MY FIRST EVER RESTAURANT REVIEW EVER

Please tell me I haven't turned into one those people who takes photos of their food

I can't decide if I'm too qualified or nowhere near qualified enough to do this.

On the one hand, nobody loves eating more than I do. I don't think of gluttony as a sin, more of a way of life.

On the other hand, it's not like I spend every night eating out. Sadly.

However, last week I had a dining experience that exceeded my expectations by such a margin, I really had to share it with you.

The Domestic Manager, the two monsters and I were off to see Slava's Snow Show and required a casual bite in the short window of opportunity afforded us between soccer training, piano lessons and the show itself.

Traditionally we'd pop in to Elliot Stables, which is a kind of casual collection of restaurants that all open out onto an indoor street. Like a food hall without the fast food chains and way cooler. Situated just around the corner from several Auckland theatres, it's been our go-to for some time.

Then a colleague brought the Food Truck Garage to my attention.

For background purposes, if you don't know already, there's a reality show on TV One called the Food Truck, on which chef Michael Van de Elzen tries to reinvent traditional fast food favourites with more healthy ingredients, attempting to sell them off at various public events from the window of his custom-built food truck.

For further background purposes, Monster Number 2 absolutely LOVES this show.

So when I found out there was an actual cafe selling Van de Elzen's wares, it seemed like the obvious choice for our pre-show dining this time round.

I didn't really know what to expect, other than a few crazy burgers, but I'd heard the actual truck might be parked there, so if nothing else, a nifty photo opportunity was in the offing.

What we DID find blew me away. Firstly, easy parking. In fact, a large percentage of the Food Truck Garage's Cityworks Depot location is pay and display parking.

Secondly, it's a proper, sit-down cafe. Yes, you can takeaway, but where I was presuming we'd be ordering at the till and taking a number, we were instead shown to our table and given menus.

And WHAT menus! I've never seen so many dishes I thought I knew, full of things I've never heard of. Burgers I've eaten aplenty, patties made of pumpkin and spinach, with a beetroot pickle and almond satay, not so much. Chips are chips, right? Maybe not when they're actually skin-on agria potatoes, swedes, and beets served with a lime emulsion. Oh, and do the words, "Prawn Tacos" mean anything to you? Nom, nom, nom, nom, nom...

If this all sounds like fancy schmancy flash people's dinners, it's actually completely the opposite. It's basic, raw, fresh and fun, and the most expensive item will set you back a mere 12 bucks. They even make their own lemonade, ginger beer and cola. What's more, everything comes served on enamel plates and in old jars and milk bottles. And there's beer.

Best of all, if I'm going to be perfectly honest, it's pretty cool eating the very dishes you've seen a bloke invent on telly. Oh, and yes, the real truck was really there.

Pity Monster Number 2 was having some kind of flu/headcold/stomach ache/panic attack/meltdown the whole time. Not easy being 9, you know.

But that's a measure of how excellent the Foodtruck Garage was. We hardly even noticed her incessant whimpering at all.

The Food Truck Garage
Shed 1, Cityworks Depot
90 Wellesley Street
Auckland

Open Tuesday-Sunday, 11:30 till late

Funny, she doesn't seem quite so monstrous in this picture. Maybe it's the truck