Cabalen Sweets&savory

Let me start off by saying that I love Filipino food. And I love Middle Eastern food. I am certainly not an expert on both cuisines but I know enough to know that there really isn 't any overlap in these two so I don 't really know why a food truck would try and serve both and expect to pull it off successfully.I came across this truck at my local farmer 's market and decided to give it a try. Just so everyone knows, this truck doesn 't serve a fusion menu. They literally have a Filipino menu and a Middle Eastern menu. I got the Pancit/lumpia/adobo combo. It was very average. I 've had plenty better at most other Filipino restaurants. I also got the falafel and shawarma combo. Again, just average. I 've had better at most other Middle Eastern restaurants.Beyond just the mediocre food, I just didn 't get the point of serving both cuisines at this one truck and not even fusion-style. I feel like this truck would do much better to focus on one of the two and offer more options and better quality OR create an entirely new fusion menu. Overall, not my type of food truck and won 't be back.

I love the idea of Filipino and Middle Eastern eats in one food truck!I used to frequent this yummy food truck/tent when they used to come to the Kaiser Vallejo and Oakland farmers markets pre pandemic. Their truck/tent was always colorful and inviting with friendly workers. My favorite and go to was the shawarma wrap, which was huge, flavorful and delicious. I also liked their lumpia as a side dish. I just tried them again at the Spring Brews Fest in Todos Santos Plaza today and had to get my OG chicken shawarma wrap it's literally been years since I had it. The wait was pretty long but expected at peak hours of the event.Although it was still good with the flavorful chicken, fresh produce, and tasty sauces, the wrap was smaller than I remembered and more expensive by a few bucks. The staff was working pretty hard cranking out all the orders so I gotta give them credit for surviving during the pandemic and economic crisis. The menu has some other tempting items like my people's pancit, adobo I'll have to try their combos and the shawarma fries next time I see them in town!

Our son LOVES the lumpia, so we do our best to visit their booth at the Vallejo Farmer's Market. The food is consistently good and feels good on a cold morning.

Encountered them at the Civic Center Friday market. Was kinda strange they were selling Middle Eastern and Filipino food together. Not in any sort of fusion dish, just an either/or. I opted for the Filipino and was satisfied, hence the A-OK 3-star. Nothing innovative or fancy, simply a good way to filled up outdoors. Lumpia: Very long and very thin. This must be what Lumpia Shanghai looks like before they typically cut into thumb-size pieces. It was fine for a crispy taste of lumpia without having to commit to a whole appetizer. Pancit: Thin noodles soaked with tons of flavor. Also, loaded with meat (chicken? . Way better than the bland pancit you'd get at a mall stand. Adobo: Nothing fancy, just kinda like home cooking. The chicken was tender, the vinegar accent tangy and just enough soy for a salty finish. Got a drumstick and a thigh, so not a bad portion for a street stand.

We tried the chicken shawarma and a lamb shawarma at the San Francisco Farmers market. I thought the lamb was really tasty, very moist, with good flavor. The only thing I would want is for it to be more spicy. The chicken one tasted good also though not moist enough for my boyfriend. I would definitely go back and try more!