Food truck quick bite: Whisk On Wheels...beyond the fried chicken
In case you missed it, there was actually a fried chicken sandwich I enjoyed a lot, even despite its $12 price tag. The one from Whisk On Wheels food truck came as a bit of a surprise to me with its two pieces of fried chicken on it along with some slaw and what not. Definitely a big sandwich with some big flavor. But me and the SO couldn't go all the way to one of Treasure Island's weekend fests without trying more than one thing from a food truck. To make the visit worth it (and spread out food posts of course) we felt it necessary to get some additional items from Whisk and see if they had more to offer than just fried chicken.
Honestly, when I was checking out their menu the first thing to catch my eye was an appetizer that seemed to embody everything one (ME!) craves in something savory: cheese, carbs, spiciness and most importantly, being deep fried.
They are exactly what you would expect too. Lots of pasta and cheese wrapped in a thin almost phyllo dough like shell which is then deep fried and covered in a spicy sriracha aioli sauce. Made to order they do come out hot and crispy and like any egg roll, just a tad greasy which I don't mind. I actually liked these, though the SO did not. It is a ton of carbs to be eating but you get the crunchy and the gooey cheesy with a sharp kick of spice. It is very state fair kind of food which the atmosphere was like that day and I felt it fit perfectly. I think these might have been something special they did for the day as they don't show in their regular menu. I'm pretty sure they cost me like $5, or maybe it was $7? Either way, I liked 'em and you got four big pieces which is quite enough to share or make into a meal.
The SO wanted to try something a little more traditional which led us to the old school burger and fries route.
Or to quote their menu more directly a six ounce grass fed Angus beef patty with smoked pepper mayo, tomatoes, mixed greens, roasted peppers and onions and provolone cheese on a toasted bun. It was definitely a big two handed burger which is helpful since this will cost you $12. The side of fries will be another $5. As for the burger, it was pretty good and both me and the SO would give it a thumbs up as it were. The meat had a nice charbroiled grill taste and was cooked spot on medium with a hint of pink. They do pile on the toppings and I kind of enjoyed the mix of onions and red and green peppers. The large slices of tomatoes were also fresh and the provolone adds a pleasant little pungent tang. I do think the smoked pepper mayo got a lost a little bit as I couldn't taste it much and would have like a little more. Though the burger was juicy enough it didn't necessarily need more sauce but I personally wanted to taste more of it.
As for the fries, you do get a lot (there are more under the burger) and fortunately since the truck was busy, the fries are hot, crispy and salty--all good things. In the grand scheme of things this is a $17 entree which in comparison to burger fry combos around SF seems to be the standard these days. While I'm still not comfortable with the price, Whisk's burger is really good and there and they don't skimp on toppings or fries. And depending on how hungry you may be, two people could possibly split this and still feel the hunger satisfied.
All together that was one appetizer, two sandwiches and a side and I pretty much enjoyed all of them in spite of the price and my own picky foodie-ness. Or maybe I was just hungry and all the other trucks were just an array of burritos, Thai food and....ugh, poke so this beacon of basics just really appealed to my taste buds at the time. Either way, Whisk's food truck hit the spot and I'd definitely hit them up again to see what else they got cooking.