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Truk’i Pan: Curaçao’s Best Street Food

Category: | Published on: May 29, 2019 | By Omaily Lucas

With everyone snapping and sharing their food on Instagram—seeking new experiences with every travel—street food has gained immense popularity among travel foodies. Before food trucks started popping up at every city, Curaçao had its own version of street food. ‘Truk’i Pan’, literally translated to ‘bread truck’, is a food truck on the island that serves barbecue dishes with fries or bread after 9 pm until after midnight. It’s Curaçao’s best food that visitors always enjoys.

One of the common fears among visitors when eating street food in another country is hygiene. There is no need to worry, the hygiene at the food trucks on Curaçao is just as good as any restaurant.

 

The Idea Behind Curaçao’s Best Food

Food trucks have been around for ages on Curaçao. Contrary to most food trucks around the world, truk’i pan only opens after 9 pm at night. The idea is that while most restaurants will close around 10 pm, for the one who wants a late-night bite after a night of partying and drinking can visit a truk’i pan instead. The name probably came from the fact that back in the days a truk’i pan only served soft-hotdog bum filled with chicken, beef, or fish. Over the years, their servings evolved, and they started adding French fries as a side dish. Nowadays you can even buy nachos, burgers, or other well known (street) food at a truk’i pan.

Curaçao’s Best Food are always paired with a lot of dancing. At the end of the night, everyone is drained and hungry. With no 24/7 restaurants on the island, truk’i pan is exactly what you will need after swinging your hips all night long.

 

The Food

There is a reason why truk’i pan is considered Curaçao’s best food and why locals can often be found at one of the food trucks around the island at night. On the island, we love hearty food that will really fill our stomachs and aren’t much into the culinary type of food culture.

All their food is barbecue-style, which makes the food juicy and full of flavors. A popular dish at the truk’i pan is simply chicken and fries, but don’t miss the steak and fries either. The fries are soft-fried, which is different from fries you normally eat, and you can also choose bread instead of fries. The dishes get paired with some type of homemade salad, either a green salad or macaroni salad.

If you want to eat just like all locals do, make sure to add a lot of sauce on it and add spicy onion relish. The onion relish is a typical food on the island and mildly spicy—although that highly depends on the person who makes it. Don’t worry about the healthiness of adding so much sauce. Truk’i pan is not about health it’s about indulgence.

There are so many truk’i pans scattered around the island. Everyone has their own favorite and some of them have earned a good reputation by everyone. BBQ Express, at Caracasbaaiweg, has been voted as one of the best truk’i pan for years.

The Experience

What started as a simple food truck on the side of the road has grown into food trucks with a terrace, twinkle lights, and rustic tables. It’s a place where everyone gathers for a good meal in an informal setting. Don’t worry about getting a seat at a table. Stand around, sit on a brick, lean against a wall, or sit in your trunk to enjoy your meal. That’s the local experience of Curaçao’s truk’i pan.

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