• working on DNS.. links may break temporarily.

Starting a Drop off catering buisness

W

warren.miller

Knows what a fatty is.
Joined
Aug 17, 2010
Messages
84
Reaction score
1
Points
0
Location
Evansville Indiana
Hello,


I am Starting a Drop off catering buisness. That could possibly turn into something more. Catering, Food truck ect...


However, I want to build it with a strong foundation. I have been scanning the board for a few years. Which has helped alot. I was curious if you could give me some helpful hints when starting out. Or some possible pitfalls I could hope to avoid. Or even somethings that might seem like a no brainer to you guys but I might have over looked.

I have did a few small jobs however, I am working on a website to try and get my name out there.

Thank You
Warren Miller
 
Why drop-off?
Why not on-site?
Drop off means your cooking out of a licensed kitchen?
Either endeavor requires you to be legal just the same.
 
warren.miller said:
Hello,


I am Starting a Drop off catering buisness. That could possibly turn into something more. Catering, Food truck ect...


However, I want to build it with a strong foundation. I have been scanning the board for a few years. Which has helped alot. I was curious if you could give me some helpful hints when starting out. Or some possible pitfalls I could hope to avoid. Or even somethings that might seem like a no brainer to you guys but I might have over looked.

I have did a few small jobs however, I am working on a website to try and get my name out there.

Thank You
Warren Miller
Click to expand...

Well, I'm about 45 days into a Que business, drop off, pick up, catering on site, basically whatever pays me money until I can find a brick and mortar site.

Be prepared to work very hard, blow through giant wads of cash and wonder if you'll ever get to reach for the brass ring. It seems soooooo far over there.

Probably no help, just sayin'...
 
Like BBQ Bubba said it costs the same to be legal to do drop off or full catering as well as concessions. Those are all things that are going to put you out in front of people to help get your name out there.
 
Are you operating out of a licensed kitchen? Do you have a food license? Do you have liability insurance? Do you have a business license (if your city, county, state requires it)? Are you remitting sales tax to your state department of revenue?

If you have sold food then governing agencies consider you as a business and some or all of the above apply. These points must be addressed first if you want to be legal and continue to be legal.

These are just some of the costs of starting a business.
 
Guys,

Thank you for the quick response. I am in the infancy stage of this. I am working on a website and acutally trying to figure out a name. My competition name is AddcitionBBQ. Which seems to abrasive for a catering business. Any IDEAS??? I honestly did not know you had to cook out of a licensed kitchen!?!? How do you do this rent one or build one ect???? Can you run one out of your home??

I was aware of all this:
Do you have a food license? Do you have liability insurance? Do you have a business license (if your city, county, state requires it)? Are you remitting sales tax to your state department of revenue?

But I could use all help I can get with the red tape part of it.

Thank You,
Warren Miller
 
Guys,

Also that made sense of why not just be on site instead of drop off. Those of you who do Drop off. How does it work for you??

What are some ways to get your phone ringing??


Thank You,
Warren Miller
 
It works great. I get to cook out of my trailer, load everything up and drop it off. Must have clear comms with the customer on what your bringing, plastic wear, paper plates, condiments etc.

Cooking on site, is not really cooking on site, I'll start a fire and get smoke in the air but most of the big meats I cook the day prior, they are being reheated on site. Ribs and chicken a bit different.

Network, Network, Network... Feed the neighbors, friends and family and have them tell two friends and so on and so on. Social Media helps, website is a must.
 
warren.miller said:
Guys,
I honestly did not know you had to cook out of a licensed kitchen!?!? How do you do this rent one or build one ect???? Can you run one out of your home??
Click to expand...


www.extremebbqtrailers.com - I have heard nothing but great things about these guys and I'll probably call them for my next trailer.

You can run one out of your home in Virginia but it can not be the kitchen of your home, you have to build a second kitchen that has been pre approved by the health dept first. Make much more sense to me to get a trailer where you can vend or use on a catering job though.
 
warren.miller said:
Guys,

Thank you for the quick response. I am in the infancy stage of this. I am working on a website and acutally trying to figure out a name. My competition name is AddcitionBBQ. Which seems to abrasive for a catering business. Any IDEAS??? I honestly did not know you had to cook out of a licensed kitchen!?!? How do you do this rent one or build one ect???? Can you run one out of your home??

I was aware of all this:
Do you have a food license? Do you have liability insurance? Do you have a business license (if your city, county, state requires it)? Are you remitting sales tax to your state department of revenue?

But I could use all help I can get with the red tape part of it.

Thank You,
Warren Miller
Click to expand...


My advice for starting a new BBQ biz is always as follows:

The very first thing you should do is contact your local Health Department. They should inform you of all the requirement to meet code to run this type of business. Most if not all States do not allow you to use your home kitchen. In KS if you use your home your "business kitchen" and any other "business space" must not be accessible from your home. They can be attached but must have separate entrances.

Work up a detailed business plan. Topics in the plan should contain Capital Investment costs, Initial Setup costs, Operational costs (labor, insurance, utilities, licenses, etc), Projected Sales, etc. This will guide you through the rest of the process and help you to decide if the prospect is profitable.

Once you have decided to go ahead then get all of your business requirements setup. If you operate as a Sole Proprietorship all of your personal assets are at risk. An LLC will help to protect you. Obtain business/tax licenses, etc.

Just remember that you are entering into business and not a hobby. Be prepared for red tape.
 
Well This kitchen requirement has me wondering what you guys do:

Did you make a kitchen at home for use?
Do you use a churches kitchen?
Do you rent one??

Warren
 
We currently rent kitchen time in a local restaurant. We tried the church kitchen option but in KS the license granted to most churches is not a full fledged commercial kitchen license so that won't work for us. We are considering doing an add-on structure to the residence but that will require a large capital outlay, and possible zoning issues, so we are staying with the kitchen rental for now.

A check of your local licensing and zoning requirements will give you an idea of your own options.
 
You can have what they call a tear down kitchen. Then the hd has to come out every time you cook. In Ohio you are allowed this 10 times per county per year. This might be your cheapest bet to get started and still follow all the rules.
 
What exacty is a tear down kitchen?


This commercial kitchen is obviously a big hurdle.

I Googled commercial kitchen rentals and nothing came up in Evansville Indiana??

What do you pay for a kitchen rental. It seems like a hassel to take all your stuff somewhere then cooking or preparing??

Would it be smarter to just invest in a food truck?

Warren
 
Your hd will tell you if a tear down kitchen will work for you. You need a 3 bay sink and a hand wash station with hot water and refrigeration( not just coolers). It's not as complicated as it seems though. You can get by with 3 tubs for your sink but I wouldn't suggest that. I've seen people with this set up and tubs labeled "xmas Decorations" on the side and I wouldn't want to eat food that the utinsels they are using to serve you with were washed in that! Hot water can be obtained by buying an on demand water heater. (mine runs off of propane) For refrigeration I used a chest freezer and put a thermostat on it not allowing it to go to freezing. You can set it at what ever you choose. This is all for the state of Ohio so as suggested before go see the healt department. Let us know what you find out please!
 
I called the HD...

They pretty much said I would have to buy or build a brick and morter. I asked about food trucks and he said they are not making it in our area.

My only option would be to make my garage or a temperorary kitchen.

He was taling about ceiling tiles smooth wall ect.. ALL heard was cha ching cha ching...

He also stated my smoker has to be under roof.


There has to be a way to get this done.
 
There is a way to get it done, but it costs money. Looking for shortcuts wont get you anywhere. So many people out there trying to beat the system and running illegal operations and guys like myself and others doing it right getting screwed. It's going to cost you money to do it right, but that is the only way to do it. There are too many scabs in this business, be a real success, do it right. Good Luck
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

PitRow
Egg Drop soup
Replies
8
Views
574
Big George's BBQ
Big George's BBQ
fat_bastard
What is the current Smoker Du'Jour
Replies
16
Views
1K
bschoen
B
S
Hello from Delaware
Replies
6
Views
197
cowgirl
cowgirl
cayenne
Can you smoke a store bought ham (Spiral or otherwise) ?
2 3
Replies
42
Views
2K
thirdeye
thirdeye
Hotch
You're All Invited to The 2024 Texas BBQ Brethren Spring Bash on April 6!
2 3
Replies
51
Views
4K
Hotch
Hotch
Back
Top