Roli Roti is where you go for a meat-heavy lunch that makes dinner feel optional. This fleet of “rolling rotisserie” food trucks makes appearances throughout the Bay’s many farmers markets, the most popular being their standing spot at the Ferry Building farmers market on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. The Saturday slot in particular draws a guaranteed long line, but it’s worth lining up with everyone—locals and tourists alike—for their tight but fantastic lineup of slow-spinning meats.
The porchetta sandwich is our first choice, piled with onion marmalade, arugula, and rosemary gray sea salt on an Acme bun. The rotisserie chicken is a worthy backup, especially if the porchetta has sold out by the time you reach the front (which is fairly common). Come earlier in the day to improve your chances of getting the pork, and don’t skip the potatoes that spend their time beneath the rotisserie soaking up all those meat drippings. This is a grab-and-go operation, so plan to find somewhere nearby to enjoy your haul—there are usually extra tables set up in the farmers market. Occasionally Roli Roti’s schedule does change, so keep an eye on their Instagram.
Food RundownRotisserie Chicken
Slow-roasted with garlic, rosemary, and salt and pepper. The skin is nice and crispy, and the meat is almost always juicy enough to make your chin glisten. A half-chicken is more than enough for one person, but if you’ve got several people to feed, go for the whole.
Porchetta Sandwich
An incredible combo of a slightly sweet onion marmalade, a touch of bitterness from arugula, and a flawless porchetta with crunchy bits of skin mixed in throughout. Note that this is only available at the Ferry Building—any other location of the food truck only sells the chicken.
Heirloom Potatoes
Every chunk of pleasantly greasy potato gets just the right amount of singe from the rotisserie while also catching all the drippings from the chickens above.
Brussels Sprouts
Get the potatoes every time. The sprouts are fine, but they tend to be inconsistent, with some raw and others overdone.