Yummy Yumbii
Last week I finally tracked down the Yumbii truck — that rolling dispenser of Korean tacos that has been leading the way in Atlanta’s development into a street-food-friendly city.
Carson Young — the truck’s owner, who is just a couple of years out of college — serves tacos, burritos, sliders and quesadillas that are prepared at Hankook Taqueria on the Westside and then assembled to order.
I caught up with the truck at the Prominence in Buckhead office tower — one of its regular stops. Because of health and police department regulations, the truck can’t yet park on city streets. But it can make arrangements to set up shop on private property. The truck hands out parking passes if you need to park in the garage.
I ordered a chicken taco and a tofu taco ($2 each), both of which I liked as well as anything I’ve eaten at Hankook. Nice, hot chunks of protein, a swipe of Korean chile sauce, a mound of shredded lettuce and a flour tortilla combine into a nice thing to direct toward your face. I like that there isn’t any cheese on the tacos.
But the real object of desire was the side of sesame fries, battered and redolent with a subtle hit of sesame oil. A swipe through the house chipotle ketchup tasted just right.
The truck seems to be killing it. After one hour, it was all out of pork. There was a steady stream of happy-looking office workers.
The best way to locate the Yumbii truck is to follow its Twitter feed.
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18 comments Add your comment
Becky
September 28th, 2010
11:58 am
If what you ate is in this picture, I would love to try the food at the rolling truck..
Rodney
September 28th, 2010
12:10 pm
Yep – each time he hits Buckhead I’m there!
jonnymack
September 28th, 2010
12:55 pm
It’s a welcome relief from the food court hell that is Buckhead at lunch.
Joy
September 28th, 2010
1:10 pm
I’ve eaten at Yumbii twice now at the Prominence building and while the food is very good, there is a serious lack of parking available outside the deck. As of two weeks ago, Yumbii was not offering to validate parking in the deck, which it stated that it does on it’s Website and Twitter. Once this is resolved, I’ll be back.
Rodney
September 28th, 2010
1:44 pm
@johnnymack – I’ve worked in Buckhead (when I go into the office) for 11 years now – I feel your pain. Yumbii is a WELCOME respite. Sure, you can drive to Eclipse di Luna or the Sushi Kiku down on Lenoxn Rd., but sometimes I just want to grab n go.
Good Food Eater
September 28th, 2010
5:14 pm
I enjoyed Yumbii the one time I saw them. If I’m stuck in Buckhead at lunch time I always go to Souper Jenny.
Tweets that mention Korean Tacos from the Yumbii truck | Food and More with John Kessler -- Topsy.com
September 28th, 2010
6:10 pm
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by ajcdinecritic, John Kessler. John Kessler said: Yummy Yumbii http://bit.ly/dcMcB5 [...]
tanline
September 28th, 2010
10:32 pm
Hmm – we get cheese when we ate tacos at the actual restaurant Hankook Taqueria… All of them. Wonder why not on the trucks? I prefer also no cheese…
Chuckles™
September 28th, 2010
11:11 pm
This sounds wonderful! It’s interesting that this truck is kinda like the ‘library truck’, being an extension of the Hankook Taqueria. Alton Brown mentioned Hankook last night on ‘The Best Thing I Ever Ate’ on Food Network, and apparently LOVES eating there (his offices are just down the road).
Now, if we could only coerce someone to buy a ‘Nom Nom’ franchise truck for Atlanta…. Banh Mi to go! NOM NOM!!!!
Tweets that mention Korean Tacos from the Yumbii truck | Food and More with John Kessler -- Topsy.com
September 28th, 2010
11:49 pm
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Jay Tribby, Far Out Food. Far Out Food said: Thanks to John Kessler for stopping by the truck and writing an awesome blog! http://blogs.ajc.com/food-and-more/2010/09/28/yummy-yumbii/ [...]
Megatron
September 29th, 2010
8:36 am
Is the John Kessler that Bobes knocked out in Break.com’s ‘Giant Knockout Punch?’
Eddie The LongShanks
September 29th, 2010
8:57 am
Sounds delicious, however, I still prefer the standard “Roach Coach” with the pre-made Roast beef & Cheese, some funyuns and a nice cold Hawaiian Punch.
Ima Glutton
September 29th, 2010
9:19 am
Not so fast Longshanks……..make that a Tahitian Treat and I’m there!!!!!
INC in Roswell made their kitchen look like a food truck parked inside. I had the Veal Cheek Tacos, a little fatty, but very tasty
Christopher James Conner
September 29th, 2010
12:08 pm
This could be a great franchise – low initial investment, high margins. I love the model for this economy in particular. There are several competing concepts in New York and Los Angeles.
George
September 29th, 2010
12:43 pm
Just went over and found the truck today, had the chicken burrito and my wife had the pork and steak tacos, loved them!
John Kessler
September 29th, 2010
3:28 pm
tanline — So it’s not just me? Had the cheese at Hankook and found it really kind of vile when mixed with the Korean sauce….with no cheese, I’m golden…
nom nom nom
September 29th, 2010
4:25 pm
These tacos do NOT need cheese. It totally ruins the delicate Korean flavors. Also, the chicken and the pork taste way too similar. This stuff is good, and I know it’s a fusion of Korean and Mexican, but it does not even compare to real Korean BBQ.
Food Dude
September 29th, 2010
9:58 pm
John, et al.
I know it doesn’t always work, but for some reason I like the cheese on ‘em. It shouldn’t work. It goes against everything I normally stand for…but I like it. What can I say, it’s a similar experience when one puts a nice sharp cheddar on a piece of apple pie. I should abhor it, but I don’t.