On this installation of Evan’s Eats, we’re trying something new that I hope you will enjoy—Evan’s Eats On the Streets! Portland being the best food cart city in the country, if not, the world, the possibilities to try different cuisines from around the globe for reasonable prices seems like an appropriate avenue to explore. The beauty of food carts/trucks is their accessibility—almost like a cheap portal into a different culture. Instead of purchasing a round trip ticket to South America, I thought, let’s pinch these pennies and just head down to SE Belmont, where I know I can get myself a plate of some authentic Peruvian street food.
Personally, I love Peruvian food and have since my folks started taking me out to Peruvian restaurants as a young chap. Due to Peru’s history, its cuisine is replicant of its diverse background and is showcased through its numerous national dishes. Mainly, you will see the use of indigenous practices and local ingredients courtesy of their Incan roots, which has transcended generations, but alongside this, due to Peru’s history of immigration you will also see a hints of Spanish, North African, as well as some Asian fusions being added to their plates as well. Quite unique in and of itself, yet somehow all so familiar. A very sublime experience to say the least.
Salt & Pepper Peruvian Food Review
I was first introduced to Salt & Pepper about four years ago when I was living off SE Hawthorne Blvd, which is about a stones throw away from SE Belmont. I would, and still do, frequently pick up the Willamette Week newspaper, which is free to Portlanders if you can find one of those blue newspaper box stands with the big white “WW” on the side. It must have been late 2019 when I picked up this specific edition of WW, since the pandemic hadn’t come to disrupt our day-to-day at that point. While fanning through the pages back on at my apartment one rainy evening, I flipped to the section where they covered some hot, local eats to try around town. Atop of the list of new places to try was, Salt & Pepper Peruvian Food.
Seeing how close the physical truck was in relation to my apartment, and what the article had said about the food and the owner/cook—Rafael Luis Garcia, I was immediately ready to dig into what they had to offer. After my initial visit, I was impressed to learn that Garcia is a native to Trujillo, Peru, which is a coastal city in the Norwest region of the country. I remember asking him when he started the food cart, but lost in translation, he answered by saying that he used to manage McDonald’s branches in Utah and Oregon for 19 years before saving up enough money to serve the local flavors of his country. In that moment, even before diving into his food, Garcia had my respect. A true testament to perseverance and hard work goes a long way, but to do this in the form of food, which I have stated before, is a true labor of love, would make any serious foodie or chef tip their cap to this type of work ethic. It is the embellishment of what it means to make a name for yourself, but beyond that, to serve a community the flavors of where you came from is extremely humbling from the consumer’s standpoint.
Fast forward to four years later, and I’m still enjoying Garcia’s dishes. To which, I should mention, have not changed one bit since I have started going here. When it comes to my background with Peruvian food, my experience is minimal, but not void entirely. My folks used to take me to a restaurant in the Pearl district called, Andina, which is of a higher level of execution and can be paralleled to the likes of what you would find in a fine dining experience. Garcia’s dishes embody the same flavor profiles, but these dishes are more routinely seen on the streets and at local eateries within Trujillo, Peru. This is my preference and method of approach when it comes to food of different cultures. Give me all the local spots before we get into trying to impress me with some artsy-fartsy hibiscus infused lemon pepper rice that is coated in a truffle glaze and gold flakes sprinkled on top….. ok that actually doesn’t sound half bad, but you get what I am saying. I want to eat what the locals eat. As my buddy Tony would put it,
Eat at a local restaurant tonight. Get the cream sauce. Have a cold pint at 4 o’clock in a mostly empty bar. Go somewhere you’ve never been. Listen to someone you think may have nothing in common with you. Order the steak rare. Eat an oyster. Have a negroni. Have two. Be open to a world where you may not understand or agree with the person next to you, but have a drink with them anyways. Eat slowly. Tip your server. Check in on your friends. Check in on yourself. Enjoy the ride.
Isn’t this why all of us exist? To discover the nooks and crannies of all the things there is to experience? To experience things from the lens of high esteemed culture would omit your ability to truly understand where we all come from. You lock yourself in a position that has a ceiling already rather close to your head from where you stand. You’ve missed the myriad of other things to experience along the way. All for what? To say you have made it? To enjoy the things that others have deemed to be out of reach for the majority of the population? Congrats, you’re an elitist… now what? If that is your position, fine, enjoy your $58.00 pan seared scallop. Don’t get me wrong, there is a time and place for this, but I think we can all agree there is nothing to loose from enriching your life experience from at least trying something outside of your comfort zone. There is absolutely nothing wrong with being inexperienced or having little to absolutely zero knowledge on a specific sector within a given culture and their cuisine. I am not afraid to look out of place, and you should feel the same way. That being said, let’s see how well I can make Garcia’s food sound.
Main Course
Prior to placing my order at the window of Garcia’s food truck, I of course had to get myself a drink at Portland’s best dive bar of 2022, which conveniently just so happens to be across the street from Salt & Pepper.
The Vern has been a Portland staple for years. You either love it or hate. Me, I personally love any place that puts a beverage in a glass. Better than lapping it out of your paws like some peasant, but I guess whatever gets the job done, right? I wouldn’t be surprised if The Vern decided to offer a special with two dollars off any drink you can cup in your hands or personalized dog bowl.
After sucking down a beer and an Irish whiskey, I walked across the street to the gravel lot where Salt & Pepper stands along with a truck that serves local craft Portland beers, as well as a taco food truck. One thing is for certain, the Belmont area seems to be growing, yet so does Portland in general.
Neither of these places used to be here when I lived in the area, so they were new to me. I knew I couldn’t have a meal without having something to wash it down with, so I ordered a beer from Earthlabs Libations. You can see my beer waiting for me patiently at the table in the image above. Nothing extraordinary about this beer, but I thought it was cool that the truck outsources some of the more prolific and higher quality beers in the Portland area. Not to mention, every week, Earthlabs will do a special movie night on Thursday evenings with their projector screen against the side of the truck. If you are looking for a flavorful meal alongside a beer, and a movie, this spot might suit you well.
Beer in hand, I scanned Salt & Pepper’s menu and saw what I was after: Pato de Norteno. A braised duck dish that is served along side some white rice, brown pinto beans, and Peruvian spices. On paper, this meal could be deemed simple. Once it hits your palette, it was far from that.
Anything braised should be knelt before and given its proper admiration and respect. Kind of like Wayne and Garth when meeting Alice Cooper in Wayne’s World.
One thing I noticed that was different about the presentation of Salt & Pepper’s food is that when you used to order it to eat at the food truck, Garcia would give you ceramic plates and actual silverware. This time around, it was served on a paper plate with disposable utensils. This was slightly underwhelming as the times before when I ate here, that aspect of the meal made it feel like I was eating a hybrid form of a restaurant. Obviously it was still being prepared in a food truck, but having it brought out to you on a ceramic plate and silverware made it feel like you were dining in a brick and mortar. Now, did this affect the way any of this tasted? Absolutely not. In fact, I can understand why Garcia likely made this change. It’s easier for him to pump out meals this way as opposed to worrying about washing dishes and the added cost of a water bill to keep things clean. Plates in restaurants sometimes break, and some people accidentally throw away their silverware. Not to mention, this is considered street food… I didn’t wear my bow tie, suspenders, and monocle expecting my feet to be rubbed with shea butter and caviar infused lotions while I eat. That of course costs extra. Hey Rusty! Ill give you a quarter if you come rub the burr out of Grandma’s heal!
This meal was everything I had hoped for and more. My first bites into the duck were so tender and succulent. Quite literally fall off the bone. You can lift the duck up by the bone and shake it twice and the meat would shed off. The slow braised duck conjured its own type of sauce that at first didn’t seem to bring much to the table, but as you continue to take bites and combine all the elements of the meal, that being the rice, beans, onions, cilantro, as well as the duck, you can see and taste that this was a well thought out, methodical approach to make a pretty standard dish. Plainly put, when I was eating this, I kept thinking, this all just makes sense.
The sauce it bathed itself in was reminding me of what you see in Filipino chicken adobo dishes, but this stood enough on its own that it was unique in its own right. At first, I was a little underwhelmed the dish was lacking heat, but as I continued through the meal, the heat of the Peruvian spices presented itself favorably. I had felt by about halfway through that the portion size was too small, but by the end, I found it to be perfect. Another thing that surprised me was that I actually enjoyed the cilantro. Usually I am not a big fan of cilantro as I’m one of those weirdos where it tastes like soap, but as of late, I have been trying to implement it more and more when it comes to meals like this. If something is apart of a meal, it was intended to be there on purpose. To omit an element of a dish is to not enjoy it to its fullest potential. In my opinion, all of the elements succeeded in their own right, but more so when paired together. At a $19.00 price point, I was little bit surprised, but have to remember that this locally owned and operated business. Garcia runs the show and makes sure everything comes out perfect. Add to the fact that I don’t think you can find a meal anywhere now for less than $10.00 anymore, unless you are going through the drive through at Taco Bell, that in mind, his price point seems fair. All in all, I was satiated, pleased, and happy I came back here. I will be sure to be back soon with the warmer weather around the corner. This is a terrific Portland food cart and you would be stupid to pass it up. Even if none of the elements of this meal didn’t tickle your fancy, I guarantee you can find something on Salt & Pepper’s menu that will suit your desires.
Evan’s Eats Report Card: Salt & Pepper Peruvian Food
Ambiance…………………………B
Wait staff………………………….A
Drinks……………………………… B
Appetizers………………………. N/A
Main course…………………….. A
Expense……………………………. B+
Overall Experience………… A-