Food truck fans can now add Maine to their bucket list of destinations for fun, fresh and mobile cuisine.
Innovative food trucks can now be found in well-travelled Portland neighbourhoods like the Old Port and Congress Street, as well as at the beach and beside a lake.
Here's a sampling of just some of Maine's delectable new food truck choices.
For the spice fan
El Corazon has the most budget-friendly truck menu in the Portland fleet, with all items under $6. Tantalize your taste buds with the chicken burrito piled high with refried beans, rice, cheese, sour cream, guacamole and salsa, an order of potato and cheese taquitos, or the tamale of the day, and then wash it down with traditional horchata - a cinnamon flavored rice milk.
For the burger lover
Mainely Burgers, located in Portland and Scarborough Beach, offers four to five gourmet burgers at a time with new choices every couple of weeks. Eat like a native and try ‘The Mainah’, which comes with lashings of cheddar, bacon, green apple slices, sautéed onions and maple mayo. All burgers are available in beef, chicken or veggie options, and there are hot dogs and hand cut fries, too. Check Facebook for daily locations.
For the sweet tooth
That pale green and pink 1960s travel trailer on Route 1 in Falmouth beside Foreside Antiques isn't for sale – but it is stocked with fresh baked cupcakes with handmade butter cream or cream cheese frosting. Love Cupcakes owner Anna Turcotte offers four regular and mini-sized varieties, such as ‘The Classic’ with vanilla cake and chocolate frosting, or ‘Love Chocolate’ with chocolate cake and chocolate frosting. Seasonal specialities include ‘The Mimosa’, a vanilla Champagne cake with orange frosting.
For a lakeside picnic
Belgrade native Avery Richter started up her Wrap N' Roll take-out trailer before graduating from college. She shares her love for fresh food and baking from a lot on Route 27 just south of the Belgrade Lakes village centre. Try the to-die-for ‘Greg Wonder’ roast beef melt with Swiss cheese, tomato, bacon and horseradish sauce on toasted multigrain bread. Alternatively, the healthy ‘Andrea Wrap’ comes with hummus, avocado, shredded carrots, cucumbers, mixed greens and balsamic vinaigrette on one of four different wraps.
For a legendary sandwich
Eight years ago, Christine and Randy Oldham retro-fitted a full-size yellow school bus for take-out service and parked it beside Worthley Pond in Peru. Since then, the ‘Oldham Bus Ham Hoagie’ has gained legendary status along with many other choices from the grill. Try the deep fried bacon-wrapped hot dog or their own beer battered onion rings and eat them at the picnic tables with views of the pond.
For a Southern fried experience
Visit this lime green Wicked Good Truck in Portland during its late night hours for chicken and waffles. That’s herb and buttermilk-brined chicken breast coated with corn flakes, deep fried and served up with buttermilk Belgian waffles and Maine maple syrup. Bliss. The truck is also open for breakfast and lunch with choices like gluten-free buckwheat crepes with truck-made blueberry cream cheese filling, and the B.A.T sandwich with Wicked Good's own cured bacon, arugula and tomato, vinaigrette and aioli served on locally-baked samoon bread. The truck sometimes parks on Peaks Island at the ferry terminal. Check Facebook for daily locations.
For lobster-lovers
Visitors to Fort Williams Park can now gaze at Portland Head Light while eating a lobster roll from the Bite Into Maine cart at Cape Elizabeth. Try the ‘Maine Style’ roll with light mayo and fresh chives, the ‘Picnic Style’ roll with coleslaw, hot butter and celery salt, or the ‘Wasabi’ roll with lobster meat mixed with wasabi powder, mayo and rice vinegar. Add a side of corn, cucumber and wild blueberry salad, and a can of Moxie – and you’re in food truck heaven.