CURRYWURST LOS ANGELES
GERMANY’S NO. 1 STREET FOOD VIA L.A. FOOD TRUCK

The latest gourmet food truck to hits the streets of L.A. is Currywurst Los Angeles. Serving fresh currywurst, a national dish across Germany, the food truck has been an instant hit about town.

Not to be confused with the brick and mortar restaurant with the same name, “currywurst” in German is akin to “hot dog”, so while it may sound like a specific trademark brand name to us (non German-speaking) Americans, it’s a generic word for a type of food. Imagine going abroad to start a burger business and calling it ‘Hamburger’, you can’t really copyright that.

Currywurst consists of a Bratwurst type sausage with added curry-flavored ketchup. Believe it or not, there are roughly 800 million curry sausages served a year in Germany. Currywurst is a quickly made dish of steamed pork sausage cut into slices and seasoned with warm curry ketchup seasoned with generous amounts of curry powder.

According to legend, the invention of currywurst is attributed to Herta Heuwer of Berlin after she obtained ketchup, Worcestershire sauce and curry powder from British soldiers in 1949. She mixed these ingredients with other spices and poured them over grilled pork sausage. She eventually sold the cheap but filling snack at a street stand in the Charlottenburg district of Berlin where it became popular with construction workers rebuilding the devastated city, giving birth to an instant street food classic.

The folks at Currywurst Los Angeles have hit the streets of L.A. selling this German favorite. You can choose between classic pork sausages or go for Bratwurst, Polish Kilbasa, Cheese Sausage or your standard Wiener. Each is served with a roll on the side, unlike the typical hot dog bun Americans are so used to. The extremely tasty Currywurst with Roll ($6) is served as a steamed pork sausage cut into slices with the flavorful curry ketchup poured on top. You can make it as spicy as you like. And the roll is perfect for making sure you soak up every last drop of curry ketchup.

While the Currywurst with Roll is the truck’s signature dish and most popular seller, and really, you should try it upon your first encounter, my favorite is the Cheese Sausage with Roll ($5.50). Don’t expect a sausage doused with nacho cheese. Instead, the cheese is actually inside the sausage. Mustard and Sauerkraut add extra flavor but are completely unnecessary as the cheese-filled sausage has a wonderful flavor all its own. Every bite is a juicy mouthful of sausage and cheese.

Choose among Homemade Apple Strudel with Vanilla Sauce, and Homemade Berliner (a donut filled with jam) for dessert. A quick and easy alternative to satisfy your gourmet sausage craving, this isn’t as elaborate as Wurstküche, the highly popular downtown L.A. beer hall and sausage kitchen, but it will aptly get the job done. While the truck is usually camped out in front of LACMA most days, follow them on Twitter, friend them on Facebook or check out their official site to see their ever-changing schedule of locations.