Piaggio Gourmet on Wheels

I’m Argentinian so I was very excited to see an Argentinian food truck in OC. They stop by our apartment complex every now and then so the hubby and I decided to finally try it.
I had high hopes but unfortunately it did not live up to the Argi food I’m used to :(
The empanadas served here are fried — not my preference. I feel that baked empanadas are better because they let the meat & ingredients really come thru. When fried it kind of overwhelms the rest of the flavors.
Next thing I tried was the «Chimi Fries». Another bummer. The Chimichurri here needs some major work. The one being served is not so much a sauce but more of chopped parsley than anything. They need to up the olive oil and red wine vinegar and also chop the parsley into much smaller pieces.
Lastly we tried the Entraña special. It was «ok». I prefer the entraña from Villa Roma myself. But I guess this is a food truck — not a restaurant.
All in all — if they made a few tweaks they could be so much better!

Tried the pulled pork over chimichurri fries and it was awesome! Speaking for two!

I am so sad to say this company completely let our school down. They committed to be at a event at our school this Friday and called today (4 days before) and cancelled say that they would not be able to make enough money due to the events in San Bernardino. Such a poor excuse! There is no way I will be able to get a food truck for our event this short of notice. They are completely letting the kids down!

There were some mighty fine aromas coming from this food truck, so decided to give it a shot.
They have a best sellers list, so grabbed the pulled pork sliders along with a side of chimichurri fries. It comes with 2 sliders on those tiny King’s Hawaiian buns that immediately soak up the pork juice and become a soggy mess. Generous amount of pork, pretty tender, but not too flavorful.
The chimichurri fries were super crisp, but was lacking when it came to the chimichurri. Scantly tossed on top, it was more veggie than sauce, which was kinda weird. I’m not familiar with Argentinian food, maybe it’s supposed to be like that? Either way, I thought it was a pretty bland meal :/​Blah
Maybe I’ll grab those dulce de leche churros next time instead!

They came by our apartment complex on a weeknight and we decided to give them a try. I love empanadas so we ordered a couple — they were just ok and a bit on the pricey side for what you get. Also, I’m sorry, chimichurri sauce isn’t just parsley/​cilantro in oil. We were super disappointed when we received the chimi fries and that’s what we got on top. Real chimichurri would’ve been good with the empanadas and the fries. Don’t be lazy — throw the parsley/​cilantro in a food processor!

My first time trying this particular food truck and it had me at the first bite. I had the Braised pork over chimichurri fries and it was amazing. Tender pork, crisp tasty fries, awesome tasting chipotle mayo and the star of the dish — the chimichurri. Amazing flavors. It was like a party for my taste buds. I’ve read some of the negative reviews and it seems like people complained about the price and the portion size. I was full half way into the fries and I’m not a small guy. The price? It’s a food truck people… what do you expect? Of course it’s a little over priced… THEY COME TO YOU! Nothing but good things to say about this truck. I’d seek it out for sure.

It’s been awhile since I’ve had this truck but I’ve been craving there porker sandwich it’s so good and lots of blue cheese on the look out for this truck I need a porker in my life

Ordered the skirt steak tacos. What a disappointment. They only put a few lil chintzy pieces of steak. I felt like It was all lettuce … Could have went down the street to a hole in the wall and bought 6 tacos for the price they charged me for 2. I give it a big MEH :/​neeeeeext

This truck is consistently at a place near my work. They consistently have the shortest line, if they even have a line. Decided to give it a try.
Just Above Average as far as flavor.
Very pricey $ 7 for two tiny two bite empanadas. That means 1.75 per bite!
Same with the $ 7 for two pork sliders.
Being generous with two stars as I reserve 1 stars for extremely bad and this was very close… But I know why they don’t have a line at their truck. I’d come back if they figured out portion size. $ 14 bucks and I still had to go to another truck to feel full.

Tried out Piaggo at the Patchwork Festival.
I found it odd that they had chicken milanesa, but no beef milanesa. So I ordered the chicken milanesa and was not impressed. Meat was in the fryer too long. I like my milanesa more on the crunchy side, but not borderline burnt.
The chimichurri was basically parsley with a splash of everything else. The bread was the best part.
I’m being generous on the 3 stars.

Pulled pork sliders and chimmi fries are so bomb. They’re juicy and served warm and the pulled pork makes it unique from other sliders. I would be hard pressed to find better Argentinian food or something similar to this. Even my hyper critical brother was impressed. The workers are very friendly and greet you with a smile. I don’t really have anything else to say other than try it. You won’t regret.

I used Piaggio to cater an event that I had at a clients showroom. They worked with me on the menu and budget and I was very happy with the food and the speed of service, there was no long-​line bottleneck, which I was a little worried about.
They also did some tray passed appetizers inside the showroom before starting dinner service. Over all it was a great experience and they were VERY easy to work with. The only small change I would make is since they were tray passing it would have been good to be dressed a little more professionally. Also, the presentation on the tray passed apps wasn’t the greatest, as this was a bit of a more high end event, but all in all I was happy with the service and food and felt like it was a great value for the price!

Choripan is Piaggio’s traditional Argentine sausage of pork, wine, nutmeg and garlic, served on toasted French bread with chimichurri. It was sold out the first 2 times I tried to order it and now I know why. It is absolutely fabulous! The sausage is juicy and the chimichurri sauce really kicks it up a couple of notches. The bread soaks up the juices so as not a drop of taste is wasted. Rating: ⁵⁄₅
Tres Amigos Burrito is their signature burrito with skirt steak, braised pulled puerco and joined by the crunchy texture of garlic/​lime shrimp (camarao) with black beans, white rice, cheddar and jack cheeses, pink sauce, pico de gallo and lime on the side. This combination is amazing — surf and turf to the max! You already know from my previous article that their skirt steak is awesome. When it is combined with the puerco and camarao, it just makes you hungry for more. This is definitely the best burrito I have ever had. Rating: ⁵⁄₅
Bacon-​Wrapped Hot Dogs are, you guessed it, 2 bacon-​wrapped hot dogs with chimichurri and pink sauce. The bacon is artfully wrapped around the hot dogs and fried to a perfect crispiness. The hot dog has a nice snap to it with the outer edge being seared by the hot bacon. The mixture of the chimichurri and pink sauce is mind-​blowing! You’ll never want to eat a regular hot dog again! Keep the mustard, ketchup, and relish away from these dogs! The buns are fresh and soft and soak up the juice and sauce perfectly. Rating ⁵⁄₅
Bleu Cheeseburger is a daily special menu item. It’s one of the juiciest burgers I have ever had. The beef patty size matches perfectly with the bun so you’re not left with a bunch of bun at the end. The bleu cheese melts and becomes a pungent, creamy sauce of sorts. I love bleu cheese with beef. They pair so well together. Fries are crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. Rating: ⁵⁄₅
Porker Sandwich is marinated and grilled loin of pork served on toasted French bread with roasted red peppers, bleu cheese, and chimichurri. The pork is perfectly grilled and seals all of the juices in the pork. The flavors remind me of Argentine meets Italian — savory, herbaceous, and sweet. Rating: 4.5÷5
Chimichurri Steak Fries is Piaggio’s famous skirt steak atop French fries with chimichurri sauce. This will cause an out-​of-​body experience. The steak is perfectly grilled and the beautiful marbling keeps the steak juicy. Piaggio’s chimichurri is fantasticly herbaceous and complements the steak so well. Rating: ⁵⁄₅
Pork Osso Buco is another daily special to watch out for. The pork shanks are braised for hours with a ragu of carrots, celery, onions, tomato, herbs, and spices, then served over rice. The pork is so tender, it just falls off of the bone. The bone gives the meat a rich flavor. A nice surprise of bone marrow calls your name. I used the handle of my fork to lovingly scoop it out. It was buttery and gelatinous. The flavors are more Italian for this dish, but I still loved every bite of it. Rating: ⁵⁄₅
Empanada flavors are Chicken and Caprese (fresh mozzarella, basil, and tomatoes). The empanada shell is fried to perfection and has a wonderful flavor. It reminds me of the pre-​1985 McDonald’s Apple Pie Crust — bubbly and crispy. The chicken filling is richly flavored and complex. The Caprese is very fresh and light. Just like the McDonald’s apple pie, be very careful as the contents are super hot. Break them open and let them cool down for a little while. Don’t forget to dip them into their famous chimichurri sauce! Rating: ⁴⁄₅
Churros con Dulce de Leche is churros drizzled with homemade caramel sauce. You can definitely taste the love in this sauce. It’s creamy and velvety textured and matches amazingly with the cinnamon sugared churros. Can you FAB-​U-​LOUS? Rating: ⁵⁄₅

Tilapia taco and chicken taco were ok/​decent (cooked well). The taco was drenched in sauce and a little oily which made the tortilla a little soggy. The guac. on the side was not fresh (or real).

This food truck is AMAZING! I got the pulled pork slider with the chimichurri fries for $ 9. The full pork sliders with the Hawaiian bread was so good! The pulled pork had so much flavor and went well with the Hawaiian bread. The fries with the chimichurri sauce was also good. The fries were not greasy and soggy, they had a little crisp and tasted like fries not grease. So worth my money! ! :)

This food truck came to my work today during lunch time.
I love me some empanadas!
These were very delicious and a tad on the greasy side, but still very good! The green garnish they had on the side was very good =)
I wasn’t too hungry at the time so I didn’t get a sandwich or a pork slider…
Next time they come around I will have to try their sandwiches for sure. They smelled delicious!
Would I go back: Yuup

Choripan
for $ 8 + 1.5 for a coke. The sausage had a nice flavor and the pesto was good too, but it was basically a hot dog split on sandwich bread. I wasn’t impressed nor was I filled. Friend got a pork sandwich and wasn’t impressed either.
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Gaucho
$ 15 + coke, total $ 18. Meat had no seasonings, was tender and cooked correctly, but needed the chimichurri to have any flavor. Again, not impressed.

Piaggio is still one of the veteran food trucks whose owner still works on the food truck. You can find owner Coli or wife Rosane working either the lunch or dinner shift.
I remember the first day they rolled out in downtown Fullerton. I believe that was three or four years ago, and they are still very strong in the Orange County, and now, Los Angeles community.
I do notice that the quality of the food is much better when the owners are on the truck. The love is definitely there, as well as the great customer service.
My favorites items are the pulled pork sliders and their Argentine skirt steak over the chimichurri fries. The empanadas are still one of the best deals in town, 2 chicken or caprese empanadas for $ 6.
The menu has changed over the years, and some of the food prices have gone up a little. Unfortunately with gas and food prices going up, food truck owners must adjust.
They do have vegetarian friendly menus, and will accommodate most dietary needs. I’m very proud that they are still one of the top food trucks in Southern California, with fair, competitive prices.

Apparently this is the «original OC Argentine food truck» and has been serving Argentine food since November 2009. I was able to try them out at the Irvine Lanes Truck Lot, where several food trucks gather every Tuesday evening in the summer. My friend N.P. took me there and told me the empenadas from Piaggio are good, so I decided to try them out. You can get two empenadas for $ 7 and them add chimichurri fries for $ 2 (normally $ 3). No tax added, so my total was $ 9 and I was glad to see that they take credit card.
PULLED PORK
– So I didn’t order this, but they were offering free samples. It wasn’t bad. I wouldn’t order it though.
EMPENADAS: CHICKEN and CAPRESE (fresh mozzarella, basil and tomatoes)
– The chicken one was a bit spicy and I didn’t really care for it. I did really like the caprese one though. It was a great contast between the refreshing interior and the fried crispy exterior. Yum!
CHIMICHURRI FRIES: This quintessential gaucho condiment consists of chopped parsley, garlic, oregano, oil, vinegar, lemon juice, and spices.
– I love that they have a sign on the truck explaining what chimichurri is. Unfortunately, the chimichurri isn’t that great here. I love chimichurri sauce, so that was a bit disappointing. And then for their chimichurri fries, the fries themselves were very bland and meh, and all they did was throw some chimichurri on top of it right before they served it. I was hoping the fries would be soaked in the chimichurri sauce but nope… completely flavourless and not enjoyable. A waste of $ 2.
The fries put a damper on my whole experience and made me want to give them 2 stars (also because I’m not a fan of the chicken empenada), but I did really like the caprese empenada and they were nice enough to give out samples of their pulled pork. Plus they take credit card, which is not something a lot of food trucks do. And the man taking orders was pretty nice… so I will give them 3 stars. But really it’s 2.5.

Piaggio Gourmet on Wheels offers an Argentinian option in the Gourmet Food Truck scene here in Orange County.
Piaggio Gourmet on Wheels is one of the original Gourmet Food Trucks that rode the first wave of the concept and basically adds Argentinian flavors to Mexican and American street foods with varying results. You will usually catch this truck in central OC in cities like Costa Mesa, Newport Beach and Irvine.
I have never been fond of their tacos and burritos as the tortillas can really overwhelm the skirt steak and all I could decipher in each bite was tortilla and their exceptional chimichurri sauce with slight murmuring to steak here and there. In fact, for a long time I dismissed the truck as a one trick pony as the Chimichurri sauce was really the definitive flavor they produced.
Recently they showed up close to my office and being lazy I gave them yet another shot and went large by ordering their «Skirt Steak over Chimichurri Fries» at the staggering cost of $ 14.00. Plain Jane French Fries are topped with grilled and cut up Skirt Steak and then topped with a handful of their omnipresent Chimichurri. A lime wedge and more Chimichurri are on the side for good measure.
The steak was cooked to a pleasing medium, though I prefer a medium rare. That said, the quality was there and the juices from the meat and Chimichurri were absorbed by the Fries which made a forgettable plate quite good. $ 14.00 worth of flavor? I guess I will let you decide, but I was not unhappy.
Being one of the OG food trucks, I wish Piaggio Gourmet on Wheels future success but I would not go out of my way for another round.