Food Truck Fiasco

Last July, there was a food truck festival at my high school in Buena Park. It was a trip down memory lane of sorts. There were a few staff I recognized, and lots of ASB students trying to sell me $1 water bottles. I hadn't visited the campus since graduating in 2001. The back lot was now adorned (albeit temporarily) with food trucks.

To add to the confusion, I wore the "White Rabbit" Food Truck t-shirt I earned for conquering their 6 lb burrito challenge the month before. Everyone thought I worked for White Rabbit and wanted to know why they were late. Couldn't tell you.

I was chasing down the Chunk 'N Chip food truck. They have an ice cream cookie sandwich challenge called Tang's Tower. It becomes progressively more difficult as new challengers complete the task. When I went, the challenge stood at 6 cookies, 5 toppings, and 5 scoops of ice cream under 4 minutes. Since speed isn't my strongest suit, I thought this would be a test.

You pick your choices of ice cream and cookie flavors. I don't remember everything I selected, but I avoided any flavors with chunks or crunchy pieces. It looked pretty big when it came out. One guy came out to time me. The early going was pretty rough, but I developed a rhythm and put it away in 2:44. A NEW RECORD. I couldn't believe it when he told me my time. That was a clear victory.

Since I was still hungry, an idea crossed my mind. Would they let me attempt a second Tang's Tower, same rules, same time limit, also free if finished? The worker called his boss and they went for it. They didn't think I'd stand a chance of finishing a second Tower with one already in my stomach. I heard stories now of previous challengers vomiting halfway through their Tang's Towers.

The second Tang's Tower looked bigger than the first, but no matter. I was determined. Using the experience gained from eating the first, I powered through the second in a quicker 2:36. I broke my own record. The staff and onlooking customers were flabbergasted. Several of them believed this must be a simple challenge (since I did two in a row), and lots of people wanted their own cookie challenge. The adrenaline rush from these faster challenges is incredible.

                            

On a sugar high, I needed some regular food to regain balance. Since I was already in Orange County, I headed to Los Cabos Cantina in Lake Forest to use the remainder of a gift certificate towards a 2 lb burger combo. That caused a sensation. It wasn't on the menu, though technically you could custom order it. I finished it in about 15 minutes, though obviously it wasn't a set challenge or anything. I finished my gift card with a shrimp burrito afterward. The burger was better.

Orange County has a lot of great food options. In some ways it's probably good that I don't live there anymore.