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News / Life / Clark County Life

Krisey’s Kitchen offers southern comfort in Vancouver

Food cart owner moved to NW from New Orleans five years ago

By Rachel Pinsky for The Columbian
Published: June 23, 2023, 6:02am
6 Photos
Fried catfish, mac and cheese, rice and peas from Krisey's Kitchen food cart in Vancouver.
Fried catfish, mac and cheese, rice and peas from Krisey's Kitchen food cart in Vancouver. (Photos by Rachel Pinsky) Photo Gallery

After years of begging the Food Pod Gods to grace Vancouver with a cluster of good food trucks, it seems my prayers have been answered. The Living Hope Church parking lot on Northeast Andresen Road near Fourth Plain Boulevard has recently assembled a stellar lineup of trucks, including Winston’s British Fish and Chips, Maya Fruits and Juice Bar, El Jefe Birria & Tacos, a barbecue truck, and most recently Krisey’s Kitchen.

Kristian “Krisey” Butler opened her bright blue food truck next to Winston’s British Fish and Chips to offer the southern food she missed when she moved to Vancouver from New Orleans five years ago.

The menu is posted every day on the truck’s Facebook and Instagram sites. On my latest visit, a woman behind me in line ordered a watermelon snowball. New Orleans snowballs have been served in The Big Easy since the 1930s. The ice is shaved in a special machine that makes it fluffy unlike snow cones where the ice is more granular. Flavors on the menu are organized by color (red, orange, green, blue, purple, pink and clear) and include strawberry daiquiri, sour apple, blue raspberry, grape, cotton candy and coconut. Condensed milk, gummy bears, Kool-Aid pickle bites or a scoop of ice cream can be added for 75 cents each.

Snowballs ($5.50-$7.50) with swirls of bright flavorful syrups are perfect summer fare, but the main attraction is the generously portioned plates that come with one main, two sides, a drink, bread and a dessert ($23). Specials like beef stew and chicken tetrazzini are occasionally added, but mains are typically fried chicken, fried catfish and fried pork chops. Mac and cheese, jambalaya rice, buttery sweet corn and garlic butter green beans have appeared as sides. Bundt cakes with flavors like raspberry white chocolate, red velvet and lemon come as part of the plate or a la carte. Extras like fried okra, fried pickles, mac-and-cheese bites, as well as quick bites like Rotel nachos ($7), fried Oreos (four for $4) and Kool-Aid pickle slices (two for $3) are regularly offered.

The truck carries two different brands of hot sauce, Crystal and Louisiana. Crystal is a bit more vinegary with a hit of fire as it goes down the throat. Louisiana has a smokier flavor.

After a few visits, my favorites are the fried catfish, fried okra and mac-and-cheese bites. Catfish comes as a massive slab of tender fish coated in a crispy cornmeal crust. The okra has a crispy coating, creating crunchy disks. The mac-and-cheese bites are battered squares of mac and cheese sprinkled with a spicy seasoning. I’ll be back. The food at Krisey’s is flavorful and satisfying. It gives you the feeling that someone really cares about the dishes placed in boxes and slid out the window.

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