Best Trailer Eats in Austin

The trailer food craze is sweeping the nation, particularly in certain cities such as Portland, Oregon and Austin, Texas. Austin is home to a thriving trailer restaurant scene - currently about 300 and counting - and from these culinary magic boxes you can get anything from the expected pizza and barbecue, to the more exotic sushi and falafels. Here is a roundup of some of the city's best food carts.

1. Franklin Barbecue

One of the oldest food trailers in Austin, there can often be a long line and waits of up to half an hour, but everyone claims the heavenly pulled pork and other slow-cooked barbecue meals are well worth it. Choose between four different sauces with varying sweet to spicy ratios to satisfy all taste buds.

3421 N. I-35

2.G'Raj Mahal

Who can resist a clever name like this? The site and ambience here are as good as the exceptional Indian cuisine. Located in the hopping Rainey Street area, G'Raj Mahal has a great covered outdoor seating area with lights and colorful fabric canopies. The menu allows you to choose your meats or veggies along with one of more than a dozen fantastic, complex sauces heavy on the Southern Indian influence. Frequent live music and friendly BYOB policy up the like factor.

91 Red River

3. Sushi-A-Go-Go

No matter how many new trailer restaurants have opened, sushi just seems like one of those things that couldn't possibly be a good cart cuisine. These fun carts prove that assumption wrong, with their incredibly fresh ingredients and inventive combinations for rolls. This spot could hold its own with many of the expensive sushi restaurants in Austin.

4001 Medical Pkwy. and 801 Barton Springs Rd.

4. The Flying Carpet

Although the name conjures up Middle Eastern dishes, which the Flying Carpet certainly offers, the menu is a unique fusion of Moroccan and Western food that comes together in an incredible culinary choreography. From kebabs to burgers, nothing is done the way everyone else does it, and the ingredients are all top quality. The owners get kudos for their friendly banter as well.

1318 S. Congress

5. Not Your Mama's Food Truck

Like G'Raj Mahal, this establishment has fun with the irreverent nature of trailer eating. Known as NYM, it dishes out old-school Southern comfort food such as fried chicken and beef tongue, but it's their sauces and gravies that keep people addicted to this stuff.

2209 E. Cesar Chavez