Street Food Redefined – The Creme Brulee Cart

04May09

The art of dining well is no slight art, the pleasure not a slight pleasure.

Michel de Montaigne

The art of dining well is no slight art, the pleasure not a slight pleasure.
– Michel de Montaigne, French philosopher

Mister Michel de Montaigne must have been a creme brulee fan himself, as such is the case with the Creme Brulee Cart, which has hit the San Francisco street food scene with a force unmatched by none other than his brother, the Magic Curry Kart.

After tracking down the Creme Brulee Cart, you will see firsthand that it is part street art, part street food, and all good. A slight pleasure it is most definitely not.

The M.O. is fairly straight forward. You follow him on Twitter, where he posts updates and locations. Then you find him and eat as many as you can. Oftentimes he will be with the Magic Curry Kart, where you can enjoy dessert and dinner with one trip, and preferably in that order.

I know dessert traditionally follows after dinner, but this is street food we’re talking about, and there are no rules on the street. After putting your name down on the Curry Kart, you’ll have to wait before being served. This means the Creme Brulee Cart will more than likely sell out by the time you eat your curry. So grab a creme brulee or two and enjoy the show.

I say show because it’s an experience. Once you let him know what flavor you want, he tops it with a layer of sugar, busts out the blowtorch, and torches until it achieves the perfect crispy sugary top. Underneath that layer you can find a number of different flavors that are offered on a rotating basis.

These are the ones I’ve personally had the pleasure to enjoy:

• Vanilla Bean – perfect for creme brulee newbies, it has enough vanilla flavor without being too sweet or overwhelming.
• Bailey’s – made with Bailey’s Irish Cream liqueur, it tastes just like you expect and also isn’t too sweet.
• White Russian aka The Big Lebowski – just like The Dude’s favorite cocktail, it features vodka, Kahlua coffee liqueur, and cream. Sweeter than the Bailey’s.
• Dark Chocolate Chambord – this one means business. Very rich, very thick, and very sweet. Those without a serious sweet tooth need not apply.

My personal favorite flavor is the Dark Chocolate Chambord, and it seems to be a hit. I brought a creme brulee aficionado (but a Creme Brulee Cart virgin) with me one evening, and she ended up devouring two of these to the point of leaving a shiny foil tin behind that was clean enough to see your reflection in it. It was that good.

You can usually count on him being in or around the Mission in Dolores Park or off 19th and Linda, but he does pop up in other neighborhoods. Also, if you would like to schedule him to make an appearance at a private party, he does that too! Recently he just bruleed his first wedding! Is the Creme Brulee Cart the next photobooth at weddings?

I can go on and on about how good these are, but you really just need to try them yourself. I wish I had something more to offer him in return, but all I have is a beautiful haiku:

Oh Creme Brulee Cart
You satisfy my sweet tooth
For three bucks a pop

You can follow the Creme Brulee Cart on Twitter at @cremebruleecart and of course, don’t forget to follow me too at @genejo!

Also check out: 
The Legend of the Bacon Hot Dog Cart  
Curry Without Worry in Civic Center 
New School Food Peddler – The Magic Curry Kart 

Filed under: Reviews, Street Food, The Mission   |  12 Comments
Tags: bailey's, big lebowski, chambord, creme brulee, creme brulee cart, dessert, magic curry kart, Street Food, Twitter, white russian