The 2010 US census recorded all of 1,981 people living in Marfa, Texas, so you’re probably not one of them. I’m not, either. But if I were, I’d eat at Food Shark, because this is the pic at the top of their website:
…and this is their ad:
Everything about this is yes. It’s clear they had a lot of fun making this ad, and that thing where cars come toward the camera and then swerve off, alternating left/right/left/right, was done deftly in a thoughtful manner that adds an almost subliminal attention-hook (d’you see it?). The tune is catchy, and exactly the right part of the song is sticky (you’re warned). And any eatery with a ’62 Valiant in their ad—another one, to go by the website pic—deserves my custom. And a ’63 Plymouth, into the bargain!
I don’t know what kind of truck the actual Food Shark is, but I bet someone here can pick it:
A Blue Bird school bus on site has been converted to a dining car by turning around every other seat and putting tables in between:
The gallery on their site contains at least as many pics of cool cars as it does of hot food. Members of the jury, now, I ask you:
Car-related decor, too…
…though none’s shown in the gallery, I kind of fervently hope they have at least one piece of (Marfa)k memorabilia:
The food looks –fantastic– Marfalous, too. Howd’ya not love a Mediterranean place with enough local pride to serve Marfalafel ? I’d happily eat any of their offerings while watching the mysterious Marfa lights (psst: they’re actually distant headlights).
Reminds me of some lo-fi videos I used to enjoy on MTV’s 120 Minutes. Love it!!
This has that old school Austin vibe. It also reminds me, in a light fluffy way, of the
Zellner Brothers immortal Texas epic, “Plastic Utopia” a surreal film that captures all
that was right in the culture capital of the lone star state in the nineties.
Here is a link to the trailer, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Azz9raDRY10
which captures a tiny bit of the atmosphere.
I’d say the van is a Grumman Olson aluminum body, and the jingle has a very J-pop sound to it.
Marfa is also famous for the Prada “store” and the connection to minimalist artist Donald Judd.
What I’d like to know: is the wine there made from grapes grown in Marfa’s vineyard?
Cool video. “It’s a truck!”
The Marfalafel looks tasty.
As long as they keep the Marfak off of the grill and out of the deep fryer, I’m in!
As a traveling salesman, I’ve driven Del Rio > El Paso multiple times. I can vouch for Marfa being an eclectic place in the best West Texas tradition.
While my personal favorite town on this route is Alpine, Marfa is worth the time to stop & explore. Given the dearth of population in this part of Texas, any town offers a good excuse for a stop.
Parts of Nevada have a reputation (deserved) for being remote, but the Big Bend region of West Texas can give them a run for the money when it comes to remoteness.
With not one, but two Matadors outside to greet guests. Well done!
The map explains it all. This is why we have illegal immigration at the southern border. They come for the Food Shark. They probably find employment picking those grapes in Marfa’s vineyard. Now that we have exposed this, I expect that this will be a big factor in the next election.
Yep, hard working people go to Marfa. Oh, the vineyard died due to the 1937 drought.
MADE MY DAY!
Marfa is one of my favorite stops in West Texas.
watching the mysterious Marfa lights (psst: they’re actually distant headlights).
There is another site in Texas with same sort of “mysterious” lights.
When I attended the university in Abilene (one of my worst life decisions ever) in 1989, the exciting thing to do on Friday or Saturday night was to see them. The students would flock to the massive cemetery east of Anson (about 40 km north of Abilene). They were to park their vehicles adjacent to the cemetery with their headlamps facing north, then they blinked their headlamps and honked three times. And wait for the spooky thing to happen. The cemetery next to the road made things creepier and jumpier.
Eventually, I looked at the map of Anson and noticed the Highway 277 was running diagonally to the northeast from Anson then turn straight north about eight kilometres from the cemetery. I brought my strong binoculars along on my next visit. I could see the distinct shapes and positions of vehicle headlamps as well as the front turn signal indicators and side running lamps. I even identified them by make, model, and year. The rising heat and dense air at the surface causes the lights to look bit larger and spookier like the sun looks much larger at the horizon than in the sky.
So, I single-handedly ruined everything for the students when I reported my finding. Whether the gullible students, especially the freshmen, still flock to the cemetery today or not, I have no idea.
Drat! I forgot about the pesky photo size limit. I wish Word Press would politely warn us that the photo is too large and give us the chance to reduce the size before posting the comment and photos…
Sadly don’t recall the Food Shark on my visit there 5 years ago, but the town itself is really cool and of course the Marfa light (non) phenomena is local folklore.
I love this! My favorites are the LeMans wagon and LeSabre sedan.
We are seriously thinking of visiting this part of Texas as part of viewing the total solar eclipse in April 2024 — likely to have the clearest skies along the path of totality across the US and Canada at that time.
You may want to check your maps there, 210delray.
It would appear that based on the map of the eclipse totality path through Texas, it had Marfa just a bit outside to the northwest.
Trust me, you want to be in the path of totality if you can pull it off. I was in Santee, SC for the eclipse in August of 2017, and it was amazing.
Anything else is just a partial eclipse, no matter how good it is. As eclipse chasers say, “99% isn’t good enough”. Now that I’ve seen one, I get it.
You’d be better off in Dallas. For me, I may luck out. My stepson (currently) lives in that area in the path. Hopefully he won’t move, and we can visit.
Yes, thanks, I know Marfa is west of the path of totality, but it’s close enough for a visit before or after.
We went to Torrington, WY to see the 2017 total solar eclipse — it was spectacular! Eastern Wyoming and eastern Oregon were the 2 driest locations, so that’s why we settled on Torrington (actually a ranch northwest of town). We then toured much of Wyoming including Yellowstone and Grand Teton parks.
South Carolina was closest to us, but we figured the odds of cloudy skies would be much greater. As it turned out, I believe most of the weather along the path of totality was clear except for a portion in Missouri.
We haven’t yet settled on a specific viewing location in Texas.
Intrigued by the video, I looked at their menu and also how long of a drive it is from my son’s house.
Reasons to go when I’m down there:
The cool cars and the vibe.
Reasons not to go:
It’s nearly an 8 hour drive just to get lunch.
I know Texas is BIG, but WOW. From where I live northeast of Baltimore to either Ogunquit Maine or Santee SC, I cross several state borders either way. The drive from northeast of Dallas to Marfa takes within minutes of the same amount of time… and it’s ALL IN ONE STATE!
I’m allergic to sesame seeds, which are usually featured in that kind of cuisine.
Besides, the song is stuck in my head now.
It’s a Truck! – Thanks a lot, Daniel!!!
As to the Great American Eclipse Part 1, I lucked out, weather wise. It was partly cloudy for the whole drive down from Baltimore. Then at Marion Lake at Santee Santee Park, the sky was clear all around. I couldn’t believe my luck. My wife told me to roll the dice and take a chance, and I am so glad I did!
I’ve been to Marfa! But I missed the Food Shark, because it wasn’t there in the 1970s.
I was driving across the Southwest from California to New Orleans and instead of going the way “everybody” goes on I-10, opted for the old highway, US 90 which winds through Valentine and Del Rio on the way between El Paso and San Antonio, Texas. The three old towns Marfa, Alpine and Marathon are in proximity in between those cities.
I remember the friendly people along US90. Some wondered why an out-of-state driver would bother with the old, slow route. Others understood. In Marathon, the owner of a small restaurant treated me to his finest dessert “to thank you for visiting our little settlement.” And along the way, the paralleling railroad presented train after train for entertainment. Southern Pacific, along which US90 was built, had the longest route between the seaports in the Los Angeles area and the Midwest, so they had to hustle!
That song takes me right back to Shonen Knife https://youtu.be/5H8J_A13AMw
If I ever get my butt down to Texas, Marfa is the only must see town for me.
Might be worth a visit to the US some day!
Daniel Stern: For as critical as you are about many American states and my country in general, I believe you may find much not to like about Texas. Perhaps there may be something interesting in the NWT or such like.
constellation in Wyoming
The United States is just as much my country as it is yours, and I’ve found a lot to like when I’ve visited Texas (and Wyoming, for that matter). If you’re finding anything critical about Texas in this post, or critical of “many American states” in my writing in general, those calls are comin’ from inside your own head.
But thanks for your input.
Good response Daniel! I’m surprised about the OP making such comments; I’d expect such words from some of CC’s more usual suspects.
Yeah, eh? Aw well, we all have bad days from time to time.
Great find, Daniel!
Wikipedia notes…
Any town named after either a character in a Dostoevsky or Verne novel is good enough for me.
Oh, and now their song is stuck in my head. It sounds like a lo-fi version of something by Shonen Knife (which I’ll now need to listen to in order to purge that earworm).
Thank you for this ! .
I love TEXAS and especially West (by God) TEXAS .
Anyone who hasn’t visited TEXAS has no idea what they’re missing .
Just by the advert I think this place should be on any passer by’s list to drop $20 minimum .
I looked at the P Van and remembered a Boyertown bodied P Van I drove for Frito Lay long, long ago….
-Nate