Siano’s Karibbean Cookhouse food cart sits in the Backyard Community Food Cart pod, located behind Ride’em Wear, at 812 S. Riverside Ave. in Medford.

Each cart at the food truck pod claims a small space of its own and, collectively, the carts offer food from around the world. Plastic turf covers the ground between them with metal bistro tables reminiscent of a family’s backyard.

My husband and I walked up to Siano’s cart, decorated with bamboo and burlap for an island feel and wearing a pop canvas top overhead as protection from drizzly days. Due to the weather, we planned to take our containers home, rather than huddle at one of the tables.

According to the food truck’s Facebook page, the fare on offer is “a fusion of Caribbean and Latin American food that are traditional but with twist.”

As we mumbled between each other over the options, the chef from behind the counter came up with a smile and offered samples. First, it was the Mongolian vegan, a plant-based meat-like protein he makes himself from chickpeas and tapioca starch, he said.

We shared a little plastic cup of the aromatic strips. Yellow peppers of a medium heat slid along the strips of spiced protein.

I suggested the curry chicken, remembering pictures I saw on the restaurant’s Facebook page days before, made up of homey chicken pieces floating in a golden orange sauce.

The chef overheard and offered another little plastic dish loaded with the shining pieces. The ever-comforting flavor of chicken was obvious first, followed by the warm earthy tones of turmeric and its companion curry spices.

I ordered the small Mongolian vegan ($16), while he settled on the jerk chicken ($20 for a large order). I also ordered one of their sorrel drinks ($3-$5), a cold, strawberry flavored tea-like drink made from the sorrel flower. The woman at the counter explained the significance of the purported superfood in the islands.

“We like to say she is the sister of the hibiscus. In the islands, we say the hibiscus is the nice one and the sorrel is the naughty one,” she said, handing over the vivid red drink.

At home, we popped open the boxes and started in.

The jerk sauce formed the pinnacle of the feast. The warm, earthy spices were perfectly balanced against each other. Given the choice between spice and mild jerk, we both chose spicy. It was not overly hot for the true enthusiast of heat, but those who eschew pepper should choose the mild sauce. No one should pass on the jerk sauce.

I asked for a bite of his jerk chicken, and the bite became three before I thought about what I was doing. The surface of the bone-in thigh resembled a flow of magma recently dried and blackened over the recently bubbling surface. At the slightest force from teeth, the blackened flakes fell away and revealed juicy, elegantly spiced chicken. An arm reached across the table to reclaim the chicken thigh.

“What is that in the potato stuffing?” I said, pointing to ice cream-like dollops of soft starchy mounds on each of our platters, one of several side dishes acting as heavyweight counterbalances to the rich, earthy flavor of jerk.

“It’s raisins. There’s raisins in the potatoes,” he said.

Pleasantly starchy plantains joined the potatoes. Despite my dislike for all members of the banana family, I ate mine and was surprised at how much I enjoyed it.

As I relented to the pressure of my belt and pushed away the container with a few mouthfuls left, an arm reached from across the table and dragged it away. Minutes later, I looked up to see both containers almost completely scraped clean.

“It’s unlike you to nibble your chicken bones,” I said.

“Well, that’s a testament to the chicken,” he said.

To see specials and find more information, including hours, find Siano’s Karibbean CookHouse on Facebook, or call 813-447-7388.