Not much of an update. Still working on things.
I hurt my neck again and have been in a serious amount of pain. Stupid neck problems started years ago and still continue. Had surgery to fix them in 05, but still have other problems. Hopefully it gets better so I can finish everything up and get open.
Bought a outdoor pub table from Home Depot for $64. We are going to use it outside and without chairs. It will be a stand up table since it is so tall. It should work good for people who don't have time to sit down and eat. This will give them a place to stand and not have to hold their food the whole time.
Nothing new on the catering side. Will hopefully know something soon.
Will post again once I feel a little better.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Monday, August 17, 2009
New furniture for the business!
Bought 2 sets of these on Saturday morning. Did you know that Lowes opens at 6:00am? I got there at about 6:15am and bought this set and the one in the box that's behind it. These will be perfect for our indoor seating area. Got them for half off (only $44 a set!). Would like to get 4 more sets, but will have to wait and see. That would give me 12 seats with just those and then another 8 with the ones my brother in law is letting me borrow. I would love to just have my own, but we have to spend money where it is needed.
I am planning on changing the seat cushion color. My niece likes it because of the green, but I would rather have it match everything else that I have. We have some blue leather material, but it doesn't match the blue in the umbrellas....yes, it matters! We might wait until I get a logo and have that sown into the seats....that would look real classy!
I off-loaded both sets at about 7:15am and then locked the front door. Someone had walked up and started knocking on the front door. I didn't hear it at first but finally did and decided to go ahead and leave thru the side door and find out who was knocking. It ended up being our neighbor, who owns the house behind where we live. She wanted to know if I would be available for a parks department (city) function they are going to do in September. They love the idea of the cart and the nostalgia of it. It will go great with their event (re-dedication of WWII softball park). Well of course I said "Yes". This will be a great opportunity for people to get to know the business. Will have to start working out the details for the event. They are still working on a date.
Might not do the hot dog eating contest this year. I am so busy trying to get opened up and my catering is taking off! I really wanted to do this, but would have to hire an employee to handle all my other business so I could focus on this. I am going to try and have it next year, but earlier in the year. I need several months to plan and get my sponsorship and that won't happen until after Christmas time. It's hard enough to get people to sponsor something, but nearly impossible if you start asking around Christmas time.
Waiting to hear back on my bids for the 2 private parties in October. I am going to see them tomorrow and will work with them on getting this done. I really want to do both events because it could open doors for more events down the road.
We are pushing to get some things done this week. We have been busy with prior engagements and need to put all of our focus on getting open and running. We have been trying to open for a really long time and things are just coming up that we have to take care of. Will be glad to be operating and making some money.
Still looking for someone to do a logo for me. Starting to worry that it won't ever happen. I can't draw on paper or on the computer, so I can't rely on myself to do it. Hit me up if you have someone who can do it on the cheap!
Also looking for a metal fabricator in my area. I am drawing up designs for my own carts and would like to figure out how much it would cost. I think building my own is the way to go, because then I get exactly what I want. I have someone who can help with the gas lines, so I just need assistance in building the shell....actually, I just need someone who can do the body work. I can weld the frame, but don't know how to bend the sheet metal and attach it to the frame. It is going to be a major undertaking, but will be worth it in the long run. Heck, that may even turn into a side business if everything goes well!
Busy is the word for this week. Hopefully that word turns in to Productive, before the weekend!
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Part timing it might be the best option
Might be only going part time because of a regular job opportunity that has come up. It won't be a problem because we will just hire someone to work during the week. Who wouldn't want to work for 4 hours a day?
Should know something in the next week or so about this job. It is in our town and I won't have that wonderful drive to Austin everyday. It is a job I've wanted for a couple of years and will hopefully be getting an interview for it this week. I am more than qualified for the position and the benefits are amazing! More info when I know something......
Still working on my catering bids...been hard because we need to get the cost down. I think we have it down enough now and will just need to finalize the bid. The catering part of the business is a great way to make some money, but is really hard because everyone has a budget that you need to stay at. If someone said, "Just do your normal thing and I will pay for it" then things would be wonderful and I would make lots of money....they don't do that in the real world! I have to pinch pennies or I don't make a dime!
My competition has now decided to start making Chicago Dogs. Funny how they didn't do that until I started talking about it. They are also selling "Gourmet" hot dogs. Hope they really are "gourmet" or that will cause them to lose some business. Can't lie about things like that and then think that people will forgive you for it later. Good luck to them.
I am going to finish the kitchen this week. If I ever want to open, that has to be done. Once that is done then the other areas should be easy to finish.
I am working on a drawing of how our dining room area will eventually be setup. I want to make it look like a patio and have some wood railings setup around it with planter boxes. I basically want it to look like a Chicago style outdoor patio restaurant...but have it inside. I think that will really bring the customers in and we might even extend the hours to dinner time if it works out.
I don't see why we couldn't compete with the local restaurants for dinner...especially if we start serving soups and chili. We would only need to make a dinner menu that was a little less "fast food". I have thought about this before and think that we could really do it. I will just need to figure out what else we can serve (can't be anything fried) that people will want...maybe some hot sandwiches....like an Italian beef or a Philly Cheese. We could also carry some exotic sausages. Will have to keep thinking about that one.
Started thinking about our Grand Opening event again. Will need to try and plan that party soon. I have so many other things going on, but this will be important to getting the word out about our place.
No word on the hot dog eating contest. My rep has been having problems with his email. Will need to call him tomorrow to find out if we can still do this. I have to start getting sponsors for this within the next few weeks.
Will hopefully have more info on everything this week and post again. Had a bad week and didn't get a chance to post. I am also going to stop posting personal items here because I am starting another blog. I think it is best to separate my working life with my personal life....especially since this blog is supposed to be about my working life. I will post the link here once that blog is up and running.
Oh, I forgot to rant about something!!!!!!!!!!
Rachel Ray has no idea what a good hot dog is. Yes, I said it! She picked Bar S hot dogs as the best in her little test. Those are the cheapy hot dogs that Walmart sells for next to nothing. Is she out of her mind? I think she needs to go back and test some real hot dogs and then tell us what she thinks. Here is the link to her top hot dogs: http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news&id=6148063
Notice that she doesn't have Vienna Beef on the list. Maybe if she ate a real hot dog, then she wouldn't have Bar S as her #1. I did notice that this came from her magazine and that she might not have actually tasted any of the hot dogs....not my problem. She put her name on the magazine so in my opinion, she made the decision.
Should know something in the next week or so about this job. It is in our town and I won't have that wonderful drive to Austin everyday. It is a job I've wanted for a couple of years and will hopefully be getting an interview for it this week. I am more than qualified for the position and the benefits are amazing! More info when I know something......
Still working on my catering bids...been hard because we need to get the cost down. I think we have it down enough now and will just need to finalize the bid. The catering part of the business is a great way to make some money, but is really hard because everyone has a budget that you need to stay at. If someone said, "Just do your normal thing and I will pay for it" then things would be wonderful and I would make lots of money....they don't do that in the real world! I have to pinch pennies or I don't make a dime!
My competition has now decided to start making Chicago Dogs. Funny how they didn't do that until I started talking about it. They are also selling "Gourmet" hot dogs. Hope they really are "gourmet" or that will cause them to lose some business. Can't lie about things like that and then think that people will forgive you for it later. Good luck to them.
I am going to finish the kitchen this week. If I ever want to open, that has to be done. Once that is done then the other areas should be easy to finish.
I am working on a drawing of how our dining room area will eventually be setup. I want to make it look like a patio and have some wood railings setup around it with planter boxes. I basically want it to look like a Chicago style outdoor patio restaurant...but have it inside. I think that will really bring the customers in and we might even extend the hours to dinner time if it works out.
I don't see why we couldn't compete with the local restaurants for dinner...especially if we start serving soups and chili. We would only need to make a dinner menu that was a little less "fast food". I have thought about this before and think that we could really do it. I will just need to figure out what else we can serve (can't be anything fried) that people will want...maybe some hot sandwiches....like an Italian beef or a Philly Cheese. We could also carry some exotic sausages. Will have to keep thinking about that one.
Started thinking about our Grand Opening event again. Will need to try and plan that party soon. I have so many other things going on, but this will be important to getting the word out about our place.
No word on the hot dog eating contest. My rep has been having problems with his email. Will need to call him tomorrow to find out if we can still do this. I have to start getting sponsors for this within the next few weeks.
Will hopefully have more info on everything this week and post again. Had a bad week and didn't get a chance to post. I am also going to stop posting personal items here because I am starting another blog. I think it is best to separate my working life with my personal life....especially since this blog is supposed to be about my working life. I will post the link here once that blog is up and running.
Oh, I forgot to rant about something!!!!!!!!!!
Rachel Ray has no idea what a good hot dog is. Yes, I said it! She picked Bar S hot dogs as the best in her little test. Those are the cheapy hot dogs that Walmart sells for next to nothing. Is she out of her mind? I think she needs to go back and test some real hot dogs and then tell us what she thinks. Here is the link to her top hot dogs: http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news&id=6148063
Notice that she doesn't have Vienna Beef on the list. Maybe if she ate a real hot dog, then she wouldn't have Bar S as her #1. I did notice that this came from her magazine and that she might not have actually tasted any of the hot dogs....not my problem. She put her name on the magazine so in my opinion, she made the decision.
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