Picnic - SW 3rd and Stark - Chicken Mozzarella

A seasonal cart, Picnic, has appeared at the pod on SW 3rd, next to The Sausage Shack. This cart used to be at the pod on SW 10th and Alder, but had closed during the winter months. The owners are apparently avid bloggers. Click here for their site.


They serve "Oregon Trail Cuisine" - Today, I had the chicken sandwich, which featured slices of chicken breast, thick slices of mozzarella, pine nuts, and some leafy greens. They pride themselves on locally sourced ingredients for their food, and baking their own sourdough bread.
This was a $9 sandwich, as was the Brisket they offered, along with a $7 Roasted Carrot sandwich. The menu apparently rotates a bit.


I had hoped this $9 sandwich would be worth it -- and it was... thick slices of mozzarella and tender chicken breast with 'cart made' sourdough bread, and the crunchy pine nuts - was a very tasty combination.
I am curious to try the brisket, but I'll wait until next week - $9 sandwiches are more of a once-a-week type thing for me.

El Pilon - Columbian Food - SW 2nd between Oak and Stark

Another new occupant at the pod on SW 2nd Ave between Oak and Stark, "El Pilon" has occupied the former home of Thai Tea Clean Food Good Taste.

They offer Arepas, Empanadas, and Patacones, with vegetarian and meat options.

While I was waiting for my chicken and cheese Arepas, they handed me two Patacones, which are twice-fried green plantains (Tostones, as I'd previously been introduced to them) and some delicious salsa. They were trying to get on my good side, apparently, as I love these crispy fried patties of goodness.

A few minutes later, the Arepa was presented, with two different salsas. I'd had Arepas before from a cart that has since departed, which was Venezuelan cuisine, and had come to expect them to be small and served in pairs. This was served as one large Arepa, with semi-sealed edges (kind of like a pita pocket, but with a much thicker and tastier corn-based shell.)
It was quite tasty, I must say, and went down pretty fast. I might have been able to eat a second one. They provided a plastic fork, but it wasn't really strong enough to cut through the shell, so I just ended up using my hands. It was a bit messy, I went through about five napkins while eating it...
I'm sure I'll be back to try out the other menu items, the prices are reasonable (everything is under $5) and, of course, the fried plantains are a guilty pleasure of mine I find hard to avoid when I know where to find them.