Ok-I'm ready, I think

Hi!...first of all I don't know what part of the country you're in but the best advice that I can give you is...find a need & fill it! If you take the "me too" approach and your target market is already saturated you have a problem going in. It's going to be tough in any case unless you already have a bunch of money to invest in equipment because lenders are not excited about lending money to a new venture that they probably don't understand. The good news is that once you've operated your own business, you will never work for any one else again! If you've got the "fire in your belly" go for it!! You will get a lot of help from the experts on this forum
Bill

good points, chateaubeyond.
phatboy, you definitely dont want to do this for financial gain. if you do this, it must be what you want more than anything in the world. the hours are long, the work is temendous and continuous. not to mention strain on any relationships you may have with friends and family. and the money isnt always there. yea, eveyone goes through hardship walls of one sort or another. but to know if its really right for you imagine this. ok, say you have been doing it for a few months. chips are down. sales are slow, funds are low, equipment needs repairs, bills are overdue, and the rain just keeps coming.......can you still look up to the sky and shout "thank you lord!", while grinning ear to ear? if yes, then its for you. yea, that scenario was me. almost 11 months now my wife and i took the plunge. loving every minute of it! we are always here, to help folks like yourself, if you do decide to go for it. we are always full of ideas to help tackle any problems you may encounter.. "its not bbq, its aaq"

You mention you've been smoking for a couple of years. Are you selling, on site, as a caterer? How much business do you do? Are you wanting to cater full time or open a restaurant?

The reason I ask is that if you're wanting to start a restaurant the issues are different than catering.

The number one thing, if you have it, is a good reputation. But I've seen a few Q restaurants around here with "good names" that failed. Not because they didn't have a reputation, but they picked a bad spot.

If you're going to do this full time as a business, they you need to develop a business plan, to create a plan for how much capital you'll need, etc. Those will then serve you in making the decision.

None of us can tell you the right answer, you'll have to make the decision, but this is a great forum and there's more than a few in this pro forum that can help you either as a caterer or as a restauranteur.

Good luck, hope it works for you.

Smokin'

Thanx for the replies. I live in west central Ohio-the closest place that makes or sells any kind of smoked food I have found is "Burbanks", and they are over 70 miles away. I do want to find a permanent structure and start with a drive thru type business-then if it goes well expand-if not tuck my tail and crawl away. I have a lot of equipment already set up in my garage-including a charbroiler and the start of a walk in cooler......

Hi I just opened a bbq joint in oxford ohio called the smokin ox. Im pretty close to where you are. Bussiness is insanely busy. I work 18-20 hours a day 7 days a week. Ive been in the restaurant industry for 15 years and it definatley has to be something you love. Definatly get a verry good bussiness plan together, check into local building and health codes and be prepared to go through a ton of bullshit to get permits and licences. Stop in and see us sometime ill show you what im doing. P.S. I use a cookshack model 200 (largest i could fit through the door) and it works great meets all state and local codes and has pretty good capacity. Looks like im going to need another one soon though if bussiness stay as crazy as it does.

The forum info. i just read was very interesting to me. i am also very serious bout opening a bbq drive-thru.i have a great corner location i purchased a year ago, vacant land right now.i have thought about many different business ventures to go into but have always resorted back to bbq.
there was one bbq shack in town about 10 yrs ago, that did great, different hardships closed him down.but IT WAS GOOD BBQ.
only problem,i have no experience in the food industry,but a strong interest to learn.
what i would like to know is about these smokers,are they really as simple to operate as they sound,to make great,consistent bbq everytime,even for a person with little experience? i've seen one of both cookshack and ole hickory. i have talked to the folks that had them,and sure enough they say they are cadillacs, no more fighting a fire.
i've talked to the distributors of southern pride & ole hickory in my area.both told me if i follow their direction, i can't miss.if this is true, is it just capacity i should concern myself with? and cost of course, but i really want to buy the smoker that i think will hold me over. i'm pretty sure if we can get this business down, and it's as foolproof as it sounds to make great bbq each and every time, with just some tricks of the trade they say they'll help me with,i'm pretty sure i'll do good.
i would also like to know what the advantages of buying a gas/wood rotissorie or electric/wood box type model are.
would it pay me to spend in excess of 10,000 on a rotary , or 5000 plus on something i think i may need another one of one day?
i know the cookshack is capable of handling big loads of meat also,but as with all the price goes up also, and at 10000 plus i think i like the looks of the rotary better. any information anyone could help me with on this subject would be appreciated. i am not really sure and will it even make a difference?thanks

T.M.C. If you have no foodservice experince, I would not recommend jumping into this right away. If you can handle it financially, I would recommend working in the industry for a few months. Preferably a BBQ place if at all possible.

I think there is a huge market for BBQ. The problem is the difficulty of serving consistently great food. Many a BBQ cook-off winner has gone broke opening their own joint. Why? There is a big difference between choosing the best of four slabs of ribs, and serving 50 slabs of ribs a day. If I had buttloads of time, and the picking and choosing luxury, I might win a few cookoffs myself. But that's not my business..

My goal is to give the most consistently GOOD food of anyone. Many folks say that my restaurant serves the best BBQ they ever ate. I love those comments, because to me, they are eating the most consistently good BBQ they ever ate. You are only as good as your worst product.

As for the hardware out there, there are a few good machines, but they are only as good as their operator. A phone call to Cookshack will provide you with a wealth of information. You should pursue that. Cookshack is a top notch customer service company.

If you want, feel free to e-mail me personally with the specifics of your particular piece of real estate. We aren't quite there yet, but we are looking towards franchising and/or liscensing in the very near future.

Good Luck to You!

quote:

Originally posted by BQ Matt:
You are only as good as your worst product.

Very well said, BQ Matt. btw...what's the name of your operation & where are you located?

T.M.C., I wouldn't hesitate a second to get in touch with BQ Matt, and the folks at Cookshack. You'll come away with a wealth of information to aid you in this endeavor.

There are alot of minority business perk's and money available for a women owners .....if you catch my hint.

Topchef... Our family operates 2 Two Brothers BBQ locations in Wichita, KS.