Food Truck Race: Sticks and SPAM

The going is getting tough, and every little mistake is costing teams a great deal. Aloha Plate seems to be able to pull off each and every challenge, but without word-of-mouth, how will they do? When the novelty of true Hawaiian food wears off, will they have a crowd? Tikka Tikka Taco makes sales wherever they go, which is impressive particularly because so many people have an aversion to Indian food, so perhaps they would do better in the real world. Philly's Finest Sambonis just can't stop slipping up, and that may cost them in the end, although their semi-limited menu always seemed a little questionable. As the race winds down and only a few cities remain, Aloha appears to be the shoo-in for the win, but that only means that more tricks will be thrown at the competitors. 

Remaining Trucks:
Aloha Plate, Authentic Hawaiian Cuisine. Brothers Adam and Lanai, plus friend Shawn, are from a remote Hawaiian island and want to share their food. Adam went to culinary school, thanks to a benefactor whose life he saved.

Philly's Finest Sambonis, serving Authentic Philly Cheesesteaks, Philadelphia. Childhood BFFs Erik, Joe, and Chris have come together after Erik had a bad car accident that ruined his career as an electrician.

Tikka Tikka Taco, Indian Street Food, St. Louis. Brothers Mike and Shaun work with their uncle, Sam. Shaun is a veteran.

The Slide Show, Gourmet Burgers and Fries, West Hollywood, CA. Trained chefs Das, Ahren, and Maurice are trying something new, as Das previously had a restaurant after appearing on another Food Network series. It was a dream, but he had to close it.

The Great Food Truck Race "Double Trouble in the Twin Cities" (S04E05): The trucks start with $400, which immediately becomes necessary when everyone sees steep prices at the stores in Minneapolis, where the weekend begins. [I didn't know MN was an expensive state.] Rather than facing a Speed Bump and a Truck Stop, this episode focuses on twin Truck Stops for the Twin Cities. [cute.] The first one requires dishes to use 4.5"+ skewers, with a $10 max price per stick of food. [I don't know what you'd sell me on a stick for $10...] After $1500 in sales, teams should meet Tyler for $750 and $250 tokens, unless 8:30pm rolls around first! None make it. [wow.] On Sunday, the trucks sell in St. Paul, and the weather is not on their side. [why say that it is 14 miles from one downtown to the other?] The second Truck Stop requires a special menu item to be based around SPAM, it can't cost more than $10, and the trucks need to sell $500 of the product - first one to do so earns immunity. [that's a big motivator!]

Aloha Plate heads to a tiki bar with an island theme, which works out well for them and their marinated sirloin skewers with Asian glaze and coleslaw. In St. Paul they go to a creamery and sell a teriyaki spam sandwich with volcanic mayo. [the sound of that makes me want to vomit, LoL.] They get the token for immunity, but it's not like they needed it. They are the highest-grossing truck with $4,550.

Tikka Tikka Taco partners with a brewery in Minneapolis. They change the way they cut the chicken for the skewers, and get to $1270/$1500. They go back to the arts district on Sunday before partnering with The Slider Squad, where they sell at a co-op. [I feel like that would be a risky location... you better know all about each of your ingredients!] They take the SPAM and rub it in garlic ginger paste, then add a touch of cayenne and some mango salsa before putting it in a wrap-taco. They finish the SPAM challenge second and get $500.Their grand total is $4,549. [only $1 less than Aloha!]

Philly's Finest Sambonis uses the strategy that they only need to beat out one team each week, which is the same attitude the now-out-of-the-competition Frankfoota girls had. [it might be the end of the road for them pretty soon!] They go to the same brewery as Slide Show and sell sauteed spinach, tomato salad, and a chicken cutlet sandwich. They have an issue with ordering bread and the going to a different branch, and they never go back to pick up the initial order, costing them $120 later down the line. Their skewers come in teriyaki and barbecue flavors. In St. Paul, they hit a stadium, only rain doesn't get them the best customers. They then move to the same area as Aloha Plate, and sell a SPAM BLT. [like these guys, I'm also unfamiliar with SPAM, but I'm okay with that.] When they get back to the truck, it won't start, and they spend an hour thinking it can't be the battery before getting a jump-start. [they didn't know the battery can have enough power for lights but not the car??] They reach $500 third, with only a couple minutes to spare, and top out with $3,084.

The Slide Show goes with a brewing company and sell three kinds of kabobs with some pineapple-mango relish. On Sunday they head to a large church in Minneapolis for sales before switching to an Irish Pub in St. Paul. However, someone takes part of their spot and it takes them a while to open. They even move again to try peddling their grilled SPAM and cheese sliders, only to wind up falling short with a total of only $2,008.

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Next stop: Chicago, IL. AND, a bombshell will be dropped there! [any guesses?]