Personally, if I was naming a food truck, I wouldn’t call it So & So’s.
Don’t get me wrong, I like the folksy Midwestern familiarity it implies: “Oh, you know so and so,” “Let’s have so and so over for dinner on Thursday.” It’s just that so-so also can also imply an iffiness or blah quality: “It was just so-so,” “Eh, I’m just feeling so-so.”
And Sociable Cider Werks’ newest food truck is anything but.
So & So’s comes from chef TJ Lauthe, who developed the concept with an assist from Union Hmong Kitchen’s former culinary director Mike Yuen. Open since late September, it’s the latest tenant to take over the food trailer at Sociable that has helped launch a storied list of tenants—Sammy’s Avenue Eatery, Union Hmong Kitchen, Francis, Unidos Food Co.—over the last five years.
“We’re calling it ‘MN Street Food,’” their website explains, with featured items including a wild rice dog, chips and seasoned sour cream, totchos, cider-battered walleye, and more.
Those totchos ($13) were a big part of the reason we finally pulled up to Sociable's northeast Minneapolis taproom earlier this week, ready to see what this ‘Sota street food is all about, and they did not disappoint.
Seasoned generously and piled with fall-apart tender pork braised in Sociable's Freewheeler cider, the crispy taters also got a hearty drizzle of a brick-red cranberry barbecue sauce. These are the flavors junk-food scientists try to bottle, keeping you going for handful after snacky handful. Or forkful after decadent forkful, in this case—these are utensil-requiring totchos, topped with a mountain of rich pork along with cheddar cheese and a sprinkle of green onions.
Then there was the chopped cheese (“a Minne-Apple take on the Big Apple sammy,” $14), which got good ‘n’ gooey on the grill. I’m a sucker for chopped cheeses, and while this one could have been a little more chopped—discernable slices of American cheese, what are you doing in here?—the flavors were all there. Ribbons of savory fried onions melted into the beef, and a squirt of chipotle mayo that registered a lot like Big Mac Sauce sent this sammy into divine territory. It’s all served on a squishy, high-quality hoagie roll—a requisite, if I’m to recommend one of these bad boys—and wrapped up in a warm tin foil blanket.
Sociable’s Freewheeler also gets a showcase in So & So’s fried chicken sandwich ($14), which is brined in a cider and spice blend, breaded, and double-fried. Whatever secret spices are going in that brine are tremendous; this thing arrives super dilly, ultra-cronchy, and a little sweet, thanks to a bed of apple-fennel slaw (which also makes things a little wet—grab a few napkins).
And both sandwiches came with a serving of homemade potato chips, cut on the thicker side and delightfully crispy, which we paired with a side of So & So’s seasoned sour cream (“your favorite Midwest dip without the neon green container”) for an additional two bucks. I’d get the sour cream again for sure, as it lent a little freshness to an otherwise very rich meal.
Plus, no truly Minnesota spread is complete without the stuff that comes in that neon green container, if you ask us.
So & So's MN Street Food at Sociable Cider Werks
Address: 1500 Fillmore St. NE, Minneapolis
Hours: 4-9 p.m. Monday to Friday; 1-9 p.m. Saturday; 1-7 p.m. Sunday
