Irvine: Tasting Spoon

My sister Becky is my guest blogger, reporting on food trucks from the Teller & Michelson lunch lot in Irvine, CA.

Chef Joe Youkhan’s Tasting Spoon debut at the Teller Lot this week following their grand opening on July 4th. A former Executive Chef at the Ritz Carlton in Laguna Niguel and several years of experience in restaurant management and catering, Chef Joe’s newly minted OC food truck will certainly elevate the food truck scene.

His truck may be a mouthful to remember, but his menu is simple Italian cuisine serving grilled artisinal pizzas, pizza pinwheels (ie calzones), tasty bites and sweet bites in addition to his chef’s specials. I ordered a margherita pizza made with fresh mozzarella, fresh basil and a San Marzano tomato sauce. There’s a convection oven inside the truck, which cranks out pizzas and calzones at lightening fast speed. I also ordered the chef’s special calamari, which also came with a marinara dipping sauce made from San Marzano tomatoes.

Another interesting item on his menu that I’ve never seen at Italian restaurants in So. Cal are arancini. These are the perfect food truck snacks of his tasty bites menu consisting of risotto balls stuffed with Italian sausage, mozzarella and tomato sauce and deep fried until golden brown. From what I could see (sorry, no picture), they look just like the ones I remember eating in Italy.