Stories

MIHO Gastrotruck:

From Farm to Street

by Kate Kiefer Lee
photography by Hugh Forte

San Diego’s MIHO Gastrotruck took the “farm to table” concept to the streets. Founded by Kevin Ho and Juan Miron, the food truck parks in business areas for lunch and bars and breweries for dinner, serving gourmet food right out of its windows. From duck tacos to fig flatbread to squash burgers, the locally sourced dishes aren’t what you'd expect to find on the side of the road.
We talked to co-founder Kevin Ho about MIHO’s local ingredients, truck design, and daily menu—and even convinced him to share a recipe with us.

            MailChimp: How did MIHO get its start?
            Kevin Ho: MIHO was founded by Juan Miron and myself. We worked together at a local farm-to-table restaurant, and in our own time we also hosted underground beer-pairing dinners. In the late summer of 2009, we were determined to start our own business. We wanted to create something we could devote all of our passion, creativity, and ideas towards. We knew we didn’t want it to be a restaurant, but we came across the idea of a food truck.

            Where do you get your ingredients?
            We source all of our produce from local, family-owned farms. All of our meats are naturally raised without antibiotics or hormones. And all of our food is made in-house, except for the cheese and bread.

            Why did you choose a food truck instead of a restaurant?
            First, we knew we wanted to own the entire company. And secondly, we didn’t have a lot of money saved to invest. So the lower startup costs of a food-truck business allowed us to pursue our dream, but still be in control of our own destiny. Also, the restaurant industry has definitely struggled during this economic downturn. The truck allows us to make high-quality food, but keep it accessible, convenient, and affordable.

            What are some of the challenges of serving creative and organic food out of a truck, and keeping the prices low?
            The biggest challenge is to keep improving the quality of our sourcing without raising our prices. We always strive to feature the best ingredients and support the most sustainable farming and animal practices. But that means that our food costs are much higher than any truck, and even restaurants. But like the food-truck business itself, we find new and creative ways to make sure people are enjoying an experience that’s both socially and environmentally conscious, but also fun and unique.

What's your day-to-day like?: At the beginning, Juan and I worked day and night—both on the truck and behind the scenes. It was a grueling time, but we've been lucky enough to grow and find an amazing group of people who help us carry out our vision. Now we split time between the administrative duties and actually managing the truck. But our personal/work life balance is much better these days.

MIHO is an expression of what we think street food should
be—enjoying handmade food in the surroundings of your city among your friends.

You obviously put a lot of thought into your website and truck design, and even the music you play during service. Tell me about MIHO's overall aesthetic.

Thanks for noticing! The MIHO Experience is all about fun, creativity, and forward thinking. One of the biggest reasons why we started MIHO was the opportunity to explore our love for design, art, music, and creating memorable experiences around food and drink. MIHO is an expression of what we think street food should be—enjoying handmade food in the surroundings of your city among your friends and community.

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                  Recipe: 

                  MIHO's Chipotle Chicken Tostada
                
              

                Ingredients:
              

                  10 lb chicken thighs (boneless/skinless)
1 chopped yellow onion
1/8 cup chopped garlic
1/4 cup paprika
1/2 cup cumin
2 Tbs cayenne
3 Tbs ground coriander
3 Tbs ground fennel seed

                

                  1 10oz can crushed tomatoes
26oz chipotles in adobo
salt to taste
black pepper to taste
tostadas
cilantro
creme friache or sour cream
cabbage (shredded)

                

                How to Make It:
                Coat the chicken thighs with a dry rub made from the seasonings listed.
Sear the thighs and place them in a dutch oven or roasting pan.
Saute the onions and garlic in the same pan you used to sear the thighs.
Add the sauteed onions and garlic to the chicken.
Add the chipotles and tomatoes (in liquid form—this should almost cover the chicken).
Cover the pan tightly with lid or foil, and cook it in the oven at 250 degrees for about four hours. Make sure the cover's tight so the liquid doesn't evaporate.
While it's still warm, shred the chicken. You can adjust the seasonings once the chicken is cooked through.
To assemble the dish, place a tostada on a plate, top it with pulled chicken then shredded cabbage, followed by creme friache. Garnish it with cilantro.

              