Tikka Tikka Taco

Day Two of the Chicago stop in The Great Food Truck Race and I had learned that Tikka Tikka Taco would be hitting up none other than Fischman’s Liquors at 11am. I was due at my folks’ place nearby in Jefferson Park at noon, so this was perfect. I couldn’t have planned it any better if I had set it up myself.

Oh, wait. That’s right. There’s the Tyler element.

Shocker, I arrived a bit early, all ready to go, only to find out the truck now can’t start service until 3:30pm. Fan-fucking-tastic. Tyler, you can bite me. Yeah, you’re messing with the trucks as part of the show, but did you ever stop to think about all the eager patrons and their daily lives? Nope. Didn’t think so.

Still, not wanting to miss this chance to maybe be on the show, I recruited some of my family to hit up the truck with me in the middle of our family gathering. Sorry Dad, but I’m a dad too, so that’s my story and I’m sticking to it. Plus, Food Network!

So a carload of us headed back to Fischman’s to join in the mayhem. Apparently, the challenge was to sell as many Mike Ditka Chicago-style hot dogs as possible by 6pm. So we ordered a bunch. To call these things hot dogs is a bit of a misnomer. These were gargantuan smoky spicy links of deliciousness.

My daughter is a vegetarian, so we also got here a place of naanchos, minus the chicken. Lucky for me, the main man suggested I get that chicken on the side. So glad I did. That stuff was crazy good.

And, two for two, I was at the spot of the winning truck. Coincidence? I think not.

I never did make it out to Philly's Finest Sambonis, but I definitely hope to cross paths with these other trucks in their native habitats. Aloha Plate won the grand prize, and they’re on the west coast. Tikka Tikka Taco is still trying to launch their truck and they’re just a day trip away in St. Louis.

Time to get serious about my Patriot mission.