A new Fayetteville food truck is wildly popular for its boba tea and specialty egg rolls
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Hi foodies,
A new food truck has taken the Fayetteville-area food scene by storm.
Boba & Bites Co, owned and operated by husband-and-wife duo Christine and Carlos Collado, has sold out of food nearly every time the truck has hit the road since it opened in July.
The menu is simple — a curated list of boba teas, specialty egg rolls and lumpia, all of which rotate occasionally.
As native Philadelphians, it only makes sense that the cheesesteak egg roll, served with a sweet and tangy Cajun ranch, is one of their bestsellers. The birria egg roll, served with consomme and avocado salsa is popular, too, but you have to catch the truck on a weekend to try it.
The Crab Rangoon rolls, served with sweet chili sauce, have a strictly savory flavor true to the owners’ roots in the City of Brotherly Love, Christine Collado said, unlike the sweetened version of the dish found at many restaurants. Though it sparked some heated debate online, she said, the crab rolls remain a bestseller.
Each of the 300 to 600 rolls sold daily is made from scratch each morning, Collado said, and the tea is brewed fresh every day.
While she works the fryer, her husband prepares drinks from the menu of about nine boba tea variations — which is modest, compared to other area boba shops with dozens of flavors. They only offer the flavors they enjoy the most, Collado said, with unusual options like Oreo tea or green apple with white grape, or mainstays like taro root and brown sugar.
On Wednesday, the truck was set up at a dance studio in Eastover. Even before they started service at 5 p.m., a line was forming. Fifteen minutes later, at least a dozen customers were in line, and more were searching for spots in the small gravel lot.
With just the two Collados working, sometimes with the help of the wife’s mother, wait times can get long, but customers show them grace, Christine Collado said.
“We found our tribe for sure,” she said.
Collado said she hopes to operate a permanent spot in the future, so that customers don’t have to chase them around the county.
Until then, she’s working on a winter menu with stick-to-your ribs specialties like Kaw Ko, a beef stew that nods to her Cambodian roots. Pho dumplings are coming soon, too, she said.
Business is booming, Collado said, and she hopes it stays that way.
“We’re just super grateful for everything,” she said.
Food events to know:
The Northside Wine & Beer Walk, is at 5 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. tonight at the Village of Kinwood shopping center on Ramsey Street. Seasonal appetizers and wine and beer samples will be served from Scrub Oaks Pub, Grapes & Hops, and Heckler Brewing Company. Tickets are sold at each of the three businesses for $20 in advance or $35 at the door. I’ll be there!
Just Love Coffee Cafe at 2737 Freedom Parkway Dr. hosts a Grand Opening 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday with food and drink tastings, face painting, cornhole and giveaways. The ribbon-cutting is at 11 a.m.
The International Folk Festival is Friday through Sunday at Festival Park. Read more about the schedule, food and things to do here.
Happy eating,
Taylor
Taylor Shook writes about food, dining and culture for The Fayetteville Observer. She can be reached at tshook@gannett.com, on Twitter, or Facebook.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Boba & Bites Co food truck in Fayetteville is known for boba, egg rolls
