What iis the day in the life of a BBQ food truck? - Page 2

HBMTN · 11-13-2018, 07:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hayduke

I have 3 kids and one thing I hated about managing restaurants is that I never got to see them.

My kids were 6 and 8 when I started the business. They will be 16 and 18 in a few weeks. I missed many things and was too tired to do other things looking back on it. That said I opened my business at the same time as the economic crash of 2009, had I not done so we would have struggled a lot the past 10 years and I would have had to work just as much as I have and not made near the money. It's tough looking back on it with the kids but I wouldn't change it.

ynotfehc · 11-13-2018, 07:44 PM

I dont cook brisket for lunches, only dinner service at taprooms. Normal lunch menu is pork, chicken, sausage, beans, slaw and mac and cheese, with 2 sauces and pickles. Everything is made from scratch. Is there enough family time? There is never enough time for that. My daughter will be 2 in January, and when I have back to back taproom events, I wont see her for a couple days. Of course I would love to come home and wake her up just to hear her laugh, see her smile, read a book, chase her around the house, but my way wife would probably kill me, and once a toddler is sleeping, best not to wake a sleeping lion. But I still get time with her. And in order to have time with my wife, it means less sleep.

ynotfehc · 11-13-2018, 08:20 PM

My commissary setup this year also put a strain on my schedule. I was working out of a restaurant, that was open from 8a-10p. So getting in from 730-11 was basically impossible. I had to do my prep and cleanup around their schedule. I also didnt pay anything either in exchange for some consulting work. 3 months free rent while I get started has been great. Next year I'm looking for a new place to use and that will even out my schedule a little bit. You can always make it easier on you by hiring staff too. Obviously a brisket will take as long as it needs to, but if you train somehow how to get it started and make sides, that will free up a lot of time, but theres th payroll expense with that too. For a while I had my brother in law helping me cashier during lunch, after the weather started to cool off I worked alone. There are trucks out there that the owner simply manages the business and hires staff for everything else. I dont personally think that is viable for a startup, but some have done it.

11-13-2018, 07:44 PM	#17
ynotfehc Full Fledged Farker Join Date: 07-03-13 Location: St Paul, MN	I dont cook brisket for lunches, only dinner service at taprooms. Normal lunch menu is pork, chicken, sausage, beans, slaw and mac and cheese, with 2 sauces and pickles. Everything is made from scratch. Is there enough family time? There is never enough time for that. My daughter will be 2 in January, and when I have back to back taproom events, I wont see her for a couple days. Of course I would love to come home and wake her up just to hear her laugh, see her smile, read a book, chase her around the house, but my way wife would probably kill me, and once a toddler is sleeping, best not to wake a sleeping lion. But I still get time with her. And in order to have time with my wife, it means less sleep.

11-13-2018, 08:20 PM	#18
ynotfehc Full Fledged Farker Join Date: 07-03-13 Location: St Paul, MN	My commissary setup this year also put a strain on my schedule. I was working out of a restaurant, that was open from 8a-10p. So getting in from 730-11 was basically impossible. I had to do my prep and cleanup around their schedule. I also didnt pay anything either in exchange for some consulting work. 3 months free rent while I get started has been great. Next year I'm looking for a new place to use and that will even out my schedule a little bit. You can always make it easier on you by hiring staff too. Obviously a brisket will take as long as it needs to, but if you train somehow how to get it started and make sides, that will free up a lot of time, but theres th payroll expense with that too. For a while I had my brother in law helping me cashier during lunch, after the weather started to cool off I worked alone. There are trucks out there that the owner simply manages the business and hires staff for everything else. I dont personally think that is viable for a startup, but some have done it.