Wellington has two new food trucks: Devour and JT Shack
J.T. Shack.
Devour Food Truck
by Amber Countryman, Sumner Newscow — Wellington is becoming a place of food trucks. There is the Brown Box Bakery, of course. There is also Neives Food Truck, located in Winfield, but run by a Wellington native.
And now there are two new food trucks in Wellington to tickle your taste buds! JT Shack is owned by Jimmy and Tabitha Thornton, and Devour is owned by Mike Castaneda.
“I wanted to open a food truck because I like having the option of traveling around, seeing new places, and meeting new people,” Castaneda said.
Jimmy Thornton has catered for 10 years and had wanted to open a food truck.
“I bought it last year and thought I’d give it a shot,” Thornton said. “I really enjoy being around people and enjoy cooking and being out and about.”
Castaneda recently saw a food truck for sale, and decided to purchase it. Devour won’t have a set menu, it will be at the whim of the chef.
“The beauty of this food truck is I won’t have a set menu,” he said. “If I feel like making sushi one night and burritos the next, I will.”
Wellington will be Devour’s primary place to operate, but he’s hoping to set up in surrounding areas as well. He plans to be open once or twice a week in the lot next to Sonic.
Recently, the food truck sold an Over the Top Philly Sandwich, which included meat, peppers, cheese, mozzarella sticks, french fries and Poblano ranch. A recent brunch menu consisted of trench toast (Brioche bread, macerated fruit, whipped cream and syrup), breakfast fried rice (rice, bacon, eggs, soy sauce, sesame oil, green onion), fried biscuits and gravy (fried biscuits, bacon gravy, happiness), and chicken biscuit (homemade biscuit, fried chicken thigh, honey butter).
Jimmy Thornton cook at JT Shack.
JT’Shack is open every Monday from 5 to 6:30 p.m. at Wiens Auction, 319 N. Washington permanently, with a periodically changing menu. Currently, JT’Shack serves two different types of burritos and street tacos. The chicken burrito is served with cilantro lime rice and verde sauce. The steak burrito is served with red sauce and Spanish rice. All of their sauces and salsas are homemade.
“April and Jeremy have been kind enough to let me set up there,” Thornton said. “They are great people. I’m very fortunate and thankful for them. I bought the food truck from them at one of their auctions.”
Jimmy and Tabitha have two children, Parker and Raelynn. Parker helps cook and run the food truck window. When not working at her daycare, Tab’s Tiny Tots, Tabitha helps with the food truck.
“I like having him in the kitchen,” Thornton said. “I’m learning something new all the time and coming up with new ideas. I’m not doing it for the money, I’m doing it because I love cooking,” Thornton said.
Castaneda was in the gym when the inspiration for his business name came to him.
“The story of Devour is kind of funny,” Castaneda said. “I was thinking of every name I possibly could and just couldn’t find the right inspiration. I’m a Leo and wanted to maybe use a lion as a logo and I just wanted something strong. I was in the gym and “Wash Us In the Blood” by Kanye West came on and it said, “a roaring lion walketh about, seeking whom it may,” then the tone changes and it says “devour” with this strong presence and I was just immediately like, that’s it.”
Mike Castenada of Devour Truck.
Castaneda is a Wellington native, and moved back here in 2015 with his wife, Lindsay, when he was medically discharged from the military after serving as air defense artillery for 5 ½ years. They have three children, Emery, Brady, and Roman.
“I’m still living in Wellington,” Castaneda said. “I love my hometown!”
He was named one of America’s top ten chefs, and also appeared on the Food Network’s All-Star Academy.
“Being named one of the top 10 cooks in America was surreal,” Castaneda said. “I kept telling myself, ‘it can’t get better than this’ and it keeps happening.”
Castaneda took sixth place in the world in the dessert category at the World Food Championships and 11th place in seafood.
“I’m still going to represent the state this year at the World Food Championships after taking first in Kansas,” he said.
Castaneda has had the honor of cooking alongside Bobby Flay, Michael Symon, Alex Guarnaschelli, Curtis Stone and Ted Allen.
“There was lots of talent in one room, and it also happened to be the same studio where Iron Chef America, Emeril Live and a few other cooking shows were filmed,” he said. “It was an amazing experience!”
Castaneda has had the honor of cooking for celebrities such as Lauren Daigle, Spencer Ware, Dante Hall, Derrick Johnson, A Day To Remember, Skillet, and Thousand Foot Krutch.
To find out what Devour’s current menu is, information can be found on Instagram and Facebook @devourfoodtruck. Check out JT’Shack on Facebook for current menu and more information.
