Bacon & Mushroom at Kindle Kart [Photographs: Jim Bonomo]
Kindle Kart is a relatively new gypsy food cart serving up brisket burgers, Belgian frites, and most importantly, wood-fired pizza. Recent buzz on the weekday lunch cart has focused on their housemade sausage-topped pie, so the opportunity to explore the deeper corners of the menu beckoned. A white pie, topped with sauteed mushrooms and smoky bacon was a steal at a mere $8 (10-inch), but the drawn-out wait time and awkward service had me questioning the overall worth of my journey to the edge of Portland's industrial Northwest neighborhood.
As long as you can keep yourself from having a lack-of-patience-while-waiting aneurysm, Kindle Kart is most definitely a must-stop for any Portland pizza lover. The bacon and mushroom pie arrived well-adorned with thoughtfully prepared ingredients. The bacon was thick cut into sweet, salty nuggets reminiscent of seared country ham. The buttery sauteed mushrooms provided a velvety texture to contrast the crispness of the crust and pork element. The white sauce base seemed like a simple fruity, garlicky olive oil, which added a much-needed oomph to the neutral mozzarella. Notes of woody BBQ smoke permeated the pizza, resulting in savory satisfaction.
The crust was an overall success, despite being slightly underdone on one thicker edge. Such are the dangers of small, hand-tossed pies. All was forgiven when I reached the thinner corniciones, which were nicely charred with a salty backbone and just enough unctuousness from the rich oil base bleeding through. Kindle Kart comes with the highest recommendation, and represents the evolution of Portland's food cart pizza quality.
Kindle Kart
Corner of NW 27th Avenue and NW Wilson St, Portland, Oregon (map)
kindlekart.com
About the author:Jim Bonomo was born and raised in Milford, Connecticut. He is currently eating and drinking his way through Portland, Oregon. Once all the pizza and beer is gone, he promises to go back home. You can follow him on Twitter at @goodbyeohio.