Great Food Truck Race in Atlanta

The story I'm about to tell you is a wonderful example of what makes Twitter so great.  Recently, Yelp and Atlanta Street Food tweeted that Food Network's Great Food Truck Race would be passing through Atlanta this Memorial Day weekend.  The show chronicles a competition between food trucks from all over the county.  They travel coast to coast, visiting a different major city every week.  The truck that earns the least amount of money each week is sent home.  The winner at the end of the show receives $100,000.

The thing about food trucks, and street food in general, is that they rely a great deal on viral marketing.  They're always on the move, and it's up to word of mouth to make them successful.  This past weekend, Twitter was ablaze with Atlantans announcing the trucks' ever-changing locations.

I was able to catch up with Roxy's Grilled Cheese when they were on Peachtree and 16th, across from the High Museum of Art.  These contestants hailed from one of my favorite cities: Boston.  They used local produce from the Peachtree Road Farmers' Market, as well as fine cheese from Atlanta's own Tim Gaddis.  I was psyched to chat with some Bostonians, though they did call me out on my use of the word "y'all"...sigh...should have worn my Lester jersey so I'd look more legit.

Seriously though, the guys were great, and they looked like they were having a lot of fun serving Atlanta what I'm sure is some of their best work.  Have a look for yourself!

We brought the dog along, so she was pretty excited to make friends with the camera man smell some food truck food.

Dave and I each got a sandwich, but we made friends with another couple who were nice enough to let us take some photos of their order.  First up, sweet potato fries with maple peach gastrique.

The other side dish offered was panko-fried local oysters with a "Roxyfeller" sauce.

But let's move onto the star of the show, the grilled cheese!  Shall we?  First up, private stock cheddar with fois gras, applewood bacon, and peach preserve.

The other sandwich option was a Vermont crémont with proscuitto and quince.  I don't think I've ever had quince before, but I hope to have it again after tasting this delicious fruity spread!

We didn't order dessert, but I saw them making it and had to share: marscapone peach brulée!

I'm pretty sure I need some sort of blow torch for my kitchen so I can make brulée.  Gorgeous.

The menu was unique and innovative, but familiar enough not to be too intimidating.  Grilled cheese is such a fun comfort food, and it was interesting to see their creative interpretation of it.  I also really liked how much peach was on the menu...maybe we'll be seeing a lot of locally-targeted strategies this season?  We'll have to wait and see!  Tune in Sunday, August 14th at 10:00 PM Eastern for the premiere!