Cheap Food Critic

Location: Truly a Mobile truck.  Track them down here

Hours: Hours are normally lunch time on weekdays and afternoons on Sat but to be sure check their Twitter.

A newcomer to the mobile scene but they have made a huge splash winning the 2011 Mobile Food Rodeo in Seattle.

I tried their Seattle Cuban, the Picadillo, and Collard Greens with Ham Hock. I really enjoyed everything except the Picadillo which is what people seem to be raving about. I’m not sure what it really was about that Picadillo that let me down. I came here with high expectations that may have caused some of the disappointment. Or it maybe the lack of salt on the Picadillo. To me, all it really tasted like was Chinese five spice with bay leaves.

With that out of the way, now for the good stuff. The Seattle Cuban was fricking awesome. I really love the mojo pork and the red onion relish. The bread was also pressed perfectly leaving a crunchy shell for all the juiciness within. The sandwich came with a mango sauce which I though was not really necessary since there were already hunks of mango inside the Seattle Cuban. Maybe it would add more to the regular Cuban sandwich, since it does not come with mango. When eating the sandwich it was messy; the layer of butter on the bread will drip everywhere. Make sure you grab a few extra napkins.

As for the collard greens with smoked ham hock (meat from pig legs)…man, this was good! I definitely didn’t grow up eating greens but having traveled all over the US I have come to really appreciate it. For one, collard greens comes from the same family as kale; so the stuff is good for you. But most importantly it’s just delicious stuff (if cooked right). Snout and Co didn’t do anything anything with the greens I haven’t had already but the execution of the smoked ham hock added to the saltiness of the greens was an amazing combo.

In the end there was a lot more good than bad at Snout & Co. I would come back here for the sandwiches and the collar greens any day but will probably skip Picadillo in the future. So your next trip here, pickup the Seattle Cuban for about $9 after tax and if you really want to splurge try out the Collard Greens Carne style with smoked ham for about $5 after tax.

Note – The location I went to was in the Trident Seafood Headquarters at 5303 Shilshole Ave NW (they are here from 11-2). This location is really hidden. I had to drive all the way around this huge complex to find the food truck next to the loading bay for the semi-trucks.

Yelp – 4.5/5.0 (31Ratings)

211 SW 6th Ave
Portland, OR 97205

And

621 SE Morrison St
Portland, OR 97214

Mon-Sun 8:00 am – 3:00 pm (Both locations)

Bunk Sandwiches is another one of the many restaurants featured on the Food Network or Travel Channel. I visited the downtown location just off the SW 6th and Pine MAX station. To my surprise there was no line to order food here. It must have been because I came here on a Sunday and avoided the normal workday lunch rush. Although there was no line it was still about a ten minute wait for my sandwich.

I ordered the Pork belly Cubano as featured on Best Sandwich in America (Travel Channel) for $9. The sandwich was a little on the small side considering the trend of big sandwiches all over Portland (ie Big Ass Sandwiches and Brunchbox). However, it’s not necessarily a bad thing; remember, the meat in the sandwich is fatty chunks of pork belly…not good for you stuff. So enjoy this sandwich in moderation.

When you do decide to kill the diet and have this sandwich expected the pork belly to be very-very greasy (as expected) but full of flavor. The sandwich is also complemented with the normal Cuban sandwich fixings such as ham, cheese, mustard, and pickles. All that fat and Cuban fixings are then packed into a roll and pressed until the bread becomes a hard shell for the sandwich. It also came with a small side of kettle chips. Nothing special about there…it’s just kettle chips.

One thing I really like about this place is that they serve drip Stumptown coffee here. It’s a good way to get Stumptown coffee without having to wait in the massive lines at the Stumptown coffee house.

In summary, what this little sandwich lacked in size it definitely made up in flavor and calories. This is the type of place I would come back for sure to try out some of the other sandwiches. I probably won’t be getting the Pork Belly anymore just for the sheer fattiness factor. Having to run 10 miles just to eat this sandwich again is just not worth it.

Note – Credit Cards are accepted. The downtown location was extremely small. There was only about five tables outside and about nine stools inside.

Southeast Portland:
Yelp – 4.0/5.0 Stars (388 Ratings)

Downtown Portland:
Yelp – 4.0/5.0 Stars (25 Ratings)