Similar to Douchebag selling the tequila in those commercials, I too ponder about the less watered-down days, the manlier days---except in my case I am speaking of food trucks. Food trucks have essentially exploded in popularity in the Central Florida area thanks to its strong Hispanic influence. That being said, most of these food trucks are doing it all wrong. Some are open only in the afternoon; some are sprinkling their carts with pizzazz and personality, and some are selling meals in carts. Shame on all of you, food trucks are meant to be open until the near-sunrise hours, are meant to sell fast-paced and easy-to-consume food, and are meant to be the cuisine hidden treasures of the city. Now, there’s still one spot that throughout all these years has maintained an audience, has maintained its high-quality food, and to this day remains my favorite food truck in Orlando.
Saman Arepas Bistro has a couple locations in the Orlando/Kissimmee area, but their food truck on Orange Blossom Trail is where the magic is. This food truck is part of a stretch of road that has at least a dozen different food trucks from countries ranging from the Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico, and one that may have been from Haiti. But this one remains one of the bigger hits despite not being close to a bar or a nightclub. Open until at least 4 a.m.? I’m in.
This food truck offers Venezuelan arepas, which basically consists of ground corn dough or flour being made into delicious bread, which can then be stuffed or topped with a variety of different toppings. Arepas themselves can be broiled, baked, or fried. The Venezuelan arepas tend to be stuffed with the topping, as when they make the bread they leave open a wide hole in the middle so they can add whatever they want. The texture of this dough is tough, strong, and crunchy, and can hold a wide variety of meats and cheeses without falling apart. In this joint you can stuff yours with several different meats, cheeses, and even shrimp if you want. There is usually a short wait time, because there is almost always a crowd roaming the streets here. You’ll hear Puerto Rican, Dominican, and Mexican accents scattered about as you order your arepa---which is 5 bucks every time. And this is all they sell, just arepas. Simple menu, easy to navigate and decide.
For this trip I went with two of them: a shrimp/white cheese arepa, and then a chicken/yellow cheese arepa. While one arepa alone can definitely fill you up, I decided to try something new, and add some variety to this review for the sake of my 3 consistent readers. The shrimp white cheese arepa is my favorite combination because of the succulent fresh shrimp combining with the salty yet creamy white cheese. It is the ultimate mix of seafood and munchie cuisine as you get a dirty dozen shrimp and enough cheese to make pizzas blush. The topping of my midnight snack? The incredible sauces that they offer---especially this garlic sauce that looks like sour cream, but delivers a mighty punch of flavor. The only catch is the shrimp isn’t cooked; it has the peel-and-eat shrimp feel. But being a shrimp maestro, I am perfectly fine with that.
The new one I tried was the chicken/yellow cheese combination. The chicken this time is cooked, and the result is fantastic. Increasing the temperature of the arepa, the chicken melts the cheese and transforms this arepa into a chicken quesadilla Venezuelafied. The chicken tasted fresh, was thick, and became my new favorite type of arepa. Now I am sure any combination they have works, because they place a lot of care to their product, and consistently crank out fresh and delicious food. But if you are to visit—do chicken and yellow cheese and thank me later.
Bottom Line: I have not been to the bistros that Saman offers, but if they are as good as the food truck here, I will definitely visit in the coming weeks. In the meantime I am perfectly content with making the drive to this spot after a long day of work in the middle of the night and hang around the South OBT area with other Hispanics and locals that remain wide awake. And before you even ponder as to the safety of the spot, there were several families with small kids lounging about. The environment isn’t the most appealing, but the ambience amongst the locals and the vendors is nothing short of enticing and the food is nothing short of fantastic. Visit once and you might be just as hooked as I am.
Final Verdict: Strongly Recommend.
Saman Arepas Bistro Food Truck
9803 S Orange Blossom Trail Orlando, FL
No comments:
Post a Comment