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| Fat Shallot's truck is hard to miss. |
I still remember the first time I tried The Fat Shallot. It was not long after the curmudgeons in City Hall finally allowed trucks to cook onsite and started designating areas in the loop for trucks to set up for lunch. I was curious about all the “early adopter” trucks that flooded in after the new laws, especially since The Salsa Truck had opened my eyes to the possibility that food trucks could blow brick and mortars out of the water. On a walk Clark and Monroe, which was then and still is a prominent food truck site, it was hard to ignore the orange-red truck standing out amongst the rest. The long line of people outside the truck only heightened my interest. Yet the line moved quickly, rivaling even the most established lunch places in the downtown area.
Little did I know that The Fat Shallot had been around for some time before the law changes and had already established themselves as one of the best food trucks in the city. It’s no surprise to me now that they have been profiled and listed on many local area and even national websites stating such.
The Fat Shallot’s focus, if it’s not already clear by the logo on the side, is “Classic Sandwiches”. However, just because they are classics doesn’t mean they are banal. In fact, I think they should change the motto to “Classics Evolved”, because all of the sandwiches have a gourmet twist that will keep you coming for more. This includes ingredients you’re more likely to find at higher-end sit down restaurants like truffle aioli and shaved fennel. Couple that with specialized rolls and buns for each menu option and you have a food truck that’s hard to beat.
This truck could probably make anything they wanted, but they keep their menu tight. The main four sandwiches consist of the gooey grilled cheese, the crisp and spicy buffalo chicken, the decadent truffle BLT and the super fresh turkey sandwich. Sometimes, they will run specials like their phenomenal Polish sausage sandwich and other times they substitute the BLT with a hearty meatball sandwich during the colder months. They will also occasionally offer house-made drinks like lemonade or Thai iced tea and also may have small treats like brownies.
I actually like that they keep their menu small. From a customer perspective, you are not blindsided by a wall of options, which makes the line move faster, and yet the options are varied enough to make it simple to choose what you’d like. And on the business side, their stock limited to only a select set of items, which must make inventory easier to manage. Their friendly staff are also willing to make substitutions in most cases and offer some items without the bun.
Be advised though, their sandwiches are massive, even for their price, so only order the fires if you are really hungry, have a big appetite or are sharing with a friend.
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| Truffle BLT on a special bun with Spicy Sesame Fries |
Out of all their offerings, my personal favorites are the truffle BLT and the buffalo chicken sandwich. The truffle BLT is a pile of bacon that perfectly balances the chewy-crispy line that most bacon fails to accomplish, topped with fresh avocado, arugula, tomatoes and truffle aioli. Oh man, that truffle aioli is where it’s at. They also use it on their truffle fries, which is also a recommendation. Not a fan of truffle aioli? Try the spicy sesame fries instead, especially if you enjoy the same spiciness that goes into sushi rolls.
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| Bunless Buffalo Chicken Sandwich with Truffle Fries |
The buffalo chicken sandwich, can be ordered as a bowl without the bun (I sometimes do this, depending on how much bread I’m feeling that day). The chicken itself is super crispy and the buffalo sauce is the right amount of spicy without destroying the palate. It is topped with shaved celery and bleu cheese dressing. The whole sandwich takes the best experience of eating really good hot wings and makes it available as a far less messy sandwich.
If you’re looking for the truck, they’re not that difficult to find. They frequent the downtown area for most of the work week and are active at many spots in the city during the weekend. They have a very active twitter feed, and will always keep you up to date on where they are, and if they have any specials available that day.
Fat Shallot’s profile is rapidly expanding in the Chicago area, aside from the acclaim from multiple websites. They recently opened up their second truck, The Fat Pickle, which is in every way another home-run food truck I will write about in the future. They also announced that they are going to have a stall in the soon-to-be opened Revival Food Hall downtown, which boasts an insane lineup of Chicago-based restaurants, including my favorite ramen shop, Furious Spoon.
So do yourself a favor and track this wonderful orange food truck of the gods.
