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In case you didn’t hear, The Great Food Truck Race was in Atlanta this past weekend for its penultimate stop.  As season two of The Food Network’s street food reality series winds down, Atlanta was treated to a visit and Roaming Hunger was there to get all the dirty dirty.

TGFTR is a reality competition show that pits food trucks from all over the country against one and other.  The basic format goes something like this: trucks visit city, host Tyler Florence greets them, money is dispensed for product, trucks are left to their own devices to bring in the cash.

Each truck, staffed by a chef and two helpers, has to buy their product locally, and the winner is the truck that ends up with the most cash in hand.  During each episode there is always a special twist which often results in immunity or extra cash for the winner of the “food stop.” However, sometimes it’s just an attempt to screw with each teams inner chi.

While I’m not sure if we should call this a review or a preview (as the show doesn’t air until August 14th), we’ve got plenty of details for interested parties.  Yes, with the help of my crack team of gorilla photographers and some grubbing on the part of yours truly, we’ve got plenty of pictures, food reviews, and show spoilers for all of y’all.  We’ll cover the food and reveal the final two contestants in our follow up post, so be sure to check that out.

LAST TIME: If y’all don’t want to know what’s going to happen on this season of The Great Food Truck Race, STOP READING!  If you just want to know who won and what the food was like, check out our Great Food Truck food review!

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UPDATED: 5.28 @ 10:30a

Remember last year when we mentioned the Food Network’s new show called The Great Food Truck Race?  Well, earlier this month, TFN confirmed what we already knew … the lineup of food trucks for season 2.  Hosted by Tyler Florence, filming is already in full swing and as it turns out, we’re hosting one of the stops here in Capital of the South.  That’s right folks, The Great Food Truck Race is filming in Atlanta during Memorial Day Weekend before the show debuts August 14th.

This season’s lineup consists of Café Con Leche from LA, Devilicious from A Whale’s Vagina, Hodge Podge from Cleveland, Roxy’s Grilled Cheese from Boston, Seabirds from Costa Messa, Sky’s Gourmet Tacos from LA, The Lime Truck from Irvine, and Korilla BBQ from NYC.  Though I’m sad to report that several teams have already been eliminated by now, there is still no short of opportunities to check out this food this weekend.

If you want to follow all the action, be sure to give us a follow via twitter on @RoamingATL, and we’ll keep you up to date on where everyone is.  Also, we’ll be updating this post as more info rolls in.  In the mean time, for some of the specifics … AND SOME SPOILERS … check out the rest of the post after the jump!

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Overall:

Tucked away in a somewhat downtrodden area of town, Johnny’s Bar in Cleveland, which serves food from Northern Italy, appears to be an institution.  The restaurant, which has operated under a couple of names the past 80+ years, delivers an almost static experience.  In fact, I’d go so far as to say that a number of the elements that make up the dining experience at Johnny’s Bar seem antediluvian. While other restaurants around the country might shutter at that, Johnny’s Bar should revel in that claim; and, I suspect that they do.  Their success is further evident in that they have two “sister” restaurants operating in the Cleveland area (though I’ve never been to either).

All that aside, there is something very reassuring about the experience here.  In a time when food and dining are squarely focused on the next big thing, Johnny’s Bar seems content to focus on tried and true classics.  While the straightforward nature of the menu might make a foodie or two scoff, the reality is that the selections here shine because of their traditional simplicity.  Make no mistake, there are hints of envelope pushing; however, those intimations bubble ever so slightly and are so delicate in nature that one can’t help but appreciate the delivery.

Even after my first meal here in 2001, it was apparent that this place was top notch.  While the Buddha boys have forgotten the name of this place more times than I can remember, we manage to find our way back each and every time we touch down in the land of Cleves.

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Hey peeps – I’m heading back from Cleveland a little earlier than expected.  As a result, I probably won’t have a chance to get anything of consequence up today.  If I have a chance to connect on the plane [not likely], then I’ll do my best to get some good stuff up.  In the meantime, be on the lookout for a post about Johnny’s Bar in Cleveland.  It’s an Italian restaurant I’ve dined at roughly four times in the past five-years.  I can tell you that Atlanta would be lucky to have a restaurant of this ilk.

Even if I’m not able to connect in flight, I’ll be sure to wrap up my Engine 11 review so that I can publish it sometime this weekend.

Buddha out!