Food-truck chefs makes up for lack of space with quality recipes

Former fine-dining chef and current food-truck owner Adam Wallace said he can still crank out quality meals in a relatively small amount of space.

“Preparation is what makes your food great; lack of preparation is what makes your food horrible,” said the owner of Adam’s Eden, which is open for lunch, some dinners and special events on weekends.

In the Cajun pasta ($11), the chicken is marinated for at least 24 hours, grilled to Wallace’s specifications and placed atop penne tossed in Alfredo sauce, garnished with Parmesan and diced tomatoes.

“It is spicy — no ifs, ands or buts about it, but it's balanced out by the rich Alfredo on the penne,” he said.

As for the chicken, “I’ve been cooking it my whole life. You cook it till it’s damn near perfect and then you put it on the pasta.”

Wallace, who also owns three Feed the Need food carts, got his culinary training at Sullivan University in Louisville. He said he spent most of his career in hotels and fine-dining venues.

He made the transition to food trucks in March, opening a deluxe mobile unit with two deep fryers, two ovens, a six-burner range (one half used for a flattop grill) and a three-bay heating table.

With the shrimp po'boy ($11), the sauteed crustaceans are marinated in a mix of spices and sauteed, and served on a toasted garlic bun with romaine lettuce, tomatoes and lemony Cajun aioli.

Back by popular demand is Wallace’s pulled pork sandwich ($9), which is rubbed with spices and smoked for 14 hours. The shredded pork is topped with a spicy jalapeno slaw that’s also sweet-and-sour ($9). “That’s definitely coming back,” he said. “It’s something I can’t not bring back. People love it.”

The most popular item on the menu is the buffalo blue wrap ($8), which offers seared chicken, buffalo sauce, blue cheese dressing and blue crumbles, onions, peppers and romaine lettuce wrapped in a flour tortilla.

Adam’s Eden serves a number of homemade sides, such as green beans ($3) that are first blanched and then sauteed with onions, peppers, garlic and a seasoning blend.

The mac and cheese ($3), which also returned to the menu, starts with a basic bechamel sauce infused with Parmesan, cheddar and other cheeses served with penne. Wallace said it’s not baked because that dries out the pasta.

The “Adam” burger ($8) is anything but typical, using a third of a pound of chargrilled beef, mushrooms, onions, peppers, pepperoni, provolone and American cheese, and a topping of mayo, ketchup and barbecue.

“That’s how I like it,” he said.

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At a glance

Where: Adam’s Eden

Address: streetfoodfinder.com

Hours: 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and some late-night and dinner shifts

Contact: 740-602-3669, edenfoodtruck.com