Monday, August 17, 2009

Quest for the Best: Treats Truck

Location: Varies; check the schedule on the website or sign up to be on their email list


Website: Official Treats Truck site


Price: Varies; cookies are usually between $1-$2, brownies are $2.50-$3


Atmosphere: It’s a truck that’s parked on the side of the road. So depending on the weather of the day you go, there’s your atmosphere.


My Review: The concept of food on wheels is nothing new in New York City. There are hot dog, roasted nuts, and falafel carts all over the place, and as I’ve previously mentioned, in the summer you can’t walk two blocks without running into a Mr. Softee ice cream truck. But somehow I missed out on the delicious existence of the various trucks throughout the city that offer baked goods. Baked goods! Those are my favorite kind of goods!


First on my list of mobile bakeries to try was the Treats Truck. The truck has various destinations throughout the week, but on Wednesdays and Fridays is parked within walking distance of my office, which I’m still not sure is a blessing or a curse. Much like every other mobile eatery, the Treats Truck parks itself on the side of the road and sugar junkies line up on the sidewalk to make their purchases. The treats on offer are simple, but delicious (think the type of goodies your grandmother used to make, if you were lucky enough to have a grandmother who baked), and everything is made in a bakery in Red Hook, Brooklyn, then loaded onto the truck (who is, appropriately enough, named “Sugar”). Various types of cookies and brownies are the main offerings of the Treats Truck, though there are also crispy squares, beverages, and daily specials that change with the seasons and upcoming holidays.


First I tried the Sugar Dot cookie, which is a bite-sized sugar cookie topped with a sugar glaze icing and sprinkles (and is only 50 cents). The sugar cookie is probably the simplest type of cookie there is and needs little embellishment, and the Sugar Dot is perfect in its simplicity. The Oatmeal Chocolate Chipper is exactly what it sounds like; and oatmeal cookie with chocolate chips. And it was, of course, fantastic, because the Treats Truck realizes what I’ve known for years; chocolate chips are better than raisins any day. But the best treat I had was the Caramel Crème Sandwich cookie. The name is misleading, as there is no caramel involved, but that doesn’t stop it from being incredible. Two chewy brown sugar cookies are stuck together with a gooey vanilla frosting, and it is a sugar lover’s paradise. As soon as I ate mine I wanted to run back to the truck and buy a dozen more. But I refrained, but only because it’s way too hot to run in NYC right now.


One of the best things about the Treat Trucks’ offerings (besides their incredibly deliciousness) is how affordable they are. While I also enjoy the cupcake craze the city is going through, some bakeries are selling them for $4 or $5 a pop. But you could go to the Treats Truck with a $5 bill and walk away with 4 or 5 different goodies. They may not come in the exotic and experimental flavors you’ll find in some of the higher end bakeries in the city, but there’s a lot of goodness to be found in the simple things in life.


Bottom Line: The Treats Truck offers a wide variety of baked goods which are all delicious and reasonably priced, plus the truck will most likely find it’s way to your area at some point, so what’s not to love? In fact, I’m so impressed with the Treats Truck, it makes me want to start my own bakery on wheels. I have a car, and I love to bake, so maybe this could be my new side business. I could call it The Rabbit Habit, because I drive a VW Rabbit and being addicted to baked goods is a habit… OK, so there’s obviously a reason I don’t work in advertising.


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