Our Story

The Flying Stove’s inception happened in Venice Beach, CA in the year 2000 while living right off the beach on Breeze Ave in a place dubbed “The Breeze.” This is where native Wichitans Jeff, his cousin Naython, buddy Luke, friend Thomas, and a whole cast of colorful characters rallied around an ambiguous utilitarian symbol…The Stove. Why a Stove you ask? Not sure, kinda depends on who you ask, but The Stove symbol gave a group of friends a loose banner to represent whatever was projected upon it. Ultimately, it stands for authentic self expression and an irreverent spirit, whether it be through skateboarding, surfing, grafitti, hip hop, music, or just drinking beer and having fun. This symbol was spray painted, pasted, stenciled, and stickered all over Los Angeles, then California, and then wherever the Stove crew traveled.

The Stove’s next incarnation was an art collective/gallery in Albuquerque, New Mexico that showcased art, music, comedy, and random acts of weirdness.

In 2003, after culinary school in Austin, TX, Jeff’s brother Rob moved out to Los Angeles to hone his chops in LA’s fine dining scene. He landed at Table 8 under Govind Armstrong and then several other establishments before working with Andrew Kirschner at The Wilshire. It was chefs like these and the exposure to LA’s cultural melting pot that would teach Rob to focus on using fresh seasonal produce and the best local ingredients to create his own globally inspired dishes.

Around 2008, Jeff and Rob started noticing a food truck in their Venice neighborhood called Kogi Truck. Food trucks were a common fixture around Venice, but not ones that serve Korean Short Rib Tacos and Kimchi Quesadillas. Ya see, fusion food didn’t really exist, but more importantly it was the birth of the idea that you could do any kind of food you wanted on a truck. Basically, it was the democratization of “fine dining” food. Of course, timing is everything and the confluence of cooking shows and personalities along with social media and a super talented chefs taking to the streets made the food truck industry explode.

In 2010, Jeff and Rob were both ready for a new adventure. Rob was starting to get burnt out at his restaurant and wanted to be able to make the same high level food but in a more accessible way. The idea of creating innovative food but being able to roll up and serve to anyone on the street was like a lightbulb going off.

This is when the idea of a gourmet food truck and the ethos of The Stove formed like Voltron and The Flying Stove was born. Since the Stove happened to be a key cooking device, that didn’t hurt either.

The Flying Stove hit the streets of Wichita in December of 2011. They were the first food truck to serve a chef-forward, rotating menu and to utilize social media to announce pop-ups all over town. However, Wichita’s “modern” food truck scene grew quickly, and it wasn’t long before The Flying Stove was joined by MMM Sandwiches, BS Sandwich Press, Espresso To Go Go, Cakeface, and Funky Monkey Munchies, Let’m Eat Brats….and many many more have come and gone throughout the years. The Flying Stove has always welcomed kindred spirits trying to give food trucking a go, after all it’s hard enough already. Jeff started the Wichita Food Truck Coalition later in the year of 2012 and worked with the local food truck community and the city to update the obsolete mobile vending ordinance. The Flying Stove also organized Wichita’s first Food Truck Rally in December of 2012 and ran Food Truck’s at The Fountain until 2021.

For over a decade plus, The Flying Stove has served the people of Wichita. They’ve gotten to meet new customers, watch them come to the truck on their first date, serve their weddings, and welcomed their children to the truck. They’ve gotten to meet and work with many talented local food truckers, chefs, restauranteurs, purveyors, and local artisans. It’s really these relationships and most importantly the relationships with our customers that keep The Stove Flying.