Mac Daddy

Have you ever been to Crave aka repeat winner of the annual and infamous Mac Off event? Mac Daddy is their mac and cheese based food truck.

The first time I had Mac Daddy, it was because I'd had Crave's mac and cheese at the Mac Off, and the noodles were under cooked ( not al dente, but crunchy ), and the sauce was broken. I was baffled by how many people said it was fabulous. So when I had the opportunity, I jumped at giving this famed mac and cheese another shot.

My first order was a Baby Mac ( smallest size ) topped with fried chicken. Surprisingly, the mac and cheese was delightful and completely redeemed Crave's position at the top of the mac and cheese ladder in Charleston for me. I now get it. The cavatappi pasta is heavy with an aged cheddar sauce, and as a former cheese buyer, I appreciate that it's not some junk "aged cheddar". This tastes like the real stuff -- full of salty crystals and a little bit of ( reasonable ) funk. I don't know for sure, but it tastes on par with Carr Valley or something of that ilk. Bravo.

Delicious Mac. Not so delicious chicken.

Unfortunately, the chicken on top of the delicious macaroni and cheese is dry, with a thick breading. It is reminiscent of frozen popcorn chicken bites. I have since resampled the chicken with stolen bites from friends and always had the same result: dry, over-breaded, clearly frozen. It's a topping unworthy of its cheesy base.

Luckily, I received a pro-tip from a friend about the toppings, and now, I pass that on to you: get the Truffle Oil. It sounds like a such a bad idea -- I mean, who adds OIL to Macaroni and Cheese?! But it really takes it to the next level, and is now the only thing I'll get there. If you're a meat eater, top it off with short rib, and go ahead and plan to be incapacitated for the rest of the day.

If you don't hear "The Music of the Night" when you eat this, your relationship with food is very different than mine.

TL;DR:

Short Ribs and Truffle Oil on Baby Mac & Cheese FTW. Anything larger and you'll die.

Value:

People complain about the price of Mac Daddy constantly, but if you keep the portion reasonable ( Baby Mac size ), it's right on par with other area trucks.