Food Carts by Heart

Every year, more and more people are finding out that some of the best chefs in Madison don’t own a brick-and-mortar restaurant; they drive a food truck. It’s impossible to say who’s the best, but we’re happy to highlight two favorites that have proven themselves over recent years.

Braisin’ Hussies

Michael Sollinger (Solli) of Braisin’ Hussies has worked for some of the country’s most renowned restaurants, even owning a few, but after over 30 years on the inside, he was ready for a lifestyle change.

Solli’s vision was making light and lean food for part of the year then taking off for the rest of the season. He didn’t start out thinking Madison would be the right place for his food truck, but after looking at Austin, Boulder, and Seattle, Solli was sold on being able to live rent free with his sister and brother-in-law by the isthmus. That and “Madison’s proclivity for small food carts was a real plus,” he says.

There’s an intimacy for Solli in what he’s doing that he couldn’t achieve working in the kitchen at a restaurant. Behind the scenes, maybe he’d recognize people by their food, but now he can operate more like a bartender and get to know his regulars by name. He’s come to realize that nobody is as excited about the food he’s serving—slow-cooked veggies and meat served over rice, grain, and noodle bowls—than him, and he gets to share that excitement with anyone who comes to his window.

“The one cornerstone recipe to this menu is the braised pork shoulder,” Solli says. “I’ve used some version of that recipe for a couple of decades now. Braised pork, tomatoes, onions, garlic, chipotle, chicken broth—puree all that. Use the reduction after the pork comes out after eight hours for a gravy. I either mix it in with the meat or ladle over the pork after I serve it.”

Solli’s food focuses on accuracy and replication over what he calls a machoism sometimes exhibited by world-class chefs. He cooks his pork belly sous vide, meaning he vacuum seals it, places the package in water, then uses an immersion circulator to bring everything to temperature. You can’t overcook the food, so every bite of Dashi Pork Belly is just as he intended. In short, he says, “Precision is better than pride.”

Maybe people are more familiar with Dashi Pork Belly now, but Solli points out this wasn’t the case in the beginning. “When I started the cart in 2016, people were asking what it was. But much to the credit of the open-mindedness of this community, whatever Dashi Pork Belly is, they’ll try it.” For the yet-to-be-initiated, it’s his signature slow-cooked pork belly with dashi, miso glaze, miso pickled carrots, sesame cucumbers, radish, and toasted seaweed served over soba noodles.

Solli knows for a fact that his menu today is better than when he first opened thanks to his focus on evolving his flavor. He might not be looking to grow the scale of his business, but he’s never been satisfied with good enough. With each tweak and change, confidence is key. “Ultimately, you have to stick to your own convictions that what you like is going to sell. But you have to cook for yourself first. You have to really like what you’re cooking. You can’t try to outguess the public.”

Whether it’s the people, the lakes, or the food scene, this world-traveled chef has come to call Madison home for most of the year. “It’s one of the most lovely places I’ve ever lived.” He sees himself metaphorically as an obscure local band playing to regulars and appealing to anyone willing to listen, hoping you’ll swing by soon to check out his style.

Jason’s Jerk

I just learned that there’s a stigma in the chef world surrounding the use of the word fusion. Some go so far as to call it cringey. Turns out there was a trend in the early 2000s to bring together flavors from European and Asian cultures that just didn’t work, and the bad taste lingered. Luckily, I’m not a chef, so when I was told about the Caribbean fusion food at Jason’s Jerk, I didn’t shy away.

Madison-area lifer Jason Beilke is the knife and brains behind Jason’s Jerk. Growing up in Monona, Jason recalls experimenting with the food at Cousins Subs when he was working there at age 13. It’s a philosophy that has always been central to his cooking. “The big aspect for me is fun,” says Jason. “I never really follow the rules too well.” But you gotta know the rules to breaks the rules, so Jason went to culinary school at Madison College and gained a better understanding of how he could go his own way.

When Jason’s Jerk opened at the height of COVID in 2020, there were a lot of question marks in the air, but the proof is in the rice bowls and tacos. “Our most popular item would be the Classic Bowl. It’s just my take on a rice bowl. It’s coconut lime rice and red beans. You get your choice of chicken, pork, shrimp, or sweet potato. Jerk sauce, mango salsa, cilantro, and then the little tortilla gets fried then cut up.”

If you’re familiar with Caribbean cooking, you probably noticed Jason said sweet potato and not yams. It’s one of the little things he does to make it his own. “I also add a little bit of sesame oil in my sauce, which isn’t really from America or the Caribbean, but I think it adds a nice kind of nuttiness to the finished product.” He also uses a mix of hickory, apple, and cherry wood when smoking his meats to mimic the traditional pimento wood.

One noteworthy aspect of Jason’s menu that doesn’t come from his kitchen are the tortillas. They come from Tortilleria Zepeda in Lone Rock and make up the second-most-popular item at Jason’s Jerk: the tacos. “The corn flavor goes with the pork really well. The cilantro. A little bit of sweetness from the mango salsa. Same with the sweet potato.”

And then there’s the namesake ingredient. The jerk sauce. “To me, it’s what makes my food more Jamaican than anything else I do, not so much the types of dishes I’m putting together.” It’s what I think is the true testament to fusion food, the ability to bring a new flavor to something familiar. By making his food more approachable, elements like the jerk sauce work as a gateway for patrons to dive into Caribbean cuisine on their own between their visits to Jason’s Jerk. If it hasn’t happened yet, Jason and likeminded chefs will make using the word fusion to describe combining foods from different cultures cool again.

Thanks to the reception of food carts by Madisonians, fresh opportunities for thoughtful menu experimentation encourage new and established chefs to challenge themselves in ways no other format can. Best of all, both chefs and patrons reap the benefits.

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Braisin’ Hussies Food Cart

braisinhussies.com
Capitol Square Lunch: Main Street near King Street
Tuesday–Friday, 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Dane County Farmers’ Market: intersection of State, Mifflin, and Carroll Streets

Jason’s Jerk

facebook.com/TheOriginalJasonsJerk & Instagram @jasons_jerk
Library Mall Lunch: Tuesday–Friday, 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Dane County Farmers’ Market