I want to open a business with food.
Seeing how a restaurant is out of the question, what's the most bare bones operation I can achieve?
Redpill me on food trucks. Are there hidden fees I'm not aware of?
What's the difference between a food truck and a catering truck? Can you have a catering business that sells like a food truck?
You can be one of those guys at the train station with a hot dog grill strapped to your chest
>most barebones
Sell candy bars, cans of sardines, water bottles, fresh fruits, etc. You can unwrap them and put them on paper plates and pour the water in plastic cups.
For food trucks you cat store them where every you want they have to go to a lot With other food trucks you also pay a fee every year which is around $1000ish
>Redpill me on food trucks. Are there hidden fees I'm not aware of?
You wont get a good answer to that here, some jurisdictions are friendlier to this sort of thing than others.
Other than a simple tax you have to pay to the state you're selling in, food trucks are the way to go. Trolleys are actually better as you can hook them up to your existing vehicle and they don't need their own plates and you don't have to pay insurance on them. Order your supplies wholesale online and invest in a deep freezer and walk-in pantry at home, made out of a spare closet or room if you have to. The best signs consist of 11x17 or larger hi-res photos plastered onto white cardboard with handmade poster writing. Be sure to have a smaller menu at the window. As for drinks, the usual canned soda and small bottles of water is fine, but people go out of their mind for canned tea and juice. No Snapple or anything else glass, people don't want to carry anything heavy when they go to a food trolley. Always use wax paper to wrap, never tin foil.
Start small scale from there and work your way up to a catering service. At least if an independent food trolley fails you have a stockpile of food and bevs in your home for personal use and can resell the supplies. If you invest in something as big as catering and it flops you're pretty screwed.
Why do you guys have to be assholes? Owning a food truck is a respectable business, why not?
Reflect upon the wisdom of this user Know also that Food Trucks have their own regulations and fees and liscences that vary by state and municipality. You need to know WHERE you're selling and WHAT you're selling and HOW you're selling it
As for your questions:
The most bare bones thing you can do is selling food out of your home kitchen to friends and acquaintances. This is how a lot of people got started who now own fairly big businesses. Mind you they cannot EAT in your home because that makes it a restaurant. Another option is to become a food vendor at a venue like a stadium and sell boiled peanuts and shit like that.
It depends entirely on your state and even city and you have to research. Some places are lax, some places forbid them entirely.
A food truck serves curbside or wherever it parks and people come to them, it is typically short order or made to order food.
A catering business prepares food and then finishes and/or serves it at a pre-arranged venue. If someone hires you to cook at their wedding you are catering. If you set up your hotdog stand down the block from their wedding and feed the drunk people looking for something better than pan warmed chicken ala king, you are a food truck
Go to the grocery store and only buy produce that you can grow in your state. Remove all the labels. Wash the produce and dry it off. With a towel, buff it to a spit shine. Put it in a pretty container with some buzzwords, and sell it at a farmer's market for 4x what you paid. Only accept cash. Be sure to grow a beard, wear a flannel shirt, overalls, and horn-rimmed glasses. If you can get a friend to act like your gay lover, then even better. Be careful with the buzzwords and what you say.
Don't say: "I grew this locally."
Do say: "Consuming produce that is grown locally and responsibly brings me good vibes."
You're not making a statement about your product. You're not even saying the produce is yours. You're just talking about an idea. When someone asks you if your product is organic then just say, "Organic is the way to go, my friend!" Did you grow it? Where's your farm? "I'm a big believer in the locavore movement, for sure."
Another big money maker is popcorn. A dollar bag of popcorn, 50 cents of oil, and 500 count box of brown paper bags for $10 (2 cents/bag) can yield you $28 worth of merchandise. You'll have a shitload of paper bags leftover. People are afraid of plastic so don't get that. If you want to go the extra mile, get a piece of cardboard and cut out a logo, then spray paint on each bag. Buy some organic oil but never open it. Just put it next to your cheaply made popcorn as part of the presentation. Don't tell anyone that you really used cheap soybean oil. If you want to, keep the receipt and return the organic oil when you're done.
Source: I may or may not be doing this.
Guess it's because the food truck thing comes up pretty often here. Good luck anyway
No it doesn't.
I've had this idea of opening a kabayaki and ramen stand in an alley. Everything on the ground. Just me slav squatting in an alley fanning barbecuing eels and shouting at drunk passersby to buy it. Coat hangers with dried noodles hanging behind me and a pot of ever-simmering broth to scoop from. This is the life I want. Can I achieve this in any capacity in the US?
>can u achieve it in the US?
Yes, if Trumpet is elected.
You sure about that? I can redpill you on my jurisdiction.
t. health inspector
Yes do it
Where'd you go faggot? Redpill me.
I'll post in pieces since I don't know what the character limit is.
This user touches on some of it, but food trolleys/trailers aren't permitted where I work aside from use at special events or as a park concessionaire.
That being said, the required paperwork is relatively straightforward: For TX you would need a Sales Tax ID from the Comptroller's Office with the name of your business. The vehicle needs current insurance & registration, but as far as we're concerned, if DOT allows it on the road and it's a fully motorized unit that moves as one (no trailers- goosenecks, balls, hitches) we will allow it. We allow modifications & retrofits- some coffee trucks are small delivery vans like a Sprinter or Step Van, while full scale restaurants on wheels are on modified 18 wheelers or on large charter buses that have enough space for both a dining and kitchen area.
When the vehicle is squared away, you need to have a commissary to park the truck at night, service the vehicle, resupply & dispose of clean/dirty water, used oil, etc. Amenities at these vary- some are barebones with parking lots and wash bays, others have a large common kitchen & food coolers for each client. Prices vary wildly. We don't allow restaurants to be used as food truck commissaries- grease interceptor too small to handle the volume of water from both truck & restaurant, pavement outside is not graded to drain, lack of a secure parking area, no overhead protection in the washing area, and most of the time the drains in those areas does not connect to the grease interceptor. If the commissary is out of jursidiction, you gotta provide proof that the other City allows it to be used as a legitimate commissary. We also require to see their permit and most recent health inspection and then we'll reach out to both business and health department to confirm.
>bare bones operation
literally just sell bare bones. possibly even bear bones.
Once you have the State paperwork, your vehicle, and a commissary, you will need to apply for a food truck plan review- we look at the blueprints/diagrams, plumbing, electrical, fire equipment, etc that's on the truck. All commercial grade, if it's NSF/UL/CE/CSA/etc. approved, chances are that it will pass muster. No home use equipment. Floors/walls/ceilings made of appropriate materials, no holes/sharp edges/loose screws in the body of the vehicle.
Windows and outer openings would need to be protected from pest entry and the elements. Usually not a problem unless your service windows are open air. A mesh screen is the cheapest way around this. Driver area and food prep area have to be separated by a self closing door. Walls near hot cooking equipment must be stainless steel. FRP will warp and peel from the heat. 3 comp sink and handsink are required, and must be able to immerse your largest utensils for warewashing.
Fire reqs are usually a big expense for someone who bought a cheap vehicle, an older vehicle not up to code, or had something made in a chop shop. Anything that can generate smoke requires a vent hood and a fire suppression system such as an ANSUL. K class fire extinguishers are recommended. If there is propane for gas powered equipment, a LPG (Liquid Propane Gas) permit is required from the Fire Dept. Generators must be separate from cooking equipment. Most folks build a cage or recessed compartment in the vehicle for the generator for easy access.
Vent hoods and suppression systems aren't cheap.
A lot of denied plans that myself or inspectors I assign reviews to result from bad plumbing- sinks aren't routed correctly, lack of backflow prevention devices, water heater is too small, water tanks are too small.
Water heaters aren't a big deal, 3GPM minute equivalent at 110F for handwashing will seal the deal. Electric or gas is fine. No leaks in the pipes obviously. Ice machines must also be routed to the wastewater tanks. Gravity fed water supply is allowed, but it must drain properly. Minimum sizes are 30 gallons of clean water, 45 of waste water. Wastewater must always be 1.5 times the size of the freshwater tank. It gives you wiggle room if you're at a big event with tons of business and need to top off on water. Once the wastewater tank fills up, you're either dumping the water on pavement (stormwater/environmental fine), or you have to close up and go back to the commissary to empty out and top off on freshwater. The first place I go on a busy food truck is the sink. Run all of them at the same time to see if they are starting to backup. If so, the sewage backup is imminent.
Leaking water tanks on the exterior is a problem on older vehicles due to corrosion, dents from rocks and other objects while driving, etc.
Cooling equipment must maintain 41F or less. LOOK CAREFULLY AT MANUFACTURER SPEC SHEETS WHEN YOU BUY. If you get a shitty unit that's rated up to 87F and for indoor use, you're fucked in the summer. Food truck temps get from 110F and beyond when grills, ovens, etc. are running, even with the AC and vents full blast. That hot air has nowhere to go, the compressor will suck it in, and you have a frozen coil and defrost mode before you know it. That's when we tend to show up. Always read those spec sheets on whatever you're buying. What you need will depend on you- menu, preparation process, expected volume/demand, etc.
a god
Assuming everything checks out on plan review, the rest of the process is easy- pull a fire permit if necessary, and then apply for the health permit. Our folks meet you at your location for the final inspection. Usually at that point, the only reasons you'd fail is lack of hot water, no water pressure, cooling units not at 41F or less, leaky tanks, lack of power.
After that, we slap the permit on the vehicle and you're ready to vend.
Where to vend?
If you have an annual permit with us, we allow unlimited access to events as long as you have permission to be there from the organizer. No extra permits necessary.
Not allowed on public property, such as parking meters, a street light, or City owned parking lot. Pulling over to vend will get you moved out by the Police for traffic issues too.
No vending in school zones or City parks, unless an event is going on and you're an invited vendor.
Vending is allowed at private property zoned commercial or industrial/light industrial, such as business offices, shopping centers, in front of a store, etc. as long as you have notarized written permission from that owner to be there and access to their restrooms. No restriction on the number of locations for any one truck. For construction zones, get permission from a Superintendent or Foreman.
Roadside vending such as off the highway is considered public property, so avoid that.
That's pretty much permitting in a nutshell, most of your expenses if you take your time and do the research, will be upfront. The ones who want to rush to get into business or want to be cheap about it have problems when they can't pass plans or fail Fire/final inspections because the equipment isn't up to snuff. Good luck to you if you go this route. It's quite doable, but give it time and make sure you have the funds to weather out the truck acquisition and then the time it takes to drum up sustainable business.
My people are on your side. Ask questions.
Just came in this thread to say thanks.
I'm in Texas and was curious about some of the regulations and requirements, although I have no intention of opening a food truck.
I guess it makes sense now that the only trucks I see are insanely expensive, albeit great food.
The food trucks I love that are held together by duct tape and serve cheap tacos seem to be going away, and I'd imagine it's due to the regulatory overhead and equipment requirements.
That sort of truck is still alive and well in outlying areas and smaller cities that allow them- State code (Texas Food Establishment Rules) sets a floor, but local jurisdictions are allowed to be stricter than the State Code. Most, like the bigger cities are stricter. Others, like Austin, are pretty much anything goes.
The little loncheras that look like pickup trucks with the big metal box are still quite plentiful around here though. Those won't go away because everyone loves hot tacos and breakfast tacos, but the gourmet sector is high stakes. I see many trucks go out of business and then get sold on the used market to someone else, who wants to rush into it, and then gets mortified at what all is required. Lots of turnover just like brick and mortar restaurants.
Of course, we're always having to chase the illegal vendors too, but that's guaranteed job security in my circles.
I would buy from you my friend