I have a problem: I'm obsessed with food trucks. 

Last night I went on my nightly walk around my neighbourhood and ended up at Tap & Bottle. There's always a different food truck parked out front, and the Lucky Girl Café caught my eye. I was staring at the well designed dry erase board and felt completely overwhelmed with the six choices I have never tried before. One of the truck cooks was standing behind me talking to someone they seem familiar with. The gentleman asked the cook what he would suggest and he replied, "I always suggest 'The Original' to adventurous."


So I ordered the Original Lucky Bun and entered Tap & Bottle to enjoy a glass of Border Land's Las Almas. Then my food arrived. I lifted the burger and the aiolis—ginger and Thai chili drip= from the red meat on to my paper plate and fingers. They gave me the works. The burger was full of  fresh herbs, pickled carrots, jicama, cucumber slices and sweet onion. I'm glad that I picked the Asian Slaw over the chips because it was such a refreshing, crisp snack.

After completing my meal, I had to introduce myself and get to know the people that crafted my dinner. Ian Hodges and his mother Nancy Lynn Bright were the cooks manning the truck that night. They just started their family owned business in June.They hope to establish the brand and move to a brick and mortar. They spend most of their days trying to find a parking space in the downtown/Fourth Avenue area or teaming up with local businesses to help each other out.


Bright shared a touching story behind their signature dish. I'm glad she published it on her website because my retelling wouldn't do it justice:

My daughter-in-law, Mary, is Vietnamese and Lao and we have a shared love of writing and cooking. A number of years ago she asked me to read a short story she was working on. In the story the central character is an Asian girl named Kat. Kat works for her single father at his restaurant, a Chinese restaurant/truck stop, which is famous for his hamburger. The restaurant is named Lucky's and the short story is titled Lucky Girl.

As I read the recipe in the story I asked Mary, "is this a recipe you use?" She said she just made it up but had never tried it. So we did, and after some tinkering with the ingredients and processes, and perfecting the presentation, the Lucky Bun was born and Lucky Girl Café was created.

The girl in the logo then is a symbol of our family and our flagship sandwich. It is the blending of cultures, as are Mary and Skye's two little daughters . . . our lucky buns!

Click here to visit their Facebook page to find their location schedule.