Off the Grid: Upper Haight

It’s not the main attraction (if you want the real OTG experience, go to the Fort Mason market on Fridays from 5−9pm), but it gets the job done really well. It’s actually my favorite location because while it’s definitely smaller (only about 10 – 12 trucks, at best, no drinks stand in the center), it has a much more manageable and intimate vibe.
There’s either a live band or a standard playlist, but regardless you’ll get a pretty good environment going in terms of music. The area (which is actually a small skate park about two blocks up from the Haight), is very cutely decorated with patio lights and signs everywhere for OTG and menus galore.
In terms of truck quality, you can expect to find the fan favorites here week over week. AKA Señor Sisig, Chairman Bao, Boneyard and The BACON Truck. There are others that cycle in and out frequently (Curry Up Now, Crème Brulee Cart, and a few others seem to be regulars aside from the others listed), so definitely check out their online menu of trucks ahead of time to make sure your favorites will be here.
PRO TIP: come with a group and get a few items from multiple trucks and split! You won’t have to split hairs over deciding what your entrée will be and you’ll be much happier this way ;)
In general, you should NOT pass up the Chairman. It’s one of my favorite trucks in the Bay, and if you try some of their food, you’ll know exactly why. Definitely get one of the small buns here (I go for either the chicken or the tofu); the chicken one has a bit of a spicy kick to it but is topped with some pickled veggies. One of the smaller buns will cost you around $ 3.5, but I have no complaints.
Señor Sisig: another fan favorite that you won’t be able to get through without a bit of a line; go for their california burrito :) to be completely honest, this place is a bit overrated for me but I can’t deny that it does hit the spot doused with some sriracha
Curry Up Now: one of my favorites here are the deconstructed samosas, delicious. they’ve also got some delicious nachos and burritos if you don’t want to go with the filipino-​inspired burrito truck and would opt for the indian truck
All in all, you really can’t go wrong with OTG in general, but the pros of this location are 1) chill vibe, 2) less people = less wait, 3) same exact quality as any other OTG market :)

Señor sisig, the best!
Long line but it’s ok.
Many choices but always get the best, the truck with the long line, you wont miss it.

Significantly less crowded than the Fort Mason, but doesn’t have the KOJA truck which is hands down the best food truck we’ve had in the city.
We are vegetarians. We got the tofu baked bun from the Chairman bao truck, which ended up being a tofu slider (tofu slab with a mayo sauce, leaf of kale on a soft bun) which we enjoyed and paired well with the sriracha sauce. We also got the garlic noodles and mixed vegetables from the An the Go vietnamese noodle truck. The noodles were drier than we expected but grew on us with each bite and we enjoyed them by the end. We also got sweet potato fries from another truck (name escapes me at the moment) which came with a pepper aoli. The fries were delicious (if you’ve been to Roam burgers in the city, they were as good as those) but the sauce was disgusting.
Overall, we enjoyed our experience. We’d be interesting in trying different items such as the veggie burgers next time from a different truck.

Aside from taco trucks, food trucks aren’t something I really go nuts for — but gosh darn is Off the Grid super handy sometimes.
I was hungry, in the area, and toting along a little human that I had to feed. No cash, so I was happy to see lots of people accepting payment via Square. Got some stuff, found some seats near a few other families, and attempted eating with my offspring while he watched the skateboarders and musicians.
I was so happy to see lots of families here as well as all the trash, compost, recycling bins. Good times.

Love my Thursday food trucks. We go almost every week, and always try to bring visitors from out of town. Nice variety of food from week to week (the trucks rotate, although the rotation is limited enough that you usually see the same trucks every other week or so), cool live music, and a great atmosphere.
Only thing that bums me out is that they switched to winter hours this month (Nov), which means they close at 8 instead of 9. Wish they hadn’t done that, as it probably means I’m going to start missing some weeks. Do people really eat dinner an hour earlier after the time changes?

I came here twice and both times I got the Hella Vegan burrito from Curry Up now because the first time it was so good!!! I love Curry Up Now and would recommend it to anyone who goes to off the grid. In fact I did recommend it to my roommate and boyfriend and they both got it (the tikka masala and paneer tikka masala was ordered) and they loved it as well. It’s a bit pricey, but I think it’s worth it because where else are you going to get an Indian burrito??? It’s a must try!!! Plus I get a kick out of their menu names haha

Tried the lobster roll from the Lobsta Truck for the first time and it was delicious. The guy taking the order was super friendly and food came out within 5 minutes.
Knocking off a star because I was hoping for more of the special mayo on the meat; I barely tasted anything but just lobster, which is fine, but if it was tossed around in more sauce I would have given it 5 stars, easy. Otherwise, delicious and filling! It was $ 14 in total, just the lobster roll. Given that lobster is one of the more expensive seafood I think it’s a decent price for fresh quality.

I had a great time at Off the Grid with one of my good friends =D
We arrived around 5:30 PM and there weren’t that many people in the food truck area yet which allowed us to walk around and see what our options were: Voodoo Truck, Japanese crepes, Korean truck, Mexican truck, Chairman Bao, Crème Brulee Truck, Oui Chef, Boneyard, and Señor Sisig.
Chairman Bao was our first stop; I ordered the Coke-​braised pork with cabbage and kewpie mayo. It was DELICIOUS! I will admit that I was super hungry, but the flavor of the pork was great and the crunchy cabbage was the perfect complement. I also enjoyed the underlying tang of the Japanese kewpie mayo.
I definitely could have eaten another bun, but we headed over to Señor Sisig to try one of their burritos. We split the special burrito of the day which consisted of sweet adobo pork, fried egg, and garlic rice. It came with vinegar on the side but it didn’t taste very good so we skipped it. I enjoyed the burrito, half is a bit small for one person so you definitely need to eat something else as well or you will be hungry. I thought the pork was too sweet but after adding a dash of Sriracha everything was all good. The rice was delicious and the addition of the fried egg was great.
We finished the night off with an order of truffle fries from Oui Chef. These were amazing as well but definitely left a heavy feeling in the stomach. The fries were crinkle cut, perfectly fried, and dusted with salt and pepper. The truffle flavor was delicate yet detectable, and the entire order was only $ 5!
Off the Grid is a great event for foodies to explore some awesome food trucks and relax/​chat with friends. So much fun!

The festivity was so cool! So many different types of food trucks and there was live jazz music. It couldn’t get better! There are seats available or you can always just go off somewhere in Golden Gate Park to eat as well. Some lines for trucks are longer so it’s really what you’re in the mood for!

Can’t go wrong with a ton of variety and specialties! This Off the Grid is fairly spacious, so seating isn’t much of a problem, especially with the log benches on the side behind the trucks. They have quite a few vendors each time, so you always get a lot of choices. There isn’t much to be said, except–
Tip: It’s Inner Sunset, which means lots and lots of wind and fog. Be sure to bring a jacket and a hair tie

If you’ve never tried the Koja food truck, you are missing out. Who would think that rice can be made into a bun? It reminds me of a ramen burger, but with white rice. I would highly recommend either the bulgogi (grilled marinated beef) and kalbi (marinated pork). This is definitely one way to get your week’s worth of protein. SO MUCH MEAT!!! If you’re in the mood for korean or just some really good food, I would highly recommend this place. The combos are a good deal especially since they’re generally very generous with their kamikaze fries. I was full off the fries and burger. I’m just salivating thinking of it. It costs about $ 13 – 15 for the combo meals, but it includes a drink, fries & the koja. You can’t go wrong with eating here, especially looking at all the people lined up (it had one of the longest lines of all the food trucks).
Across the way, there was a doughnut truck. I didn’t make it in time for their cronut, but I’ve been dying to try one! They originated in New York, the mecca for the culinary arts. Since they came here, I have yet to try one. I’m definitely coming back to this truck to try one out & you should too if you’re into donuts & new food crazes.
I’ve also tried the chairman, which also had a long line. I liked their steam buns. I would definitely recommend this one as well. I’ve also heard about señor sisig. I plan on trying this one next! If you haven’t been to off the grid, I would say to try it at least once.

Okay, so to begin my confession; if the Señor Sisig truck were a person, I’d have a restraining order slapped on me by now. Seriously, I’d be ordered to stay 100 feet away from them at all times or found in violation of my parole. I’d have to have my blood drawn weekly and tested for calemansi juice and coconut vinegar, I’d have to register when I move to a new neighborhood, and I woudln’t be legally permitted to own chopsticks. THAT good.
So I go where they go, like a dutiful groupie. And this night, this is where they were. I didn’t get anything else, but I definitely saw some I’d like to try on another night.
Shockingly, I got parking. But it looks like it was dumb luck and others weren’t as lucky.

This was a lot of fun and a lot of waiting in line. OTG: Upper Haight was super busy two Thursdays ago and this was our first time attending and we are so glad we did.
We had, Curry Up Now’s Sexy Fries AKA Tikka masala fries.
Chairman Bao pork belly buns with pickled Diakon radish, off the charts delicious.
We shared a grilled pork Bahn Mi from The Nom Nom Truck, wow.
A BOMB (simply amazing) burrito from Señor Sisig, the Filipino food truck,
The «Señor» Sisig Burrito:
(Choice of Pork, Chicken, or Tofu)
With Adobo garlic rice, pinto beans, lettuce, pico de gallo & our cilantro cream sauce.
I sat and took photographs and my NEW husband walked around and just brought me food. It was nice to see what this neighborhood has morphed into. Most neighborhoods have changed a lot since we moved away in 2008 and The Haight seems to have remained the same. But the crowd here was a mix of older residents, hipsters, familes w children, etc. Everyone was having fun. The live music was a nice bonus.
If I lived around here I would go often and early. Parking is not fun after 5 around here, you may luck out on Stanyan or Waller.
Oh how I wish I stayed in SF.

As a tourist this location is definitely not the best since its opposite of where i was spending most my time. However i was glad to make the trip and experience it. There was so many different food choices which makes your head hurt thinking what you plan to get. But we end up choosing what most Unilocalers recommended.
Things we had:
1. Chairman Bao — Juicy, tender and super delicious pork belly. I can live on these everyday!
2. Phat Thai — Got the classic pad thai & Thai ice tea, it was good but nothing too special.
3. Crème Brulee
I think the overall environment is really nice. We got here alittle before it open (5pm) and there was already people there like us waiting for the trucks to settle in. Chairs were set up around the area for people to sit and enjoy their food.

I was ecstatic when Off the Grid opened up at this Upper Haight location. Fort Mason’s is too far and too crowded, and most of the other locations are around FiDi or Civic Center during weekday lunch hours. So, it was nice seeing another location that’s closer to the «middle» part of SF. Upper Haight’s has reasonable hours too (every Thursday 5−9pm during spring/​summer/​fall or 5−8pm during winter).
On average, there are 11 to 13 trucks every week. Some trucks are there every week: Curry Up Now, The Chairman Truck, and Señor Sisig. But there are other trucks that are there every other week, or not as often: Koja Kitchen, Sanguchon, and Little Green Cyclo. Long story short, there’s quite a bit of rotation here at Upper Haight.
This event is dog friendly. There’s live music. There’s ample seating. Great food, great atmosphere. What’s not to love about Off the Grid events?

Wow, San Francisco really knows how to make people feel good.
I’ve only been to food cart festivals in Vancouver, but this one definitely has the festive feeling going.
What’s really cool about this particular venue is that they also have music and a ton of seating available. In Vancouver I was forced to walk around carrying my food.
Definitely worth checking out if you’re too lazy to hunt for the individual food trucks.
Read my other reviews for the actual food.

I just finished doing my physical therapy and I’m hungry. I’m out in the outer mission and realized that I’m close to haight st and there’s off the grid going on. I dash on over and to my surprise a parking spot was available right when I got there! Literally across the street from OTG!
There are 13 food trucks. There’s too many good trucks to try just one! So I make a food plan! Ill try small things at as many trucks as I can before I get full and blow up. My first choice was a grilled cheese truck. I had what they called the Alcatraz. It was steak with grilled onions and mushroom with a balsamic vinaigrette. It was delish. Next I tried the slow smoked spare ribs from Rib Whip. Sweet and tangy and falling right off the bone with every bite! It was goooood! Next was, (I forgot the name but there’s a panda bear on the truck) spicy chicken steam bun. It had a nice kick to it, sweet and spicy, similar to siracha. I’m now having a bit of a sweet tooth so I go over to Cupkates. I get red velvet and tiramisu cupcakes. Nice and moist and fluffy! Countering the salty taste in my mouth perfectly.
I’m starting to get full but there’s one more truck that I want to try and that’s Kojakitchen. I order the short rib sandwich which uses crispy garlic rice as its bun. It had aioli sauce with other spices that made perfect harmony together. It was really good. The short ribs were tangy and was bursting with flavor. I also got the mochimisu, which is their version of a tiramisu, but with Mochi l, which is like a rice dough. Again it was really good.
I had a good time at OTG upper Haight. The crowd was good, the weather was good, I hit great parking and last but not least amazing food. Looking forward to coming back again

This was my first OTG visit and at the time of writing, the only one I’ve been to in SF. I had decided to stop by after work with some labmates during a freakishly hot Thursday night. Probably a big mistake because to a San Franciscian, nothing is better than food trucks except nice weather + food trucks.
The wait for both the KoJa and Chairman trucks were pretty long, but much longer at the former. Being Taiwanese, I was craving me some gua bao, so I got the coca-​cola braised pork and pork belly bao and both were quite good. However, compared to the baos I got at Alameda’s OTG, the portion of meat was smaller. Still, it took the comrades only a few minutes or so to prepare each order so I would probably recommend the Chairman if you are trying to minimize your wait time. The Kamikaze fries at KoJa were bomb but already getting cold by the time we picked up our food. I’d probably only recommend it if half of SF is not waiting in line with you.
Since I was the first one to get my order, I scrambled for some chairs. Chairs are a precious commodity at OTG, but luckily the clientele here are super chill and do not judge you for hoarding 5 chairs and staking your territorial claim with tall green cans of coconut juice. The live music makes for a fun atmosphere and in general, the vibe is great. I can’t wait to come here again when the weather is less pleasant so that there is less people.

I come in from NY every couple of months to visit family and I always come on a Thurs so we can eat at Off the Grid at Upper Haight All the food is really really good, but «The Chairman» is the master. Was there this past Thurs and had the baked bun with cola braised pork & steamed bun with pork belly. It was soooo good. All the food is good a few wandered around and ate from different trucks but I stuck with the chairman and we all agreed their food was the best. Its such a fun place to go like a block party. There is live music all kinds of people, young, older, families, pets a good time for all. It can get cold after the sun goes down, they have a bonfire if needed but I would suggest a jacket. Photos added from different visits.

Curry Up Now & KoJa Kitchen! The best trucks there.
Curry Up Now is a must. Ask for no onions if you’re sensitive like us.
Super nice people with extra spicy food. Chicken tikka masala (CTM) burrito or CTM Sexy fries… addictive! Tip– milk is the only thing that neutralizes that’s sort of heat.
Super spicy goodness, they’ll make it even spicier if you ask.
KoJa Kitchen has great Kamikaze Fries, (crosscut fries topped with Korean BBQ Beef, kimchi, green onions, and drizzled with signature sauce and Japanese sweet mayo) amazing.