A Food Truck Park in Sugar Land, sorta...

on the southeast corner of Highway 6 and Bissonnet

Bansuri Indian Food Corner has set up shop in it's new location; it's parked along Bissonnet actually, barely visible from 6 behind a Conoco station.  It will be closed Sundays and Mondays.

About 75 to a hundred yards away, at the other end of the same parking lot, are four other mobile units including Big 6 Bar-B-Que, which I have visited and reported on before, BB's Beef and Hot Dogs, Yum Yum Sno Balls, and a new one, MJ Seafood.  Since they're outside the city of Houston they are parked practically bumper to bumper and can set up tables and chairs for customers.

I think BB's is the same operation that used to have a small shop on West Airport off of 59 serving Chicago style hot dogs and Italian Beef.

There's also a Mexican restaurant in the strip center and Vishala Grocery and Restaurant is just across Highway 6.

9431 Highway 6 South is the official address.

Bansuri Indian Food Corner

Big 6 Bar-B-Que

Openings and Closings on the Southwest Side

Bansuri Indian Food Corner is currently closed and will be re-opening in Sugar Land.  The way I read the announcement on the website, it seems they're going all brick and mortar on us eventually.

A new truck has been parked in Bansuri's long time spot on S. Wilcrest, Yashoda Chat Express, and has a menu posted that is very similar to what Bansuri offered.  I haven't caught it open yet.

The Chili Shak, Fondren at S. Braeswood has closed.  That is a location that has failed a couple of times now.

Yemeni Cafe, Beechnut at Wilcrest, has closed after only a few months.  The restaurant was a long way from where most of the Gulf States expats reside in Houston and drew little attention, I enjoyed a Fattah Lahm and some Yemeni tea there before it closed.

Mo's Knock-out Grill in the Medical Center area has closed.  I'm very sorry to see that one go.

Edit to add:  Pupusa Baleada Buffet has been open for several months at 7303 Bissonnett @ Lugary, apparently riffing on the success of the Pupusa Buffet restaurants on the SW side.  Actually a baleada buffet sounds like a good idea, I much prefer the Honduran over the Salvadoran specialty.  I haven't been.

BANSURI IS CLOSED!

And it's all Houston's fault, too. (Tee-hee-hee-hee-hee).

The Bansuri Indian food truck on Wilcrest is taking a summer hiatus. They'll be closed for almost two full months, until the end of July.

I managed to score some Bhel Puri on one of their last evenings.



UPDATE: THE TRUCK IS BACK IN OPERATION.

Bansuri Indian Food Corner UPDATED 9/5/13

NOW OPEN IN A NEW LOCATION ON BEECHNUT AT HIGHWAY 6 IN SUGAR LAND.   CHECK THE WEBSITE LINK AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS REPORT.



NOTE: THE TRUCK HAS AN EXPANDED MENU NOW WITH MORE ITEMS AVAILABLE.

I’d seen this truck several times when driving down Wilcrest but it never was open for business so I made a note of the phone number and called and found out it’s only open in the evening. I’d looked up most of the offerings online and determined they’re basically the street foods of Mumbai and that was confirmed by the owner who also confirmed this is Houston’s first, and so far only, vegetarian Indian taco truck. They’ve been in business about 4 months. The truck is decorated with depictions of the namesake wooden Indian flute.


I tried the Vada Pav on my first visit, basically a potato slider on a very substantial roll with a coriander/mint chutney on one side of the bun and a garlic chutney on the other. It was surprisingly spicy and very good and I was eager to go back to try something else.


On my second visit I asked what the best dish they offered was and was steered toward the Ragda, a dish the owner said he has been eating since he was eight and loves. This is a stew of ‘white Canadian peas’ served over the potato patties (wada), with onion chutney, rice, the mint/coriander chutney and a date/tamarind chutney mixed in; you also get additional portions of the two latter chutneys to add to taste. This was awesome, almost at the limit of my tolerance for spicy food, and it put me in mind of my first visits to our excellent Pakistani restaurant, Himalaya.


I couldn’t wait to go back again and this time, Dabeli was recommended. I couldn't remember what I had read on this and thought it was going to be another stew-like dish but it was another version of the potato sliders; had I known that I might have passed and that would have been a big mistake. These were even better than the Wada Pav; the bread (pav, made from a family recipe which they have produced locally) is toasted, there’s a little cinnamon in there for sweetness and peanuts.

I also got the Sev Puri, an Indian verison of nachos or garnaches you might say.

The owners are very friendly and have been very welcoming and happy to explain the dishes. It’s just snack food, not meant to be a full meal, so you’d have to order several items if you wanted an evening meal.

They’re open Monday thru Saturday from around 5:30 or 6pm until around 9pm, weather permitting. If you’re coming from a distance (they’ve had people drive down from Bryan-College Station) you might want to make a note of the phone number and call to make sure they’re open.

It’s only about 15 minutes from my home and I've been 3 times in one week; I’ve had no problem with taking things home - there’s no place to eat, of course - but the puris need to be consumed soon before they get soggy.

Bansuri Indian Food Corner