neighborhood and enjoyed both the restaurants and food carts. So many unique flavors exist in such a small area sometimes it’s hard to choose.
But DesiPDX stands out as one of the best, most flavorful, and uniquely designed. Having known Deepak for years as well, I knew his passion for food and delicious flavors he could create.
What I didn’t know until he opened DesiPDX was that he considers this entire project an «experiment» in both flavor and sustainability. While most food carts have a static menu that never changes (either big or small) this beautifully designed cart has an evolving and experimental menu. He’s constantly playing with new ideas to see what comes out.
His Cardamon Chai Chicken is delicious, his chai is spicy and flavorful, and his dhal is different every time I stop by (and amazing always).
I can’t believe I lucked out to have a great friend cook such delicious food barely a block from my house.
If you haven’t visited the cart pod on NE Alberta and 15^th you’re missing out. Not only will Deepak cook you up some mouth watering Indian food… but you can have gluten-​free donuts at the cart next to him for dessert!
How does it get any better than this?