A Korean taco is what happens when you give a Korean twist to a Mexican taco. The Korean taco originated in Los Angeles where it became a popular street food dish. The concept is to have Korean BBQ ingredients, like bulgogi and kimchi, on top of Mexican flour tortillas. Disco Cheetah is a food truck that has been serving this Korean-Mexican fusion dish on the streets of Vancouver.
Disco Cheetah @ Food Cart Fest
I first tried Disco Cheetah at the media event for the Food Cart Festival. I was instantly drawn to Disco Cheetah’s bright yellow food truck and I was intrigued by the idea of Korean-Mexican fusion. They also had a table set up in front of their food truck for taking orders and payments.
Disco Cheetah has three signature tacos for $5: bulgogi beef, chili chicken and soy tofu (vegetarian/vegan option) which are served on soft gluten-free tortillas. You can also get two tacos for $9.
Using a food voucher I was provided as part of the media event, I tried the chili chicken Korean taco from Disco Cheetah. It had chipotle cabbage slaw, pickled red cabbage, verde sauce and a lemon wedge. The chicken was local from the Fraser Valley. The filling was on the sweeter side and flavourful. It had bold and vibrant colours, which gave it a great presentation. The taco tasted pretty good but I felt that it was on the smaller side for $5. I would have liked it to be more juicy for added flavour.
West End Farmer’s Market
While I was shopping at the West End Farmer’s Market, I noticed that Disco Cheetah was there. I decided to try out their two other taco flavours for $9.
I tried the bulgogi (Korean BBQ style) taco made of Alberta beef, kimchi slaw, house chili sauce with sesame leaves. The taco tasted sweet overall due to the sweet chili sauce. It did not feel juicy enough for me.
The other taco I had was the soy tofu (bean curd) taco with spinach slaw, Korean chili mayo, and sesame seeds. This is the vegetarian/vegan option. The bean curd offered an interesting texture to the taco. It also had a similar sweet taste like the other tacos.
Overall Impression
I thought the Korean tacos from Disco Cheetah tasted good but I wasn’t blown away. The three signature tacos seemed to have similar taste profiles since they all had sweet chili sauce and mayo. A Mexican taco in Vancouver is typically around $2.50 – $3, so paying $5 for a taco at Disco Cheetah is a bit of a premium. I would consider their tacos more like snacks. I would recommend other food trucks that will leave you full and satisfied at a lower price. Rating: 3/5
Website: http://discocheetah.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/yvrDCtaco
Twitter: http://twitter.com/yvrdctaco
Instagram: http://instagram.com/yvrdctaco/
Location schedule: http://streetfoodapp.com/vancouver/disco-cheetah