Paul Galvani photo
The Wicked Whisk food truck is the brainchild of executive head chef Jay Stone, who was hired a couple of years ago by Spectrum Catering and Concessions, a company with more than 20 years’ experience in the event and hospitality industry. Stone was hired to develop a food truck catering menu and team. He has done just that and is creating Asian-inspired dishes unsurpassed in Houston.

On my first visit, I tried his Bolillo, a sandwich stuffed with pulled pork that has been braised in Saint Arnold’s dark and malty Santo brew. Plantains — cooked until caramelized and falling apart — line the bottom of the roll, and the pork is topped with a homemade ancho-aioli and smoked cheddar. The mélange of flavors — sweet, spicy, smoky — all work together to create a wonderful bite.
The Texas Melt: Paul Galvani photo
I also tried the Kimchi Fried Chicken Wings.

“We use a mochiko breading, which is sweet rice flour. We then fry and dust them with some dried kimchi. The kimchi takes 15 hours to dehydrate. When it’s finished, I add some Korean peppers and a touch of nutmeg,” said Stone, who confessed his love affair with Asian food was inspired by his Korean wife.

Another influence for the Nebraska native was the time he spent in Canada as a chef for Cirque du Soleil. Wicked Whisk’s tribute to the Great White North is his poutine, which Stone describes as “Canada’s national junk food.”
Poutine as served at Wicked Whisk: Paul Galvani photo
Poutine is french fries with gravy and cheddar cheese curds (plus any other ingredient the Canadians feel like putting on their spuds). Stone’s twist: Instead of cheddar cheese curds, he uses Maytag blue cheese crumbles. The blue cheese melts and provides a nice tangy taste. He also replaces the traditional brown gravy with a porter beer demiglace. The “gravy” settles on the bottom of the plate making the bottom layer of fries soggy. (Fret not, it’s all part of the poutine experience.) The fries are hand-cut with the skin on. Chopped green onions and applewood-smoked lardons (thick chunks of bacon) top it all, making the fries a substantial meal.

With a name like the Texas Melt, you might imagine a burger with a lot of cheese. Wrong. Stone’s “melt” is peanut butter over a half-pound Angus beef patty topped with thick slices of applewood-smoked bacon and a homemade, neon-green jalapeño jelly. It’s sweet, salty and hot — the trifecta of flavor.

Stone’s PB&J burger — the Texas Melt — is one of the tastiest burgers I’ve ever had, and it is gorgeous to look at. The outside of the burger was well-charred yet the inside was cooked to medium-rare. It’s messy but definitely worth the clean up.

To find the Wicked Whisk’s next stop, go to wickedwhiskcatering.com.

Paul Galvani is the author of the upcoming guide Houston's Top 100 Food Trucks.