$2 Street Food Eats: Spencer-On-The-Go

If you’re craving fine French food but are a little low on cash, satisfy your hunger pangs with a little piece of Paris tucked into a parking lot on the corner of Folsom and 7th Streets in SoMa.

Spencer On-The-Go has been serving up reasonably-priced French food in a flash since 2009, when Chef Laurent Katgely of the critically-acclaimed Chez Spencer, decided to take the idea of a taco truck and to dish up truffles instead of taqueria fare and offer tasty, challenging treats for as little as $2.

San Francisco’s $5 Street Food Treats
Spencer On-The-Go serves fancy French cuisine out of a food truck at a fraction of the cost.

– By Sandra Song, FuncheapSF’s brand new bargain hunter & street food detective

These classically-trained chefs were San Francisco’s hometown heroes of Season 1 of Food Network’s reality TV show “The Great Food Truck Race” having had le courage to slap a pair of antlers on the front of a food truck and bring a whole new level of Gallic sophistication to towns all over the U.S. where you’re more likely to find people dining on Jello molds for dinner than grenouille.

And even back here in The City, Spencer and his road crew continue to challenge the traditional notion of food truck eats by having created a quaint and unique slice of Chez Spencer ready for the streets. The take-away dining experience is certainly unique as they’ve brought out potted plants next to the truck, set up fancy silverware arrangements using plastic forks, and crafted a menu filled with simple California-inspired French food to feed the hungry and adventurous street eaters of San Francisco.

Highlights of the fresh, sophisticated dishes with little frills in all the right places included a foie gras torchon and toast as well as the lamb cheeks sandwich ($9), while slightly overcooked, was still delicious in a port and red wine reduction and dressed up with a generous slathering of a woodsy black truffle emulsion.

Snails on a Stick?
But Spencer can do low class and accessible just as tasty. The escargot lollipop (yup… that’s snails on a stick) was a delightful amuse bouche; chewy, wrapped in a layer of fluffy puff pastry and cooked in a simple combination of garlic, butter and parsley. It’s a good introduction to these slimy slitherers for the squeamish, who can spend just $2 to try out a snack-sized serving rather than risking it by splurging the typical $25 and up for a plate of these mini mollusks you’d find elsewhere.

So for all the frugal Francophiles out there, check out this street food steal with an accent to get your foie gras fix at a fraction of the cost.

Fine French cuisine prepared on a food truck at a fraction of the cost. – http://spenceronthego.com/home.html

Where & When: Wednesdays to Saturdays, 6 pm to midnight at the corner of Folsom & 7th St., SoMa, SF
Cost: $2-$12
Save Room For Dessert: Because there’s a special three-course prix-fixe menu where you can select a starter, entrée (which is usually one of their sandwiches, but can sometimes even include specials like frog legs) and your choice of either a dessert from Sweet Constructions or an escargot lollipop, all for $15.
Or Indulge In Some Wine Instead: You’ll most likely be eating your lamb cheeks curbside, but if you really need somewhere with a more sophisticated atmosphere and are willing to shell out some extra cash, carry your food across the street to Terroir Natural Wine Bar & Merchant. Longtime friends of the Chez Spencer operation, they’ll select a special $12 to $13 wine pairing for your meal and allow you sit in their quaint, old world-style shop to enjoy an authentic and romantic French meal for a steal.