Category: Food Review

Food Review: The Green Goat Food Truck in Fayetteville

Some of the best food comes out of food trucks these days, and Fayetteville is full of them. I was excited to try The Green Goat because it is one of the highest rated online…and its a Cuban themed food truck. So, we’re talking fried yuca, tostones, croquettes (my favorite) and maybe even mofongo if I get lucky! Here’s the breakdown:

The Environment

There is a small food truck park across from the skating rink on N College Ave. There are about four trucks there, such as Big Sexy Food and Zuppa Zuppa Soup Kitchen. We arrived at 11 am for an early lunch and the place was empty.

The Green Goat has a cute outdoor patio and other outdoor seating.

The Food

The menu is pretty large. There are appetizers such as empanadas, tacos, tostones, and fried yuca. There is a nicely sized list of varying versions of Cuban sandwiches. (You can even order a sandwich with tostones bunes so it is gluten free.) There are also a couple Cuban themed entrees, as well as dessert empanadas.

Beneath the official menu are the available types of empanadas, tacos, croquettes, etc. that are available that day. Here’s what I went with:

Croquettas de Jamón, $5.50
Description: Creamy and smooth fritters that are lightly breaded and fried. A Miami food stand class.

Ham croquettes are bomb. I love these things! They are crispy and fried on the outside with very tender, soft and almost creamy minced ham and some other fillings to give great flavor.
However, these were not my favorite croquettes. They were exceptionally greasy and we could not even finish the four small ones we got in our basket. Oso, my dog, enjoyed those leftovers.
These also come with a cilantro cream sauce for dipping, which was light, a little citrusy, and tasty.
I had to make my own ham croquettes as soon as I got home to fill that void….that ham croquette void I was given.

Classic Cubano Sandwich, $8.50
Description: Fresh Cuban bread with ham, mojo-marinated pork, house pickles, and mustard. Served with a side of yuca fries or tostones.

I was super excited to see I could order fried yuca as my side with this sandwich. I love well-fried yuca fries, and I have not perfected them myself. But then, the yuca wasn’t near ready, so I had to go with the tostones. I make these all the time, so they were nothing special to me. But they were darn good tostones! (double-fried plantain chips)
The classic cuban sandwich was ordered without cheese. So, I’m sure that is the reason it was so dry. But it was soo dry. And I have had many cheeseless cubans that were perfectly moist and juicy. The pulled pork was just…well, dry.  Other than that, the grilled bread and mustard and pickles were tasty, and the same cilantro dipping sauce came along. Dipping the sandwich into that helped a lot.

Overall

This is a fun, creative place to grab a meal, for sure. Though, I won’t be back…too dry, too greasy, it was hit or miss. I am sure if the yuca fries were available, I might feel more positively.
The cook was very nice, though. And it only took about 10 minutes to get our food…granted no one else was there. I just know I am usually waiting at least 30 minutes outside of food trucks to get my food.
Anyone have any other suggestions on food trucks to try the next time I am in NWA?

Food Review: Crepes Paulette, Where Have You Been All My Life?

I have never been a fan of crepes, honestly. The crepes I have tried have always been too mushy and one-toned in their flavor. But the crepes from Crepes Paulette changed all that. These. Were. Awesome. Here’s the breakdown:

The Environment

There are two locations for Crepes Paulette: one is a food truck and the other is a permanent building. I have never been to the food truck, but this large, modern building was open and clean and a great place to enjoy a perfect crepe.

You order at a counter which is next to a window where you can watch your crepes being made. When your meal is ready, they bring it out to you.

The Food

The menu is huge! There is one whole page full of savory crepes, most of which are made with a buckwheat crepe, which is organic and gluten free. Then the other page is full of sweet crepes, which are made with a sweeter, traditional crepe.

The Garden $7.15
Description: pesto, spinach, mozzarella, egg.

Top: The Garden Bottom: The Thai

Even though I ordered this without the mozzarella, it was still delicious. I expected a whole egg to be in the crepe, though they just do a simply eggwash on the crepe when cooking it. Doesn’t a runny egg in a crepe sound divine, though?
Anyway, back to this crepe. There was plenty of spinach and just enough pesto to give it great flavor. I would suggest adding tomato to give it a little acidity. The buckwheat crepe was delicious. It was crispy around the edges and savory, not sweet at all. I really enjoyed it on both of our savory crepes.

The Thai  $7.85
Description: Grilled chicken, cabbage mix, Paulette’s gingery peanut sauce, egg.

This crepe was, by far, my favorite of the three we tried. It was like a banh mi crepe. It was full of tender chicken and crunchy veggies. I ordered it with a medium heat (they explained this just determines how much sriracha they put in it) and it was perfectly spicy, with just enough of a kick to give it great flavor, without burning your mouth.
The gingery peanut sauce was delicious. It was also significantly larger (had more filling) than The Garden. So, I feel like this is a good deal for the price, as well. I loved this crepe! I would eat this every day if I lived in the area.

The Turtle   $6
Description: Fred’s sweet and salty caramel, dark chocolate ganache, and pecans.

This sweet crepe was darn near perfect. The sweet and salty mix of caramel and chocolate ganache was very tasty. The best part, though, was that these sauces settled at the bottom and were perfect for dipping each bite into…..and then drinking the rest of it when the crepe is gone. No shame.
The pecans were a nice contrast of texture, though they would be even tastier if they were toasted.
The sweet crepe also has crispy edges, but not much flavor. That was fine with me, though, because the chocolate and caramel were all the flavors I needed.

Overall

I love this place. I hate it is three hours away from my house. If I were to make a list of reasons to move to Northwest Arkansas, this would be in my top 3.
The only complaint is how long it takes to get your food. I knew from online reviews it would take a while, especially if it were crowded. So, we showed up and ordered by 10:40 a.m.  It took 20 minutes to get our savory crepes and only about 10 minutes to get our sweet one, which we ordered afterwards. By 11:15, the place was getting packed. I can’t imagine how long it would take to get lunch here around noon.
If you have a favorite crepe from this place, give me some suggestions on what to try next time!