Yes, you read that subtitle correctly.
Mad Pambazos is indeed a Mad Max-themed, with suitably named sandwiches and salads, a food truck they’ve dubbed the “war rig,” and an in-character backstory to support it all.
We’d seen it around the corner from our studio over the past few weeks but had no idea what a pambazo was. Though we had every intention of looking it up, Eater LA saved us the trouble by posting a piece on the apocalyptic food truck this morning.
Turns out, a pambazo is “a delicious sandwich from Mexico City, dipped in salsa and pressed until hot and crisp” (MP’s words) and it is indeed delicious (and not nearly as messy as you’d think). It also turns out that Mad Pambazo was again parked a stone’s throw from our office, so what better to do for lunch than give it a shot.
A lot of the menu is pretty animal-meat-centric, like the Toecutter, Silvertongue’s Chicken, and the Lord Humungus Pastor, but they do offer a vegetarian option—the People Eater—that they speedily assured us they could easily do vegan via Twitter. The result is a beautifully hot (and spicy) mess of thick-sliced smoked potato, equally thick-sliced red chili butternut squash, salsa verde, cabbage salad, and pickled jalapeño between two excellent pieces of bolillo-style bread (like a Mexican sourdough) that have been dipped and pressed crisp. Truly, truly excellent. We don’t have a formal Best Sandwiches in Los Angeles list, but if we did, this would be near the top…along with Mohawk Bend’s BBQ Chickpea Cutlet, Dune’s Green Falafel, Little Pine’s Sausage + Fennel Sandwich, and Blue Window’s Vegan Cheddar Melt. …Huh. I guess we do have a formal Best Sandwiches of Los Angeles list.
We also grabbed a guac tostada with habanero mango salsa (one of up to three daily guacamoles they offer), a giant, $4 tub of housemade pickles, and a selection of their complimentary housemade salsas (our favorite was the black, slightly sweet, not-as-hot-as-it-sounds charred habanero).
You can check Mad Pambazos’ schedule on their site (looks like they’ll be at Downtown LA Artwalk + Night Market next week) and follow them on Twitter for up-to-date info.
