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Isla Cocina: Grand Manan, New Brunswick

Isla Cocina is a Mexican food truck located on Grand Manan Island, New Brunswick. It says that it is take-out only; however, there are a few picnic tables around the food truck where you can have nachos, tacos, flautas, and quesadillas, as well as burgers, poutine, and fries. You have to look for the motor home parked in a driveway near Seal Cove, and you will be happy to have stopped by. 

Isla Cocina Corn, Guacamole, & Bean Nacho - June 2021

Isla Cocina Corn, Guacamole, & Bean Nacho - June 2021

What was left over from the Corn, Guacamole & Bean Nacho - June 2021

Isla Cocina BBQ Chicken Nachos - June 2021 (the photographer's order)

Distribution of Toppings

Isla Cocina had good cheese-chips-toppings ratio. In fact, there were so many toppings on the veggie nachos that they could have almost used more chips! Most importantly, I did not face the horror of having a chip with nothing to go on it.

Quality

The top layer was full of guacamole, bean and corn and had good toast factor. The cheddar and pepper jack cheeses were wonderfully blended and I liked how the jalapeƱos were chopped and put in with the nachos. However, there were so many toppings and sauces on the chips that the chips underneath got soggy and I was left with a mush of chips and toppings at the end as I showed in the picture above. I think they should have put the guacamole on the side and not had round chips. Normally when we see round chips, that is an immediate negative impression on the quality; any fresh homemade chips we have had have always been triangular.

Value

The nachos including all the toppings (yes even meat) are $13.75. That is below the average of veggie nachos in Saint John and that is the best value of nachos that I think I have ever seen. 

Quantity

I think that having your own plate and then maybe adding a taco or two to go with it is great for a meal. 

Conclusion

It was such a treat to have a Mexican food truck on Grand Manan Island, New Brunswick in that it adds variety to the other places that have mostly seafood. (That is not to say I don't like seafood - I had mind-blowing fried clams there.) The distribution of toppings, the value, and the quantity were absolutely excellent. The quality could use some work, mainly regarding the round chips and potentially separating the dips to avoid the sogginess as mentioned above for the veggie nachos. The BBQ Chicken Nachos did not have that problem, probably due to them not having dips on top in the box.

Nacho Blog Rating: A-