Murdock's has been at the food truck lot on Prince Albert in Dartmouth for a couple years, and while they have more company than ever now, with upwards of six other food trucks there, it was this new-to-me truck that I had in my sights.
The menu focuses on chef-ed up sandwiches, including specialty smash burgers, fish and chicken sandwiches. Poutines figure prominently as well.
The burgers were really tempting (especially the fantastic double smash burger and fries for $11 deal!), but with my wife going for the mushroom and Swiss burger, I decided to go with the fish sandwich. Since the burgers are a la carte, we got a regular poutine to share.
After a short wait, we had our food in hand and crossed the street to eat and take in the views on the little patio on the edge of Lake Banook.
I attacked the poutine first, since being slathered in gravy gives the fries' crispness a very, very short lifespan. The fries were beautifully browned, hand-cut, and the rich gravy was just the right amount of salty. I was happy, but not surprised, to see cheese curds being used (as they should be).
In my eagerness to chow down on the poutine, I forgot to take a picture of my fish sandwich! You'll have to believe my words that it was very, very good. The batter was light and crispy, with no mushy fish-batter interface, and flaked into nice chunks with each bite. A lemon pepper and dill mayo was a bright and flavourful alternative to a standard tartar sauce, and the supple brioche bun held up well against its tasty cargo.
My wife's smash burger was a hearty umami bomb, with sauteed mushrooms, caramelized onions and Swiss cheese. Murdock's does their smash burgers right, as the two patties had great crusts on them, and crispy edges.
We found ourselves back a couple weeks later, on another sunny and bustling evening at the food truck lot on Prince Albert. Since my wife was having the mushroom and Swiss burger again, I opted to go for the BBQ chicken and bacon sandwich. We tacked on a order of regular fries to share.
I wasn't paying a lot of attention to the sandwich's description and had been expecting a fried chicken sandwich, since those are so common these days, but it's actually chunks of pulled chicken. It was all breast meat, but it wasn't overcooked at all, and the sweet and smoky BBQ sauce played well with the crisp bacon. Lettuce and red onion added some freshness and further crispness.
I enjoyed the non-poutined fries a lot - golden brown and very crisp, and a lightly sweet and savoury flavour from their fry seasoning.
Murdock's may have a compact menu, but they're doing well by it with approachable comfort food that's well-executed, affordable and wildly delicious. read more