SNL should consider an update to their classic Schweddy Balls skit (http://www.hulu.com/watch/4156/saturday-night-live-nprs-delicious-dish-schweddy-balls), because I don't see how anyone can resist Phillip Foss' Meatyballs. As a pro-food truck advocate, I knew I had to visit the Meatyballs Mobile when it set up shop two blocks away from my office last week. Being my first time I decided to go with the original Meatyballs sub and a bag of Truffle Dusted Chips. The sub was damn friggin' good. On their own the meatballs are moist and flavorful. Then Mr. Foss takes things to the next level by adding sauteed mushrooms & shallots, a delicious white cheese sauce that adds some richness to the sandwich without being too strong or sharp, and finally a healthy douse of truffle oil. Mmmmm I love me some truffle... The chips were the fresh homemade variety and I appreciate the slightly thicker cut that gives them a little more bite. I couldn't necessarily tell that they were dusted with truffle, but they definitely had plenty of truffle flavor and made the perfect partner to the Meatyballs sub. Together that cost me an even $10, which I don't think is too bad for the downtown area. The meatyballs sub was a very good size and I was pretty full after finishing my meal. I couldn't say the same after my Gaztrowagon lunch and that was about the same price point. If you can't already tell from the truck name and menu items, Chef Foss likes to put a fun spin on his street food and I imagine that it would taste even better if he was allowed to cook and prepare on the actual truck. Until then I'm a definite follower on their twitter feed and look forward to future stops in my 'hood. read more

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Riding on the hype of food trucks fad and the puns from the names of the sandwiches. "I want to have Shweddy balls" yadda yadda yawn Overrated and btw those balls were . Not so fresh read more

I had the Thai meatball torpedo sandwich today. I found the bread to be soggy, which is expected if sitting in a hot box all day. I'm thinking an upgrade on the bread would go a long way to improve the sandwich. The meatballs were covered in what I can only guess was suppose to be a peanut sauce. The meatballs were a bit bland and not worth the $9 I paid for the sandwich. read more

I missed the Meatyballs Mobile truck twice in one day yet I was not discouraged to try again a few days later. After all the anticipation and expectation, I thought these sandwiches would blow my mind. Unfortunately, only the meatyballs grenade came even remotely close. The two others I tried (bbq balls grenade and schweddy balls grenade) just didn't do it for me-- the flavor was lacking, the meat was dry, and the bread was soggy. I forgave the sogginess of the meatyballs grenade because the bread was mingled in with melty cheese, so it made up for it in my book. Unfortunately, I probably wouldn't go out of my way to track this truck down the way I did. If I randomly passed one on the street, I'd probably get another meatyballs grenade, but I can't say much for the others. When I think of the other food trucks I've tried, quality comes to mind. I'm sad to say that I don't get that same feeling about Meatyballs Mobile, particularly after spending $9 on food I didn't quite love-- and most of which (the bread) I ended up tossing. read more

So this place was at Ethyl's for the Thursday night food truck-aganza. I was a virgin to this experience so I was really excited about trying all of the food trucks. The guy serving the meatballs was really nice....however, the meatballs failed to deliver :( We tried the original and the thai'd. Both didnt really have that flavor that you wanted from a meatball and they were surrounded in bread so I think the whole thing just tasted pretty bland. Boo. No yummy zing in flavor or spicy-ness to these The guy that was there said that the BBQ was his favorite so maybe we should've tried that one....but for me....it wasnt anything that I would try again. For $3 a pop, the price wasnt bad. read more

I've eaten at Meatyballs a good 5 or 6 times and bought nearly all their sandwiches as either the regular sized torpedo or the smaller grenade. I can say that Meatyballs is either great or disappointing- totally hit or miss depending on which sandwich you get. I've learned that chicken meatballs are disgusting. Imagine large hunks of seemingly unseasoned chicken. Also, since it's a meatball, it's mushy. The rest of the ingredients on the sandwich are great (bacon and pickled mustard greens on the Club Balls, buffalo and cheese on the Blue Cheese Balls) but the actual meatballs are gross. The Schweddy Balls are super spicy. I love spicy food. I only got a grenade but couldn't even finish it. It had a great taste but the heat was overpowering. I could go on and on but I've really only come to like one sandwich, strangely enough only eaten because I was given it by accident when I ordered something else: the BBQ Balls. Perfect texture, perfect toppings. I do think the Meatyballs Mobile has the best operation. Philip Foss has 3 different trucks which allows him to cover more areas and let the trucks stay in one place for longer. It's frustrating sometimes to have to coordinate not only location but timing for a truck. How many times have you said "Holy shit the empanada truck is coming!!" but then realize nobody gets hungry at 11:10am? I'll still totally eat here but reserve my purchases to the BBQ Balls and stay away from chicken. read more

I was so excited when the Meatyballs Mobile was in the Loop near my office. A few blocks later, there was Mr. Foss himself serving up his meatylicious sandwiches...I like it when an owner is taking charge of his own business - makes a big difference. There were several options so it was very hard for me to decide, so I just went with the "normal" meatball sub which was slathered in like a mushroom/cheesy sort of cream (nor sure exactly what it was but it was delish!). The bread is so soft and yummy, better than most sandwich breads, and it was so filling that I couldn't eat but half of my sandwich (and this girl can eat!). My co-worker was happy with his Thai sandwich as well, and he got the truffle chips which were really great. I think the sandwiches are a tad on the expensive side for lunch (I top out at $7 for a sandwich and these are $8). But if the Meatyballs Mobile is within a couple blocks of my office, I would maybe go back to try another sandwich but maybe not. I didn't love it enough to make the effort to walk around to find an $8 sandwich, but they were pretty tasty. read more

I came, I saw, I overate. And it was worth it. I had a bit of trouble finding them at first. My sister in law told me they were going to be in my area (Willis.. I mean Sears Tower) but I couldn't find them and almost went to one of my regular haunts in the area. But curiosity won out and I continued my search. Moments later (ok it's a one man server/cashier show and there was a line so it was actually a LONG moments later) I had a torpedo of the Shweddy balls and grenades of the Thai'd Balls and BBQ Balls as well as a bag of White Chocolate Salty Balls. First up was the BBQ Ball which was excellent! I lived for a long time in the south and pulled pork is a personal favorite of mine but it's hard to find good pulled pork in Chicago. This was one GOOD pulled pork. The beautifully cooked red cabbage and moist pork slightly sweetened by the bbq sauce immediately gave me a good impression of Meatyballs. Next up was the Thai'd balls, honestly, I wasn't a huge fan of this one. It wasn't bad but at the same time, I'm struggling to remember the taste effect of it and that basically puts in into my 'meh' category. I had half of the Shweddy ball torpedo after that (I had to save room for the white chocolate balls and was already pushing it after a surprisingly filling 2 grenades). The amusing kick of this plus the moist meat of the lamb & chicken balls was surprisingly good. I really liked how well the flavors of this one went together. Finally the white chocolate salty balls. First off all, it simply said White Choco Balls on the outside and I missed the note on the menu that it was salty. That plus the fact that it was white chocolate on the outside meant I was expecting a sweet kick. Not even close. The extreme saltiness of this made it (in my opinion) savory not sweet. I was a huge fan of these actually. I ate them all to the protest of my extremely full stomach but the delight of my greedy tongue. All in all, it was a great meal, I now have something new to look forward to beyond the 'regular' places around Sears Tower. Surprisingly the 'simplest' item on their menu that I tried (the BBQ ball) was my favorite and while I will try some of the other things from their menu next time, I will probably get one of those as well. read more

My coworkers have been on a food truck craze for months now, chasing them all over the loop. After one less than stellar experience with food truck food, I was a bit wary of Meatyballs. But, I think I finally may be on the wagon... er, no pun intended. Since the truck is almost straight out the office door, it scores serious convenience points for a fast lunch. I split the Meatyballs sandwich and chips with a co-worker. It was YUMMY. The bread, the balls, the cheese, the truffley chips... all tasty. I was left wishing I had ordered one all for myself! Although, in hindsight, I probably would've lapsed into a food coma and been an unproductive bum for the rest of the afternoon. That being said: I will be back. Soon. For the shweddy balls next time. Yum. read more

Chicago lacks "street-food" options. So when I walked by Philip's truck yesterday, I was kinda thrown off, even though my intern said his sandwiches are "SO GOOD!" We found his website today and called him to figure out where he'd be. I had the booya-ball sandwich (essentially a crabcake sandwich), which tasted so fresh and was extremely satisfying. My intern had the bbq pork sandwich which he enjoyed very much. We obviously also got the chips, which were very good, and I got the salty chocolate balls. Also, extremely good! It truly angers me when people give low marks on Yelp for things being "expensive." Seriously people, this guy has to make a living, and $8 for a HUGE sandwich is such a steal to me! Comparatively speaking, a meatyballs mobile sandwich is WAY cheaper than many options here in Chicago, and if you make a price per pound comparison, I bet you it is inline with Potbelly. I will definitely seek out the Meatyballs Mobile truck regularly! Here is Phillip's website: http://www.phillipfoss.net/ read more

Maybe I caught the Meatyballs Mobile on the wrong day or ordered the wrong thing, but i was not impressed. I tried 3 of the grenades...the original meatyball, Thai'd & Shweddy. The original wasn't so bad. The Thai'd was soggy, creamy and I didn't like the flavor. And the Shweddy...it was too spicy for me, and I am into spicy food. It was that kind of spicy where you just you don't taste any flavor but "hot". I will eat just about anything, but I found the Thai'd & Shweddy to be inedible and I threw them away after a few bites. Womp womp. Maybe I'll try another sandwich sometime, but I'm not in any hurry. read more

Already reviewed 89 times......what the heck am I gonna have to add to this? Probably not much, but I will state my opinion anyway so deal with it! :) So, to continue building on my collection of food truck reviews, today I chose Meatyballs which was actually the very first truck I went to when starting this little adventure. No doubt, the "ball" theme is funny and going to the Meatyballs website there is a lot of fun with the play on words. All jokes aside however, this is pretty decent food and a great first choice for me when choosing food trucks as a place to eat. The good.......good size portions and nice variety. They have paired their ingredients well to make nice combinations that you won't find anywhere else. The bad...... I chalk this up as them being a victim of the Chicago Food Truck laws, but because they can not cook on the truck and must have everything precooked and prepackaged, I find that their buns are extremely dry, and if you don't get there early enough, their balls can be dry too. Now normally dry buns and dry balls is a good thing (pun intended), but in this case, it hurts the overall dining experience. Come on Chicago, let the food trucks park where they want and cook on the truck!!!!!! Overall, this is a good place to eat. And by all means......taste the Chef's balls, I am sure he will thank you for it! read more

Just got a Shweddy Balls; he told me it was spicy, which it was- pretty much overpowered any lamb or chicken flavor. Will try BBQ or Thai next time. $9 was a little pricey too. read more

Meatyballs is near my office every day. Since food trucks are now All The Rage, I decided to try it. I got the chef's special that day, which was a chicken meatball with pickled collard greens, sundried tomatoes, and I think dijon mustard. The balls were moist and well seasoned, but there was hardly any garnish. I was excited for the greens and tomatoes, and there were hardly any. I get that balls are the draw, but for $9- $9!!!- I want a well balanced sandwich. Not worth $9 at all. The regular menu items range I think from $6 to $9- maybe I'll try a cheaper ball someday. So, Meatyballs, we may meet again if your balls get their friends to play a more prominent role in my mouth. read more

A group from the office went and got a variety of the MeatyBalls product. We felt that they were very good - far above your average sandwich. Some were better than others, so here was the general spread: Thai'd Balls: Amazing - absolute raves for everyone who tasted it, which was most of us. MeatyBalls: Very good. everyone was happy with it. Crabby Balls: Very good. The two who got that were very happy. Vegeta-Balls: Only one person tasted this but was not happy, only eating half her sandwich before tossing it. She felt it was a cheesy mess. On the other hand, she absolutely ADORED her chips, and was the only one who got them. We got there a few minutes after 1130 and immediately a line formed behind us. Apparently they were sold out a few minutes after noon. Two notes: I was very disappointed that they did not have the Cola-Bourbourn BBQ sandwich, and a colleague wanted the Jewish Penicillin Balls but were disappointed to find that they were only available as a special order, and not normally on the truck. That being said, we all very much enjoyed the experience and everyone said they would go back for the Thai'd Balls anytime and were sad they didn't try the chips. As for me, I am still jonesing for that BBQ Cola Bourbon Ball Sandwich. Next time! read more

I finally got my hands on some Meatyballs today. For some reason I could never get it together to actually find any of the several food trucks I follow on Twitter, but today the stars aligned. I logged into Twitter and the first thing that popped up in my newsfeed was from @FossFoodTrucks telling me the Meatyballs truck was touching down about 10 mins from my office. Granted, it was only 11:15am, and I had a nice, healthy lunch all packed and ready to eat in my office fridge, but I thought, "F it. I want huge, delicious sandwich and I'm going to get one." The truck is pretty small and non-descript. It actually looks like a water cooler delivery truck except for the little sign propped up on the sidewalk advertising the various balls. Just a little heads up if you're expecting something big, bold and, well, really noticeable. Because I was. Being my virgin trip to Meatyballs Mobile, I decided to go with the classic Meatyballs sandwich. The very nice dude working at the truck also sold me on some truffle potato chips. I grabbed my $10 lunch (they do accept credit cards), stuffed it in my bag and trekked back to the office. My Meatyball sammy (meatballs, mushrooms, shallots, four cheese sauce and truffle oil) was gooooood. The meat to topping to bread ratio was perfection. My balls were incredibly moist, the shallots and mushrooms were nicely sautéed and the cheese sauce was sinfully delicious. It's a hearty portion, too. As I'm typing this I'm pretty sure I'm going to slip into a coma soon. It's a definite culinary step up from Subway. The truffle chips were not bad, either. Normally housemade chips are soggy and oily, but these bad boys were pretty crisp. I didn't really taste much truffle, but that's neither here nor there. The chips were a delightful accompaniment to the Meatyball sandwich. Should I be ready to go when Meatyballs Mobile lands in my area again, I'm on it. Sandwich win. read more

I've only had the Buffalo Chicken, because I keep going back I like it so much. Chips are great, nice subtle truffle flavor and they have that half crispy, half soft quality of homemade chips. I wandered around for a while looking for the Van from a website picture, but like another reviewer mentioned, the truck is really a low-profile trailer, you have to just go to the exact corner and find a group that seems to be hanging out. Ask a guy in that group, are you the Meaty Balls guy? If he responds with a friendly comment like "I'm the guy", you are in the right place. If he utilizes a knife to commit an act of gang violence on your person, he might not be the right guy. read more

I just realized that Chicago has a food truck law that prohibits cooking on trucks. Therefore, I rate the mobile higher because they have no choice but to assemble them off property. read more

It's hard to resist writing a review of this food truck without serious innuendo, double entendres, and the like. Taking the high road, therefore, suffice it to say that the sandwich I ate today (unfortunately called Shweddy Balls) was yummy enough that I'll track down the truck from time to time to try different choices. And now that I "like" them on Facebook, I get regular updates on where the truck is located. Come to think of it, lunch served out of the back of a truck shouldn't be this complicated. read more

Fantastic meatball sandwiches. Very creative. High quality spices / ingredients. Good delivery service. Highly recommend!

Being a person who loves greasy spoon food i was really looking forward to sinking my teeth into one of these. I ordered the Buff Balls which was supposed to be chicken with buffalo sauce, bleu cheese and celary. Well this sandwich was neather meaty or ballsy.. or flavorful. the sanwhich seemed to have had a minced chicken spread... not a meatball at all. barely any sauce made this taste like a some-kind-of-meat-bleu cheese-mash sandwich. I may or may not chase down another truck to try something else one day but the thrill is gone. read more

my first food truck purchase in Chicago - schweddy balls grenade! It was basically a slider of a spicy lamb and chicken ball. It was kind of dry but then the spicy tomato sauce made up for it. I love heat and after 2 grenades ($3 each), my eyes were watery! It had a good kick. The chocolate salted balls (more like a reese's peanut butter cup) were $5 (think were were only 5 pieces).. I would skip it. For those without cash, they have a credit card swipe attached to an iPhone. Will return to try the thai'd balls. read more

Dear Meaty Balls man, I've passed you up so many times for the tamale space ship & my elote dude. But, I decided to give you a try today & got the Thai balls. the flavors in the sauce were damn delicious! but the meatball itself had no flavor. When I think of thai, I think of lemongrass & cocounut milk, spicy peppers & chilis... the meatballs were FLAVORLESS. ITS LIKE THEY WERE BOILED OR STEAMED.. i MEAN YOU COULD HAVE PUT A LIL SALT & PEPPER ON THE BALLS TO MAKE 'EM TASTE BETTER. ( sorry for the caps lock, but im not retyping all of that).. Ill try them at a later date if you promise to make your balls taste better :). fancy 'em up a bit. read more

I wish I could still say good things about Meatyballs, but the change they made to their flagship Meatyballs sandwich and their apparent lack of customer service have been a disappointment. Myself and a co-worker took four other co-workers on a seven block trek in 100 degree heat last week so that they could try the original Meaty Ball. An awesome, original mix of meatballs, four cheese sauce, shallots and truffle oil. Everyone looked at the website menu and agreed that the Meaty Ball sandwich looked the best. We brought our sandwiches back to the office to find that the recipie had changed. We weren't informed by the driver and the website still listed the old recipie. The Meaty Ball sandwich was now a bland and common meat ball sub with marinara sauce and provalone. Pretty disappiointing. Especially disappointing for $9 when I can walk two blocks to L'Appetito at 30 E. Huron and get an excellent freshly made meat ball sub with home-made meat balls, provalone and marinara for $6.50. Or I can go to Subway and get a meat ball sub exactly like the Meatyballs sub for $5.00. What made it even worse is that myself and a co-worker sent a courteous email to Chef Foss about the situation and the discrepancy between what we received and what was listed on their menu, only to never receive a reply. However, the website menu was changed the next day after our email was sent. Very poor customer service. read more

Hot, meat, balls, sammiches, and trucks...it's all right here. Big hit outside a friend's opening for her new clothing line at Connect on Milwaukee. Couple it with a freezing cold can of Old Style. BBQ version was great! read more

Was really looking forward to trying their meatball sandwiches. I was really disappointed. I had the Meatyballs (beef, marinara, provolone and mozzarella) I am sorry to say that the meatballs were very bland, they looked a little undercooked, had me looking for the cheese - wished I had a tub of giardiniera peppers to add some sort of flavor. Maybe it was an off day? I don't know. May try their veggie next time.... I am all about second chances... read more

I've only eaten the veggie meatball sandwich and the flavor was good, but I think I should've come sooner because mine was a little mushy. The boyfriends' was AMAZING though, should've got his! Great concept though, and I'll definitely be back to try other kinds. It sure is nice to have them around to mix things up! There's not much to eat around 600 W Chicago! read more

Happened upon the truck by accident with some coworkers. I had the Thai'd Balls which I liked. One coworker had the Schweady Balls and didn't think it was hot at all and the other had the BBQ Balls. All of us agreed that it was okay and we'd try other sandwiches but wouldn't go out of our way for the truck. I agree with the challenges they have especially with the soggy rolls. I hope Chicago allows for the a la minute trucks. I think this would make a huge difference. ALl agreed that the truffle chips were phenomenal. read more

I will have to say, if I'm gonna get tea bagged, then these are the only guys that I will allow! Had their traditional meatball sub as well as the pulled pork......and hot damn were they tasty! What added to this greatness were the homemade truffle tater chips. And who can't appreciate their daily testicular references. Jerry Lee Lewis OUT! read more

One of the first stops of my food truck tour 2011. I tried the Meatyball sandwich - it was delicious and HUGE. I tried the barbecue meatball sandwich a few weeks later - it wasn't as good as the Meatyball, but still pretty good for a loop lunch. Will definitely be going back to this truck on a regular basis. read more

Today I visited Meaty Balls for the first time! I was happy. Chosen location was odd, but dude said it was because they had gotten so many tickets on michigan avenue. that sucks because that makes me walk to random lower illinois (its creepy down there!) I had three grenades - meatyballs, bbq, and thai'd. Thai was my least fav surrpisingly. Bbq was good, but i would have preferred it a bit more saucy. Meaty was DELISH! my fav. soooo good and warm too. My boss got Meatyballs torpedo sized. I asked him how he liked it and he was like "REALLY GOOD!!" Points for me. All in all a great experience. Moar balls please. read more

Not impressed. Not at all. Too much bun not enough meat. Had the Buffalo and original. Eh. Not much flavor for either one. I was super excited to try it but after eating it I won't be spending my money there. Just not worth it. read more

I was craving meatyballs last week, even though it had to be the coldest day of the year! Yet the truck was there as scheduled, and its owner was smiling and greeted me in his usual cheerful manner. I arrived a little after 12 p.m., and they were already out of the truffle chips, but I was still able to get my favorite --- the Thai'd Balls sandwich. Extra points for Phil to be out there on a freezing cold day! read more

Meatballs themselves are tasty and creative. The bread could be better. Shweddy balls bring the heat. Good customer service.

Wow... Innovative and tasty. I knew of Phillip Foss because I had a few meals at Lockwood when he was the chef there. His dishes were always creative and tasty. This venture of his is no different. I've had the Meaty, BBQ, and Buffalo sandwiches and all have been quite delicious. Seems to be such a personable guy also... Doesn't mind talking about the food, ingredients, his experience. As much as I love the food trucks popping up around the loop, I have to say that this is one sandwich which would taste even better made fresh. The bread just gets too soggy soaked in the sauces and meaty goodness. They need a storefront or the ability to make them to order! read more

I just had Meatyballs Mobile for the first time today, now I am a fan. I got some Shweedy Balls, and boy were they tasty. The bread itself was a really nice ciabatta type roll, but the seasoning on the Lamb-Chicken meatballs was amazing. The driver was also very friendly, and really made me want more balls, meaty meaty meaty balls. read more

Tried two kinds of Meatyballs last Friday, during one of the Meatyballs Mobile 2's stops in Hyde Park - BBQ Balls and Schweddy Balls. Delicious! The BBQ Balls have a smooth texture and nice balance of sweet, sour, salty and smoky pulled pork...the Schweddy? Chicken-lamb meatballs with an intriguing Middle Eastern flavor. Mama Mia, thats-a spicy meatball! I'll be back to try some more varieties next week, and hopefully get a chance to try the (then-sold-out) Chef's Special Balls. read more

I've been looking forward to a tasty meatball sub! Overall, it was just ok, a little underwhelmed. Full disclosure, they had run out of the classic meatyballs sub of beef, pork, four cheese sauce and truffle oil. I had the special which was a chicken meatball, porcini mushrooms, semi dried tomatoes and four cheese. Chicken meat balls were a little on the dry side - I would suggest adding more thigh meat (it tasted like it was predominantly breast meat), there were generally not enough porcini mushroom or semi dried tomatoes. This really affected the flavor given this was essentially a dry meatball sub. The porcini mushrooms were also a little undercooked, and probably needed to be cooked in more fat. I will give it one more shot and try the classic or the BBQ. Also over-priced for $9 in the loop (for the quantity of ingredients). read more

The Thaid Balls are outstanding. Try 'em and you'll thank me later.

Love this truck! So much flavor and fun! One cool feature is being able to request a stop location via twitter and, voila, the truck shows up! I really like the idea of the grenades which allows you to try more than one flavor without going overboard. And the price could not be better...a complete, fresh, and flavorful meal for under $10. read more