Review: 41701 Street Food Market

A festive Street Food Market has been set up in Heartlake City!

First we get to build this super cute cactus to hang the Taco sign. I can say this was absolutely "instant fun" for me!
Then build the festive picnic table area with decorative pendants and lights strung between two lamps posts.

The Flex Tube is rare in flame yellowish orange, and the macaroni elbow tube with crossaxle hole is recolored in Lime for 2022.


With everything built we see all the fun food: Sushi, Taco, and bowl with salad or ramen, cheese and egg.
Nandi gets a fork and Emma gets chopsticks -- which is a new utensil element. Kitty gets a treat in a white bowl that is also new.
We get an extra flex tube, white bowl, plant sprig, and lots of other nice small parts. The Sushi, Taco tile, treat, and Egg printed tiles are always welcome!

The pink flower hair accessories can be used for Emma's new hair piece's hole in the back; so technically, we have 2 spare.


Speaking of Emma's new hair style: above her straight-cut bangs, she has braided knots like cat ears, with long braids down the sides and back. This is the first time she's had a new hairdo, and this one is hard plastic. Super cute!

Although she's worn this outfit before in several sets, she comes with a new wink expressive face to switch out.


New for 2022 is Nandi with a bright yellow headband wrap tied above her bangs. Her one-shoulder top has a knot gather with pink and yellow graphics on azure.
She has a laughing, squinted eyes-shut smiling face to switch out.


Building this colorful Taco Truck starts with a solid chassis -- in the colors of a Taco! It can seat two mini-dolls in the cab. The gear shift is a nice detail, even if with get that tiny steering wheel piece.
Spares from bag 2 are the typical easy-to-lose small parts -- that are also integral to the build.


Sebastian is another new-for-2022 mini-doll. His dark azure rimmed glasses match his varsity jacket and shoes -- paired with Teal cargo shorts.
We get an extra mini-doll head for him too -- with a very expressive face!


Using parts from bag 3 we continue building-out the truck by installing a frig with chilies and tortilla -- plus red hot chili peppers hanging nearby. The swing side is built as a section then added.


Once the swing-out side gets attached, the build goes quickly. The awnings for the cab roof (which is easy to remove for inserting a driver), and above the customer window are separate built sections we add.
The Taco sign rotates, and we add some color tiles creating a fun rooftop. The grill gets an exhaust pipe, the cab gets steps, and wheels get coral flower hubs.

The side sign, bottle of hot sauce, and guacamole in a new small white bowl next to a plate of chips go on the customer window side.


It's an easy to slide open, yet secure 1/2 truck compartment that has a clever angle design -- thanks to the newer 8x8 corner plates in flame yellowish orange.
The Taco Truck is finished, with some nice spares.


How could you not want a taco when seeing this on the side of the road? The front bumper gets a "SPCY" sticker for a vehicle tag.


The juice booth begins with a crate of fruit, attached by a rocker piece so it's contents can be seen easier. The booth itself has a counter with drinks and one with a new yellow citrus 1x1 tile that I've highlighted. I also wanted to show the cute little red blender inside the booth. We continue with a fun menu sign, floral planter, and citrus cushioned stools.


This side has a trash can newly recolored in Lime.


We build this huge carrot sign using orange parts, including a newly recolored 2x2x1 sphere 1/3 inverted piece; a brown bar slides inside it to secure the top green part. We snap the carrot sign onto the white tent type roof with striped awning.


Inside has a tan mat for the worker, and a spoon at the ready. Among the small spare parts from bag 4, we get an extra citrus 1x1 round tile.


A Sushi stand is the final food variety for this market, and it follows the same basic design build as the previous sections. On a grassy patch we start the kiosk with bamboo, wooden stools, and place for slicing knives. The new small bowl holds some sushi already, with soy sauce and wasabi nearby.  The pole with menu flag adds to the overall style.


Once the lanterns and red flags are hung to flow with the wind -- we add the roof section with lovely cherry blossom branches.

The top sign has a beautiful dragon swirl sticker on white representing a bowl. The green leaves and suspended red chopsticks resting on top are exactly the type of brick-built signs I love!


The Sushi Stand is a lovely architectural build that represents its food in a traditional way.  For a small structure, the details really capture the overall look of an Asian building.


Inside has the same tan mat and register. The gold knives really stand out on the curved walls -- easy for a chef to reach.
The 2x2 nougat tile with center stud must be for the trash can, when the juice booth isn't using it. The spares are typical small parts. I like that coral flowers are mixed back into HLC, and not just a beach or jungle environment.


Instructions booklets have the "progress bar" along the bottom as a character moves further with each page. This was first introduced in 2020, yet paused in 2021.


Box front shows the Street Food Market in a setting near downtown HLC. New for 2022 the upper right corner shows us that we get alternate expressive mini-doll heads for the first time. This set infographic replaces the traditional BFF Heart.
The mini-doll cameos indicate 2 new characters: Nandi and Sebastian.


Stickers: the Taco Truck uses #10 "SPCY" as its license tag.  For a list of all the parts, see instruction booklet #1 on LEGO's page.


Box back shows Emma in the Taco Truck with Nandi placing an order. Other fun scenes and excellent use of Sebastian's alternate expression face as he encounters a red hot chili pepper!

This is a push-tab box that contains 5 parts bags and 4 instructions booklets with sticker sheet in plastic wrap.

 

Are you hungry yet?

Summary:

Restaurants and food have always been a part of Heartlake City -- so this market fits right in -- either downtown, or a neighborhood.  The separate booths could easily go in a park setting, and the Taco Truck certainly would look good parked on Main Street.  I think this entire set would look good in between some of the new apartment buildings.  The picnic table section would especially be nice for residents to gather.

The brick-built signs are always a fun and clever way for us to learn techniques from the Designers.  The Taco Truck is an extremely solid build; that it opens easily for scenes and play is proof of great design.  It can roll into any LEGO theme display.

I've built loads of LEGO vehicles, and I would recommend this set to fans of trucks -- because this one is inspirational.  The super cute and fun cactus is a bonus!

Food markets are prevalent in the real world at seasonal events, sport venues, fairs, and neighborhood block parties. This set continues the Friends theme's ability to capture real-world fun using bricks.

Disclaimer:
This set was provided by The LEGO Group for the purpose of sharing set details with fans.
Opinions provided here solely reflect those of our reviewer.
Photographs are property of FriendsBricks and are not directed by TLG in any fashion.

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