The beat on Seattle's street food revolution

November 4, 11:02 AMSeattle Lunch ExaminerLara Papadakis

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A glance at Portland's colorful street lineup. Let's hope Seattle looks like this one day soon.

Lara Papadakis

Say it: WE HEART STREETFOOD. Picture it, you walk out of the club at 2am, you're a little tired and a lot hungry. In that moment, what is better than a piping hot wiener covered in cream cheese and relish? Or deep fat fried chicken on a stick? Or whatever awesome cart happens to be there grilling up something salty-good? Nothing! So let us officially pledge our allegiance to the selfless souls who brave the chilly streets to feed us on the fly.

And I'm all for it. Street food is fast, hot, cheap and usually delicious. It's a formula wielded worldwide. And recently in the US, Portland has been leading the charge: small kitchens packed into half-campers, lining the sidewalks, equipped with vittles for your lunch. Or dinner. Or late-night snacks, if you're lucky. Portland has literally hundreds of these tiny businesses, with some of the most innovative cuisine coming from their dime-sized sculleries. It's an art form, really.

Here in Seattle, the change is coming. Go Claycamp! Go Henderson! On Saxton and Beecher! Here are some of our best local vendors. Note: this list is always changing, extremely seasonal and on the move. Make sure you check the website for where and when to find them:

Skillet where everything is modern and slick and insanely delicious. Bring your map.
Maximus/Minimus a giant, silvery airstream pig, serving pig from a pig to pigs like you and me.
Marination Mobile with Korean tacos and spam, Hawaiian sliders and spam, or just spam.
Tacos El Asadero in a white school bus on Rainier Avenue. Dios mio! Asadero y nada mas!
Tako Truk serving crazy innovative tacos on borrowed turf, closed until spring. Cool tshirts, too.
Parfait Ice Cream sweet cream goodness, again only open after the air in Seattle thaws out.

There are more. And recent events point to a much-anticipated new crop of carts opening in the spring. Play your part. Support the street food revolution. Make the trek. Follow them. Do it. It will be great.