Bend has no shortage of food carts, but finding one serving truly distinctive Southeast Asian street food is another story. That is exactly the niche Kley Dhillon and his family are carving out with Tekka Tiger, the food cart recently named The Source’s Best of Central Oregon 2026 Best New Food Cart.
Credit: Courtesy Tekka Tiger
For Dhillon, the award is gratifying, but it’s not the finish line. Right now, he’s zeroed in on something he considers even more valuable: regulars.
“Building a regular customer base is the number one resource,” Dhillon says. “Return customers are the focus right now.”
That customer base is slowly taking shape at Tekka Tiger’s location near WinCo on Bend’s northside, where the cart is open Monday through Friday from 11 am to 4 pm. The family came to Bend intentionally, with a plan to bring the flavors they love from Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam to their new home.
The food is unapologetically bold. Dhillon describes it as authentic Southeast Asian street food, full of big flavors and vibrant spices, and made from scratch. That includes the spice blends, curry pastes and sambals, the spicy chili-based condiments that are essential to many Southeast Asian dishes.
There are no shortcuts, and that is by design. “We’re really trying to recapture all of my favorite dishes from Thailand and Malaysia,” he says. “We’re keeping the menu tight so that we can deliver.”
That small menu is one of the advantages Dhillon sees in operating a food cart. Rather than trying to please everyone with a sprawling selection, he can concentrate on getting each dish right. It’s an approach that has made his current favorite, Pad Thai, something of a personal obsession.
Dhillon traveled throughout Southeast Asia, where he met his wife and where the couple’s son was born. Pad Thai was everywhere during those travels, and recreating the dish has become a personal challenge. “I’ve been trying to replicate that, and I feel confident that I’m nailing it right now,” he says. “I’m very happy with it.”
I tried the Pad Thai with ground pork, shrimp and tofu, and it delivered the bright, tangy flavors Dhillon is after. The rice noodles are stir fried with tamarind, garlic, egg, bean sprouts and chives, then finished with roasted peanuts and a squeeze of fresh lime. It was less peanut-heavy than some versions, allowing the tamarind and lime to shine. The accompanying prawn chips with sambal were light, crisp and intensely shrimp-flavored.
Credit: Courtesy Tekka Tiger
The Pad Thai is also a good example of what makes Tekka Tiger different. Dhillon uses authentic ingredients, including shrimp paste, and is not interested in toning down the flavors to appeal to the broadest possible audience. “It’s a very niche market,” he says. “I think it’s the stronger plan for the long run versus watering things down and trying to appeal to a wider market.”
Other menu standouts include Vietnamese Lemongrass Chicken, featuring tender chicken marinated with lemongrass and seared in a wok before being served over rice vermicelli with fresh herbs and house made nước chấm. There is also Nasi Goreng, an Indonesian and Malaysian fried rice dish made with sambal, spices, egg and fresh vegetables. The menu also includes Pad Kra Pao with pork, as well as a tempeh version with Thai holy basil, garlic and chili. Sides include garlic bok choy, stir fried vegetables, prawn chips and Jemput Jemput, fried banana fritters.
The cart offers vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free choices, along with a lineup of Southeast Asian drinks including Thai tea, lychee tea, chrysanthemum tea, sugar cane juice and mango nectar. Main dishes are $18, with sides starting at $5 and drinks at $5.
For Dhillon, though, Tekka Tiger is about much more than the food. He started working in restaurants at 16, washing dishes before attending culinary school. Restaurant work is essentially all he has ever known. Still, owning a food cart has presented a new set of challenges. “It’s way harder than I ever imagined,” he says. “But it definitely feels like the correct choice.”
A restaurant with a larger staff has people to bounce ideas off and troubleshoot with. Running a food cart means many of those decisions fall squarely on Dhillon’s shoulders. Learning how to be a business owner while simultaneously cooking, refining recipes and serving customers can sometimes leave him feeling like he’s in his own head.
Fortunately, he has family and friends in Bend’s restaurant and food and beverage community to lean on. And then there are the customers, who Dhillon says have been remarkably patient and supportive, even when things have not gone perfectly.
“There have been so many times I have fallen flat on my face, burning rice or whatever,” he says. “Truthfully, we have an amazing community that is embracing, that provides feedback and that has been patient with us.”
That community support is a big part of why Dhillon is optimistic about Tekka Tiger’s future. His goal is ambitious but refreshingly simple: He wants Tekka Tiger to become the Asian food equivalent of Tacos Pihuamo, the beloved local, family-owned taco cart known for authentic food, quality and affordable prices. “We want to be the Tacos Pihuamo of Asian food,” he says.
It’s a goal that fits neatly with everything Dhillon says about Tekka Tiger. Keep it authentic. Keep it focused. Make the food well. Build relationships with the people who come back again and again.
The Best New Food Cart award may have put Tekka Tiger on more people’s radar, but Dhillon is thinking beyond the accolades. He is thinking about the regulars, the food and the long game.
“So we’re gonna keep on truckin’,” he says. “We’re all in.”
Tekka Tiger
3308 N. Hwy 97, Bend
Mon-Fri 11am-4pm
tekkatiger.com
IG:tekkatiger
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