This whole food truck craze has been going on for a while without me, but a year ago in NYC my bro-in-law initiated me into the wonderful world of fast food on wheels in his neighborhood. It was a fun way to get a hit of Mexican food on the Upper West Side. When I got back to LA, I read  blogs about the food trucks in LA, dug a little bit more, and finally get around to chasing a truck here for dinner today. The Nom Nom truck was slated to roll into Old Town Pasadena after 6.30, but I wait and wait…

and it’s a no show. I had a light lunch today so I am way too grumpy to wait any longer, and it’s on to the second choice, the highly popular (on Yelp) La Estrella truck  in Highland Park:

But it turns out that the truck doesn’t have the seafood dishes, so we head over to its stand-alone diner, La Estrella #3…

and my eyes, definitely hungrier than my belly, order everything that remotely looks like seafood! I have no idea how big the portions will be and the pictures on the glass window do not look like they’d be huge servings.

Highland Park is a mostly Latino neighborhood bordering Eagle Rock and Pasadena.

Looking at the  fantastic mural across the street from La Estrella is a fun way to kill time while waiting for the food to be prepared:

About ten minutes after ordering, the food is ready, and in the car I can already smell the wonderful aromas of paprika, cilantro, and other steaming hot ingredients.  When I get home and open up the “surprises,” I am bowled over by the sights and smells of the food.  This is the shrimp taco with a kick of paprika…

The succulent, sweet ceviche tostada…

The ceviche mixta with fish, shrimp, and octopus…

And the al pastor tacos that it’s known for…

I have to tell you, I struggle to finish everything. It’s A LOT of food for just $20. The seafood tacos I had on a beach in Mexico are still the best fresh tacos I’ve ever had in my life, but La Estrella is as good as it gets this far away from the ocean. I recommend an ice cold beer with the ceviche. Yum.