Dig Into Breakfast Burritos, Egg Rolls and Pho at the Egg Belly Food Truck

In the summer of 2023, chef William Do launched the Egg Belly food truck. The business has a permanent home at Crooked Stave's Denver taproom, 1441 West 46th Avenue, where it serves an eclectic menu of eats every Wednesday through Sunday, including a winter addition inspired by Do's Vietnamese heritage: pho.

Do was born and raised in Denver to parents who fled their home country. "When the fall of Vietnam happened, my parents were among those who got on a boat, and the Coast Guard picked them up because my mom was pregnant," he shares. "They made it to Hong Kong, where they got their paperwork to come to the United States and become citizens.They flew them out to Dallas, and my parents stayed there for a couple of months, and then they got to Colorado, and that's where I was born."

Although Do grew up enjoying home-cooked Vietnamese meals prepared by his parents, a career in the culinary world wasn't something he envisioned for himself. His early career led him away from the kitchen, and he pursued a degree in marketing at Metropolitan State University of Denver.

While attending college, Do had to secure an internship to graduate, and luckily, one of his buddies was in a band, Single File, which had just signed with Warner Bros. For a year, "I sold merch and did whatever they asked me to do," Do recalls. "We were just on the road, I did all of Warped Tour. I helped set up tents, whatever, and I'd try to do PR work for them, try to get them in front of radio people and stuff to get their music played — basically, whatever they asked for."

The behind-the-scenes role immersed him in fast-paced environments where he developed an ability to adapt quickly — a skill that would prove invaluable later in his career.

After college, Do spent seven years working at Kaiser Permanente before coming to a realization. "I thought, what the hell am I doing? I went to school for marketing, and now I'm here doing health care and stuff," he recalls. "So I quit and I went to Johnson and Wales for culinary school. ... I was in the industry from there on out, for the last ten years."

His first experience in the food truck world came when he got the opportunity to design a menu and launch a new mobile food business as its executive chef. Unfortunately, "the business partner was shady," Do says. "Then the pandemic hit and I quit, so I went back into health care again," he adds.

But the culinary itch never faded. "I just kept cooking at home," he says. "My wife was like, 'You need something. You just need to keep cooking.'" In 2022, Do bought an old food truck, refurbished it and officially launched in the summer of 2023. "I still work in health care, so this is sort of my side hustle," he shares.

The initial concept behind Egg Belly was simple: Breakfast burritos made with Do's personal touch. "I don't like the breakfast burritos in Colorado," he admits. "The best breakfast burrito I ever had was in New Mexico. They don't have this green chile sauce; it's literally just roasted green chiles."
Do's breakfast burrito includes cheesy hash brown casserole reminiscent of Cracker Barrel's famed side dish, plus roasted hatch green chiles and a choice of bacon, chorizo or sausage. The result is a hearty take on a regional staple that quickly took off. But since Egg Belly only serves in the afternoons and evenings, he expanded the menu to include burgers, chopped cheese sandwiches and banh mi tacos.

For his winter menu, Do is leaning into his heritage and adding pho to the lineup. His version defies the mainstream notion that pho broth must be simmered for 24 hours. "First of all, no Vietnamese working mom is a doing a 24-hour broth," he says with a laugh. Instead, Do's pho broth simmers for five hours and is made with beef and chicken for depth, just as his mom taught him. "This is how I eat it, with sriracha, hoisin sauce, lime juice, green onions and cilantro. I cook it for everyone. My friends say this reminds them of what they've had in Vietnam, so I'm going to show everyone how I eat it, and that's how I'm going to serve it."

Rounding out the lineup are Do's mom's beloved homemade egg rolls, which are available Friday through Sunday. He also plans to add a tofu spring roll with spicy peanut sauce and a dish called bánh cuốn, Vietnamese rolled noodles filled with pork and woodland mushrooms, a dish his mom prepares for family meal on Sundays.

Egg Belly is located at Crooked Stave's Denver taproom, 1441 West 46th Avenue. It opens at 4 p.m. Wednesday through Friday and at noon on Saturday and Sunday and serves until business is slow. For more information, visit eggbellyllc.com or follow it on Instagram @egg_belly.