were to go

Bozman,
Are you wanting to start a restaurant, a catering business, a vending business?
Start with a plan, plan on spending a lot more money than you think you need to start, be very frugal, watch for seminars at low cost to you on sales taxes, zoning requirements in your state, county and city.
Talk with an accountant.
How long have you been cooking? Do you have a plan for living on an existing income while you're building your business?
Maybe start with doing some special catering projects like birthday parties, weddings(although those can be bad), ask friends for referrals.
Think also about the hours you'll have to invest in it. Good BBQ isn't done in an hour. You have to carefully plan for production.
Good luck to you.
Peggy
P.S. We're just starting. Got our equipment delivered 9/2004, got state inspection 1/2005, got county and city approval 3/2005. Finally earning income. Hurricanes didn't help

Thank you I needed some place to start. I've started cooking in 87. I was a cook in the service for 3 years. I've cooked in restaurants, schools, and was certifide in dietary manegment. I have done catring out my house and for banquet hall my friend opened. This cooking is a little different though. I haven't cooked full time for 7 years. I got burnt out after working for a very large company (compass group). I have many resouces though. My brother and I playing with this idea. He is the scientific one I'm the shoot from the hip one, a nice check and balence. We are going to try small stuff at first. Maybe volunteer for church picanic or found raiser or something. My friend with the banquet hall has a catering licence. Every thing hinges on how we do as to were this takes us. I have a good job now and so does my brother. This is more to set up for retirerment. Good luck with your venture. Oh and if my spelling is off thats because my spell check went to bed (my wife). Thank you very much and if you need any info on fire supresion systems and extingushers just ask because that is what I do now. I'm a jack of all trades when it comes to kitchens. Mike,

Mike, I wish you the best of luck. There is a New England BBQ Association which is mostly competition based. But maybe they can guide you along, too.
Check with the National BBQ Association.
I say it requires a lot of money. I know the state of Florida inspection alone costs right at $400. annually. We had to get zoning for the city for a home business. It's restricted, our trailer must be stored outside the city. If we operate in the city, we have to get a special event permit.
Don't forget the insurance. We have to have $500.000 liability for the farmers market.
But we love to do good BBQ.
People spend more on sportfishing down here.
If you really love what you do...
Peggy

Hey Peggy,
Have you looked into, or do you think it would be worthwhile to look into, smoking fish for the sport fishing guys?

I used to order smoked mackrel, smoked mackrel spread, and other smoked type seafood products(amberjack, scallops, etc) from a supplier in Fla. He was just a one man operation but he had quite a business with restaurants. He sold his products to restaurants serviced by a wholesale fish supplier, and when you ordered from him they would deliver it on the suppliers truck with your next fish order. I would think there might be a market for the sport fishing crowd to have you smoke their catch, then ship it to them next week when they're at home or wherever.

Hmmmm
Thanks, Todd! That's another thing to think on!
I'd think that would be a lot of liability on the shipping fish. I don't have a clue on shipping food.
How do people go about that? Anybody have any experience shipping?

Thanks,
Peggy

I knew your days weren't completly full, and I figured another little project would help you cut down on the outrageous 8 hours of sleep you claim you need every night.

As for the shipping food part, you're probabaly correct. I bet you'd need a USDA approved kitchen to supply restaurants or any resale type operation, especially out of staters. But I think(dangerous thing) that you have a loop hole of sorts if you could offer a service to fisherpeople for the smoking of their own fish. I know of a couple of BBQ places around here that advertise their services during deer season, and there are a few places that I know of that smoke fish on the Outer Banks for tourists/sport fishermen.

I just want your smokers to be pumping out the smoke. More smoke=more money and I know the CS can work 24/7.

Speaking of shipping, check this out:
https://www.saltlickbbq.net/slbb.htm

I saw them on Food TV today and was curious. Now if you could sell 2 racks of ribs, a 3-4# turkey breast, and a 4-5# brisket for #135+ shipping(like their Salt Lick Special w/racks), and do it maybe 10x a day, that wouldn't be so bad now would it? Take a look at their menu prices while you're there too. And not a butt in site.

Todd,
It would be cool to have fishermen bring fish to us, smoke them and sell them back. I wouldn't want to smoke a freelance fisherman's fish and sell it to someone else. I don't think we're ready for shipping to other states. Most of the fishermen I've met are too tired to wait for smoked fish, and most of them do their own.
But it's a good plan, I'll have to think on it during my sleep.
Peggy

todd,
next to us at the farmers market is rita the fish lady. her husband does it all since he is a commercial fisherman.
currently in my "partime time job" i work mon-thursday and then friday i go out to my rig to smoke starting around 9am. then at 4am saturday morning i get the sausage gravy and other breakfast stuff going. at 6am saturday peg comes out with the tow truck (and yes i really do sleep next to my fast eddys )) i kill gennies and load tow truck up and off we go for 5 hours.
now after all this rambling we now have a tradition of giving rita bbq in exchange for fish. after i tow back to park the rig and clean it we go home and i eat fish and i hate fish but after 6 straight days of inhaling wood smoke it does taste real good--so no way -no how am i going to goof this tradition up and by the way grouper crusted with wasabi and sesames seeds made me even like fish.
hope you take this in the humours vein it was meant to be and thanks for all your good past advice
jack

ps
only reason i am writing this is i am waiting for peg to get home
i still have to rehang my hood filters and polish the diamond plate floor for tomorrows annual dept of health inspection and i just went thru one wednsday at work
is that inhumane or what???!!!!