Song La — Restaurant in Austin

I can't believe I haven't written a review on this place yet! Maybe I am trying to keep it a secret all for myself, muhahaha!! This place is amazing on so many levels. Let's start with the food. I've tried everything here and while everything is a momento of the Taiwanese street food that I have craved from Taiwan, my go-to is the bento boxes with a boba milk tea with the pork belly buns a very close second. The pork belly slices are thick and hearty and just melts in your mouth! Also, ask them what their bento options are (braised pork, chicken, porkchop) because on a daily basis it can change because its all fresh. The milk tea is actually made with tea AND milk. I know that may sound silly to some of you but it is such a huge deal as some places make milk tea from powder. You can really taste the tea flavor. They recently added optional flavors to their milk teas, and the one option I was most excited about is the wildflower honey. Granted, I am still a traditionalist so their regular boba milk tea hits the spot for me. They make it exactly how i like it, light on ice and just slightly sweet.

The owners Alex and Shirley are also just the sweetest people. I love that they are chasing their dream and making the food that I have grown up eating in Taiwan here in Austin!! The trailer is located behind the University Co-op. You can park on the side streets or you can park in the Co-op garage. They will validate your parking ticket for up to a hour. Sometimes the garage is just open as well with no tickets needed.

This is a great place for me to bring new people to, there is plenty of outside seating with umbrella coverage. It is also a great mid point for me to meet my South Austin friends since I'm in North Austin. Man, just typing this review makes me want one...

1st Attempt (Fail) Me: Walk to the trailer at 7:35pm on a weekday. Shirley (owner): Sorry we closed at 7:30pm. Me: Ok =[

2nd Attempt (Fail) Me: Came at 7:00pm on a weekday. Shirley: Sorry we ran out of food. *apologetic face Me: Ok T.T

3rd Attempt (Success) Me: Came at 12:05pm on a Saturday. Shirley: Hey there, we got food! Me: Ok =D Shirley: It'll be about a 20 minute wait though. Me: *Looking at the long line...no worries!

20 minutes later I have my food (Pork Braised Rice and Chicken Bites) Me: Wow this is a lot of food! Me: *shoving my face

Thoughts I came in judging Song La pretty hard, thinking the food was going to be an "eat once, think it's ok, and never come back again" kind of experience. It wasn't.

Song La's food definitely pays homage to traditional Taiwanese comfort food. It's simple, yet generous. It's like Darude's "Sandstorm", the song is simple yet you just wanna break out into your 90s rave gear and dance.

The Pork Braised Rice reminded me of the small food stands in Taiwan. The braised pork belly wasn't salty but it still gave the rice flavor. The steamed veggies and egg were delicious!

The Chicken Bites are a must get! Tender and seasoned with love...I can't emphasize how much I enjoyed them.

I didn't realize how much food I had ordered. Looking around most people seemed to get the bento box which I shall try next time. Tofu Fries are also on my list. I happily took home the leftovers and had them for dinner.

The milk tea didn't really speak out to me (boo I know I'm mentioning something negative...but their food is amazing and I will keep coming...

This is a really special food truck! I had the tofu bento box and tofu tots, and my friend had the chicken bento box. The portions were very generous, and, overall, there is good value for the price. The food is made fresh at the truck, which takes about 10 to 15 minutes, which is plenty of time to wander around the food truck park for drinks and dessert. The tofu was really great with soft tofu interior and crunchy breading. The Taiwanese kimchi is lightly pickled compared to Korean kimchi, and the cabbage has a satisfying crunch. The broccoli is perfectly seasoned and steamed, thoroughly cooked but still crunchy. The rice is lightly salted and peppered, and the two sauces, a chili oil and Sriracha mayo, were great. I also loved the pickled daikon. If you are already getting the tofu bento, you likely don't also need the tofu side because it's the same kind of tofu, but the tofu is great. The food truck park has a lot of free parking, has a children playground, and sometimes with live music. The staff are very nice and I definitely will be coming again. I wish this food truck was...