NYC Food Truck Lunch: Panko Fish Rice Bowl From Yaki Taco

Perry, the founder of New York Street Food, brings you his latest review on New York City street food.

A few months ago, we tried a new Japanese taco truck called Yaki Taco. Our first visit was okay but inconclusive, so we decided on a return visit. This time we ordered the panko fish rice bowl, which cost $10.

It was a little unusual ordering a Japanese rice bowl when none of the people in the truck were of Asian descent. That doesn't necessarily mean a bad meal, but it's obvious none of these guys learned how to make Japanese food from their mothers or grandmothers.

Lunch came with 5 pieces of fried fish in panko breading. This was more fish than we expected. It was cooked well, even if the breading wasn't particularly crispy. That could have been from all the sauces on top, but it's more likely a little longer in the oil would have added more crunch to the batter.

The rice bowl also included miso slaw, pico de gallo, scallions, queso de blanco, yum yum sauce and cilantro yogurt crema.

It was a pleasant enough mix, but other than the fish, nothing really stood out. The flavors tended to blend together into a chipotle mayo-type taste, which is a popular style these days. It would have been better if one of two of the flavors "popped", but alas, this was not the case.

Overall, lunch was fine, but not inspired. In our opinion, Yaki Taco is in the middle of the pack of NYC food trucks. You won't be blown away, but you will get a decent lunch for the price.

Yaki Taco does not appear to have a social media presence, but you can find Yaki Taco on 46th St east of 6th Ave Tuesdays, Broadway btw 55-56 St on Fridays, and some of the other food truck hotspots in midtown and downtown on the other days. You can see their full menu here.