[Dr_KY]

From the context of the process I am going through either I am doing way too much work, laws and regs are far less stringent and loans much easier to get outside of NY, or there are a lot of guys on here doing it under the table or in for a rude awakening with the HD, banks, their own savings, etc. What am I missing?

I started my business off my own back. For us the key was not to drop in at a veny with the biggest baddest mulit dollar gear but to get the ball rollig with what we could build. The pots and pans were loaned from a pub landlords kitchen, cheap gazebo, and fold up tables. My smoker was built from a water bowser found on ebay and still is our main cooker today. The most important thing was to get insurance, register as a business and get the health department on board. I took a class for my food service license that cost about 60.00 all in.

None of this helps with putting together a business plan but it's how we started and are doing well.