East Side King At Shangri-La

This place was recommended by Andrew Zimmern on travel channel. There’s a lot of east side king, and this location can mislead you. If you’re at shangri-​la. You’re at the right spot, east side king food truck is located in the back patio of Shangri-​la. Took us a while to find it.
Try the deep fried chicken skin with Chinese sausages, delicious!

Between myself and two friends, we tried the pork kimchee stew on rice, the mapo tofu on fried noodles, and the mustard green fried rice with fried chicken. I found the stew and tofu to be, overall, too salty to appreciate the balance of what seemed to be some interesting and inventive flavors. Also, the mapo tofu is not authentic. In fact, it really tasted nothing like traditional chinese mapo tofu. But it’s not bad for its own inventive style.
The fried chicken was delicious and perfectly done… the mustard green fried rice was surely the best of the three dishes we tried.
I appreciate that the flavors are intense and exciting, but I think that along with the intensity of other flavors came an intensity of unwanted saltiness. The prices are great, though, for food that’s as creative and reasonable as what you get here. Nice outdoor seating environment, too.

I’m glad to finally find some late night eats. I refuse to adjust to the timezone on business trips because I’m only here a few days but it’s super hard to find kitchens serving food past 9 PM. After my flight landed at 11 PM last night I cabbed it to my hotel, checked in, and booked it down to Shangri-​La for an admittedly late night dinner even by pacific coast standards.
I was super happy to find the food truck still there, open and serving food. Not only that but the patio had a few dozen other people in it just drinking and hanging out. On a Monday night! I almost want to give another star for that.
Since I’m not in Austin that often I get this feeling of desperation when I order, like I want to try as many things as possible. So of course I ordered
* Fried Potato Noodles w/​pork kimchee stew ($ 6) — although there are a lot of ingredients listed it was really hard to pick them all out in the dark patio. Overall the potato noodles were good on first bite, second bite, third bite, fourth bite. After that I was done. Fried potatoes were a little greasy and the kimchee didn’t have the spicy kick or zing I like so much — maybe because they were cooked in a stew. I’m not sure I would order this again.
* Pork Melt ($ 6) — like a pork belly bun and my oh my that pork belly is heaven! super tender with just the right ratio of meat to fat, goes brilliantly with the sweet Hawaiian bun
Which was probably twice as much food as I needed. I justified it by bargaining with myself that being so late I could just skip breakfast the next day and it would even out.
I’m not sure if there’s anything else on the menu that looked interesting. I’m really picky about my mapo tofu so am not even going to bother to try it.

I am prit-​tay, prit-​tay, prit-​tay pleased with ESK Shangri-La’s new menu. As a vegan, I was a little disappointed when my only option on their old menu was edamame. Now they have this awesome mapo tofu chili served over fried potato noodles that I can’t get enough of – I’ve seriously had it three times over the past week. It also comes over rice, but you cannot turn down something like fried potato noodles. I wish everything I ate came served over fried potato noodles. Their mustard green fried rice is decent, although apparently what makes it awesome is the non-​vegan sauce they usually put on it. So I have not had the awesome version. But that mapo tofu chili just might be my favorite ESK creation (next to their Brussels sprouts, of course).
Also, I’m now mayor of this fine establishment on Foursquare, so what’s up.

The tofu rice dish was decent, it had good consistency but I thought the flavor could have been more savory. The pork sandwich was delicious, the bread was great. Prices were good too.
It’s in the back of the bar but you don’t have to buy anything at the bar to go to the food truck.

Ugh, I feel like I’m cheating on my secret lover (so secret even he does not know), Paul Qui, by writing this review. I’ve been such a big fan of everything he does… Top Chef, when he was at Uchiko, all his food trailers. But the new menu [April 2013] at Shangri-​La was not great. Collectively our group probably tried the entire menu and there were no «wow» comments; some said their dish was okay and others left their plates unfinished. Half the menu contained either kimchee or nori (dried seaweed) and admittedly those items may be an acquired taste for some. I tried the «ESK Grilled Cheese» and was anticipating unique and tasty. It was unique: sliders style with the bun mimicking a King Hawaiian roll, containing slightly melted brie, green apple slices, nori and kimchee. The brie and apple went well together as you might expect, but the kimchee definitely fought with those flavors… and well, the kimchee won. It over-​powered the delicate, the tart and the sweet. Paul: whatever else you change with the other ESK trailer menus, please, please, please, don’t ever replace the Liberty’s delicious Brussels sprouts salad! p. s. — I still love you!

Got the avocado buns (because that was the only thing that was veggie and available at the time) and they were delish! The ESK food really excels because of the super intense flavors. Seriously, the buns just had some avocado, cilantro and some spices and sauce and they were amazing.
Great snack food and for five bucks, you can’t go wrong. Loved that we got our food in like 5 mins and my friends really enjoyed the Buta Meshi.

Even though the bar they are located behind is not really my thing I have been wanting to eat at an ESK for quite some time. We happened to be out in the area so decided to stop in.
Other than a long wait for the food, probably close to 30 minutes, I have 0 things to nit pick.
We had the Phở buns and the pork belly buns. Both were so amazingly good. They have been described so many times in other reviews that there is no point.
To sum up, despite the long wait and bar atmosphere that wasn’t to my liking they still get 5 stars for truly excellent food.

Great food although I liked the menu at the Liberty bar cart better. It’s not cheap and the portions are small but it’s damn good eats.

These guys sure know how to make Yummy Creations! My husband raved about the Phở Bun… he says it’s true to the taste of real phở! Definitely try it! You also gotta try the spicy edamame — DAMN GOOD. It was so tasty I ordered 2!
And the best part is you get to enjoy this great food in the nice patio area in the back of Shangri-​La.
Good food and fun times!

Damn this food trailer is as good as it gets! One of the few where almost everything on the menu frickin’ ROCKS! And it’s the only bar I know where I find myself spending most of the time eating the delicacies as opposed to shootin’ pool, drinkin’ brew, and mingling w/​the ladies.
My friend had never been here before, he wanted something new and exciting, so WTF not check out the trailer scene on the east side? Shangri-​La is a cool-​ass bar too, somewhat of a dive but love the open feel, some pool tables, and a large backyard to drink and it happens to have one of the BEST damn food trailers in town!
Everything we tried was awesome: my top 2 faves are the Chicken Skin Buns and the Phở Buns (Dipped thin sliced beef in steamed bun, Sriracha, Hoisin sauce, onion, cilantro, jalapeño, crispy shallots, green onion, lime, served au ju).
We also couldn’t get enough of the Buta Meshi (Sous-​vide pork belly on steamed ginger garlic Jasmine rice, with ESK Elotes, sweet chili miso sauce, ponzu salsa, kimchee, basil, mint, cilantro, and lime) and the ESK BBQ Pork Belly Buns. The Green Curry Ebi Ebi Tacos (Coconut Green Curry, tomatillo cumber salsa, mint, basil, cilantro, avocado) also rocked the house.
All of these come primarily in two’s for about $ 8 each entrée. The Buta Meshi is a rice dish that’s quite filling for $ 7. It’s quite common for them to run out of food, and sometimes the wait can be a bit longer than usual, but those gals are back there hacking and sacking away at chicken skins and pork belly buns — –and it always tastes so damn good I ain’t gonna complain one bit!

It’s places like this that remind me — man, do I have it good living in Austin!
Imagine a twinkling courtyard dotted with seating aplenty to enjoy strong drinks and not-​terrible-​for-​you late-​night eats. East Side King produces this unlikely yet delicious combination out of a colorful, Pucci-​esque trailer — seriously, the color combination itself will yield a smile if you aren’t already feeling the good vibes. Known for their creative lineup of fusion steamed buns, you can also dig into what may be their popular dish, Tacos Elotes (tacos meet corn on the cob, Mexican-​style + all kinds of goodness).
Me, well I’m all about the phở buns. For $ 7, you get two plump steamed buns crammed with phở-​dipped thin-​sliced beef, Sriracha, hoisin sauce, onion, cilantro, jalapeño, crispy shallots, green onion and lime. Phở-​nomenal!
Also of interest, besides the aforementioned taco elotes: The avocado buns. These buns are vegetarian pleasers with their filling of seared avocado, spicy mayo, shallots, cilantro and green onion.
On a Tuesday evening, we didn’t encounter a wait and our orders came out fast and fresh. Next time I’m in the market for late-​night utopia, I’ll head straight to East Side King in Shangri-La’s backyard.

The night we were at Shangri-​La, they were serving fried rice balls with a creamy dip and a kim-chee’d jalepeno, pork belly tacos, and a fish taco (can’t remember what it was called).
The rice balls were dreamy with the chipotle looking dip. I could have eaten a stack of the kim chee’d jalepenos.
The pork belly taco was simply outrageous. It was too dark at the table to really put my eye on how they had cooked most of the fat off this hearty chunk of belly. It was very meaty. And they served it in a split open bun of some sorts. While it was a taco, that was not a tortilla and I don’t even think it was a gordita.
At $ 8 each selection, it wasn’t exactly cheap, but we were ready for something to eat and this put the nail in the wood with the first swing. Service did get a little long, but it was worth the wait.

Little trailer inside the bar Shangri-​La.
DELICIOUS! I went for the #3 which is Tempura shrimp in some sort of delicious sauce wrapped in corn tortillas with cilantro, red cabbage, yum yum. 2 of these tasty treats for $ 7. Quick service, cooked to perfection and lots of flavor. The only downside (for me) was the bar setting. The clientele was über hipster and not my scene at all.

Tacos elotes — small but succulent corn relish wrapped in a corn tortilla. Pretty spicy, and lots of lovely cilantro, so not for everyone, but I loved it!
Avocado buns — good, but I wished there was more avocado or maybe a sauce in the bao. It verged on dry.
The price is a little steep, I feel, for the tiny portions coming off a food truck, especially since my food was all veggie.
You definitely have to order 2 things to fill up (probably 3 for most guys). Service was pretty fast for the good stuff you’re getting.

In town for SXSW, and I know I had to try the East Side King. Friday night, we walked along E 6^th St and tried to go to all 3 locations. #1, line too long to get in to Shangri-​La. #2 @ Liberty: «sold out for 2 hours, but the truck at The Grackle is still serving.» So we brave the awful metal bands playing at The Grackle and approach the truck. Sold out.
SHIT! I went to sleep sad that night, thinking I had missed out. Little did I know…
Saturday after playing some shows, then having a ridiculous dinner at Uchiko, we thought «screw seeing bands, lets have dessert at ESK».
Oh, am I happy we did.
Line at the Shangri-​La was nonexistent, and we didn’t want to walk any further east, so we chose this location. Ordered Phở Buns, Chicken Skin Buns, and Kimchi + Radish Cake stew. Grabbed some $ 4 IPAs from the bar while we waited.
Food came up relatively quickly for a truck this popular, and was fantastic. I took one bite each of the buns (as they were not mine), and instantly wished I had ordered some in addition to my stew. The stew, however, was really fantastic. Seemingly simple in preparation, but flawlessly executed. This was a comforting bowl of soup, nearly identical to the one in the Momofuku cookbook (but with pork belly!). I will be attempting to recreate this at home, likely this week.
With so many food trucks in Austin, there’s a lot of competition. This truck calls itself «King» for a reason.

It was our last night in Austin, and we already ate (at Uchiko, actually!) but we were so close to these trucks and we had to try one — so glad we did.
–Chicken Skin Buns — I was never too big of a fan of chicken skin but these little sandwiches contained an unsauced and a sauced version –the latter of which was amazing, and quelled any blandness/​weirdness from the unsauced version. Not my favorite but not bad.
–Phở buns — SO GOOD — why hasn’t anyone else thought of this? The basic ingredients of phở in a bun (sandwich): beef brisket (previously braised in the actual phở, bean sprouts, green onions, hoisin sauce and sriracha WITH a side cup full of phở broth. So innovative and so muthaf@%*n delicious.
–Kimchi/​Radish Cake Stew — I didn’t order this but I tried my friend’s and it was warm and hearty and full of deliciously braised pork belly. I’ve had this dish elsewhere and this was no exception to how awesome this soup can be.
The buns came to a piece and were under $ 10. Next time I’m in Austin, wandering around the east side in search of a late night snack this will be my go to.

New personal achievement: I have finally completed the ESK trifecta.
After several drinks at Shangri-​La, my friends and I drunkenly ordered the phở buns and the duck buns. I’m still not a fan of phở (I’m always afraid to admit that because I feel it that discredits me as a foodie with most readers) but I enjoyed the buns just fine and came with a dipping sauce that I suppose was supposed to resemble the phở. The duck skin buns were fantastic and tasted just like peking duck! Quick and tasty but a little pricey for a big group with munchies.

To get this newest East Side King site started, the iconic original trailer was moved from The Liberty and set inside the upper back patio of Shangri La (amidst signature picnic benches and wrought iron dining sets).
While not as large as the area at The Liberty, the new courtyard is spacious and welcoming; and, the trailer, which is admittedly very small and showing a bit of age (if the flat tires are any indication), at least, no longer has to contend with having to house multiple workers and supplies for a large menu (as it did when it was parked at the original site).

Indeed, this East Side King trailer, which was manned by one person on the night of my visit, is all about baos (four featured ones to be exact), those white, airy rice flour buns that have become all the rage and that are used as vehicles for all kinds of delicious morsels.
However, not to seem redundant (and honoring the East Side King principle of featuring a distinct menu at each location), all of the buns are filled with sausage meat of one variety or another (which the other locations do not do).
The two most popular buns apparently are the «gyu bao» (which showcases beef) and the «bao boy» (which similarly features pork)…both priced at $ 3.00 each and are about the size of a small taco.
The gyu bao consists of pieces of beef sausage that is dressed in curry cabbage, tonkatsu sauce, Kewpie mayo, and topped with potato crisps and green onions. Although certainly balanced and tasty, the flavors did come across as a bit muddy in the the gyu bao that I tried. The tonkatsu sauce (probably, the popular Bull Dog brand) and Kewpie mayo seemed to cancel each other out rather than create a strong and resourceful blending of sweet and salty flavors.
The accompanying curry cabbage was lost and did not taste bold enough (despite having curry sauce on it). The pieces of beef sausage were good but, as they are not homemade, were not particularly distinct. The potato crisps, which are intended to offer a textural contrast, were a bit limp and ended up as a complete afterthought.
The bao boy, consisting of pork sausage and bacon, is served with gochujang (sweet/​spicy Korean pepper paste) and karashi mayo (a spicy/​salty Japanese mustard/​mayo blend). The meats are topped with grilled pineapple and chicharrons (the deep fried pork rinds of Latin American cuisine).
This ambitious fusion of flavors and textures generally worked well together and appeared more harmonious (although slightly) than the flavors in the gyu bao. The chicharrons, unfortunately, were not crispy enough (like the potato crisps mentioned above) and were, ultimately, absorbed into the whole and made irrelevant.
In the end, the food was good but not stellar. Certainly, when compared with the amazing flavors at the East Side King locations at The Liberty and The Grackle, the Shangri La trailer falls short of the standards that have been set at the two other sites.
However, even as I write this review, I hear that a new and revamped menu is in the works. Perhaps, it has even been implemented already in the short time since my visit. I guess, I’ll have to return at some point and assess the new offerings (certainly, the new core items).
In the meantime, it would be hard not to visit the other locations instead if I am on East 6^th Street.

Let me start by saying that for the most part I love everything ESK does. I go to liberty several times a month just to eat at the trailer there and end up finishing most evenings stuffing myself with pork belly and ribs from the grackle location.
This East Side Kings however is well below my expectations.
Basically you get the awesome sticky buns that ESK does so well but filled with cheap HEB sausage and ruffles.
I’m not sure what they were thinking with this trailer. Shangri-​La has lost some of its appeal over the last few years and I’m sure they though having an ESK might help their east side coolness but this is totally the wrong way to go about that.
I think the best thing about this trailer is that instead of the two sticky buns for around 6 – 7 dollars like the liberty location you get a slightly larger sticky bun here for 3 dollars. So at least the price reflects the much cheaper ingredients.
If you want ESK go to liberty or grackle dont go here and eat HEB sausage on awesome sticky buns. Unless of course that’s what you want…