I've been hearing a lot about this dude who pushes this cart around the Mission some nights making curry-to-order. The only way you'll know where he'll be at any given time is to follow him on Twitter. So I have been, and we finally caught him on Friday night. He was going to be "in the alley behind McDonald's" and we raced down there after my shift.

We got down to the vicinity and looked for the McDonald's, found it, and then noticed a handwritten sign taped to a fence with a pointing arrow. We followed it down this dark alley where this girl offered us Jello shots for $2. We said no thanks and then continued on our way.

One of the garages on the alley had an open door and loud techno music was pounding out of it, so we went in. It was just some person's garage, but they had a whole DJ setup in there complete with a projector and arteeest videos on the wall. Beyond that was a small courtyard where a line of people were waiting... and the rich smell of curry.





It was just so surreal. We waited in line and talked with some of the other people there. It wasn't fast, but considering it was $5, everything was made to order, and the weirdness of the whole situation, it was worth it. We eventually put our names on the clipboard (tofu for us) and talked to Brian (the Magic Curry Man) while he cooked everything up. He had two camping stoves on his cart and a big Tupperware full of veggies, and his stock of jasmine rice was all hot and ready-to-go in a cooler to the side. He wore a headlamp to see what he was doing, which reminded me -- along with the music -- of the Orbital show I'd been to.

Just... so weird.



He said he was a therapist by day, and he just likes cooking for people. His brother runs a similar business, the creme brulee cart (which got written up this past week in the New York Times.) And we were all invited to the house party that was going on later. His brother and pals who were running the party kept greeting us like we were old friends."Hey guys, how's it going? Do you need anything? Awesome!" I just couldn't imagine having a party with a bunch of people off the street! Is that how they do things around here?



It was good that we got there when we did, because as the Magic Curry Man scraped the last of the veggies into his pans we were the last customers he could serve. We went up the stairs to the roof deck to eat, using totally compostable forks and spoons (of course!). It was great.

Just... weird.



Not high art, but what a fun night. Thank goodness for ISO flexibility of the 5DmII!

Take me next time!

One of those magic moments in life where the stars align and you just get lucky. Sweet

The creme brulee's cart brother???? too funny!

Is it worth going back to the Magic Curry Man?

I keep wanting to chase down the Kogi Taco Truck in LA, but I keep missing it when I"m in town.

I think i'm going to have Curry for lunch. Great story and cool pictures.

Originally Posted by Andy Take me next time!

Definitely! He's a real character and just loves to chat. The curry is a bit rich, but in that atmosphere who really cares?

Originally Posted by aktse The creme brulee's cart brother???? too funny! Is it worth going back to the Magic Curry Man? I keep wanting to chase down the Kogi Taco Truck in LA, but I keep missing it when I"m in town.

It is totally no surprise that you know of these guys!

I had to google that one but duuude the Kogi truck looks like one darned good reason to go to SoCal! :O

I wish I still ate dairy cuz I want to try the creme brulee cart. And yes I'd definitely say that it's worth going back to the Magic Curry Kart! He's usually over by Dolores Park which is pretty close to were we live.

Fun series...and story...I dig the shadows and conversion in the first one!

The story reminds me a little of something that happened to some friends and I back in the mid-80's. We had gone to New Orleans where they were hosting a superbowl that weekend and.......sheesh....nevermind....Im too old now to even tell that story!

Originally Posted by jeffreaux2 Fun series...and story...I dig the shadows and conversion in the first one! The story reminds me a little of something that happened to some friends and I back in the mid-80's. We had gone to New Orleans where they were hosting a superbowl that weekend and.......sheesh....nevermind....Im too old now to even tell that story!

You can't start and then just end it like that!!!

I think you're brave!

We hate eating out. The kitchen at home is a fully equipped magic carpet to whichever cuisine we fancy, as we like it, with no nagging worries about freshness, hygiene, and nutrition, having to watch our manners and how much we might upset onlooking diners by the number of times we go for seconds. Restaurant eating is so repressed! And home is just so snug, there is no ambiance to beat it. And cheap! Ye Gads! Restaurant prices offend our sense of budgetary proportion! Better to get a good lens!

I think #2 photo is bonza, schmoo. A nice study in a fine sample of b&w.

N

Originally Posted by schmoo You can't start and then just end it like that!!!

Well I remembered that we sometimes get underagers here.....and its probably a story best forgotten!


I looked through your site the other day....going through your Orleans trip. I was actually looking to see if there was anything there I could purchase for my son's new home.

One thing I noticed...and here as well...is that when you tilt...it mat be a tad too strong. I struggled with that for the longest...trying to make the tilt purposeful, but without turning everything completely on its ear. It can add fun and energy to a wider angle shot though.....so keep it up.....but as a pointer...maybe try about half of what you have here....or a little less......and see if you like that better.

PS....I just returned from day surgery and Im buzzed........and you nearly got the story out of me!!!

Schmoo,

i like the pictures!! The journey reminds me of my younger years. I like the Orbital reference.

what time were those pictures taken, i would assume it was late. So the ISO is fantastic, the light on the side of the building looks a bit like sunset.