Where you do source your products?

Keep us up on your adventure. Last year we helped Peggy and Jack get started. Always fun to follow the story when you know the people.

Someone will jump in, but some thoughts.

I spend a lot of time with catering and restaurant friends. The questions for you are:

1) Cost
2) Cost
3) Cost

No, just kidding, well not really. Quality and consistency are a big deal. But what I have available in Oklahoma means nothing to you in Idaho.

What's available to you? Is there a large Food Service company. Check on their prices. Check for wholesales in your area, what prices?

For some of the bulk items, like salts, garlic, etc, you can find some outfits online that ship and can get some prices.

we are using a small niche market food service here. back in my old chef days st johns food service was noted for high quality and being able to provide products on a saturday in an emergency. they are still that way!!!
now that we do some competitions as exposure for our business and we have been having good luck doing custom smoking they are my supplier. i don't know of anyone one else where i can walk in and the main meat buyer ask how we did in competition (and they were real pleased with us winning the peoples choice award for pork at okeechobee) or to hand pick out a case of briskets and ribs and ask for my input into what i would like for them to buy.
are they the cheapest??? no but the health inspector liked the fact that they would deliever to us, on site, on a saturday in thier refrigerated truck!!
more importantly than that they are local owned, their meats are not injected (matter of fact the bone in butts come from a town where i grew up in indiana so i can bet that they are a mennoite product) and i know who i am dealing with.
while price is important i hold honesty in much higher regard!!!
if you end up with sysco a word of advice. watch your invoice. my experience was a .5% monthly creep or to put it another way a 6% annual. and my experience is not uncommon as there is a thread here just about sysco.
so my advice is find a locally owned supplier and work with them
and smokin is right--they helped us a bunch in this forum and it is a great place to ask questions
jack