In keeping with the "pay it forward" theme started by Dogfather Mark Gallant's Food Trucks Paying it Forward, I thought I'd tell the hot doggin' world about a guy I met on "the hot dog boards" named Bob Breault. Bob is going to enter the ranks of hot dog slingers with his new hot dog business, Dazzlin Franks. That's the short story. The (slightly but not complete) longer story about Bob follows.
Bob's been a tow truck operator for 6 years or so, but he recently had wrist removal surgery (ugh), so he set out to look for a new avocation. Hot Dog Cart operator is his new chosen profession. Unfortunately for Bob, his Scumbag Insurance Company left him high and dry with $16K worth of medical bills (don't get me started) and pretty much cleaned him out of funds, so he's building his own hot dog cart. As you can see, he's just getting started.
Building your own cart (or buying used) is a good way to get started in the hot dog business without a lot of capital, but it's still work and it does cost money. So Bob and his Dazzlin Franks have an Indiegogo campaign going to help him raise funds for his cart build. He's not looking for a ton of cash- only about $1,500, but when you have been cleaned out by medical bills, it might as well be a million bucks! Consider Paying it Forward by slipping a future hot dog man a few bucks. Every little bit does help!
The second stop on our little Hot Doggin' in Maine tour was the achingly scenic community of Winter Harbor, Maine. This little Down East Maine village of 500 or so people is breathtakingly beautiful; I didn't want to leave!
Winter Harbor, known for its annual Lobster Fest, is also the home of Nui's Delicious Dogs, a spiffy little hot dog cart in the parking lot of the Fisherman's Inn. Husband and wife Matt and Nui Johnson run the hot dog business, selling Maine Red Snappers, Pearl Franks, and Lobster Rolls.
I opted for a chili dog with cheese and Onion Crunch.
I chowed down!
Here's Matt and Nui with Matt's father, Carl, a two time Maine Chef of the year and owner of the Fisherman's Inn.
13 year old Nathan Duszynski made national news when his hot dog cart was shut down Holland, MI officials. They claimed the extra assessments paid by brick and mortar restaurants and merchants in the area made mobile food vending "unfair" since mobile vendors don't pay those assessments.
Protectionism issues aside, I can see the point as to why downtown merchants would want such a rule, if they do bear extra expense for downtown infrastructure, then they should be entitled to protect their investment. Rules do have exceptions though, and this seems like a situation that screams for one. If a 13 year old kid selling hot dogs during the lunch hour is going to threaten a business' viability, then there is something inherently wrong with that business.
Some good hearted restaurateur should partner up with Nathan so he can sell his dogs. The city does have a rule that allows food carts "associated with downtown restaurants." If I had a brick and mortar joint in that neighborhood, I'd be sponsoring young Mr. Duszynski. It's the right thing to do, given the circumstances, and it would have a "feel good" PR effect for the sponsoring restaurant.
WAKE UP HOLLAND RESTAURATEURS AND HOOK THIS KID UP- YOU WILL BE HELPING A FAMILY IN NEED, PROMULGATING THE AMERICAN WAY, AND GETTING SOME GREAT NATIONAL PUBLICITY!!
Several weeks after a city zoning officer shut down his hot dog business, 13-year-old Nathan Duszynski and his parents are homeless.
The family was hoping Nathan’s hot dog cart could help them through a difficult time. Nathan’s mother, Lynette Johnson, suffers from epilepsy and his stepfather, Doug Johnson, has multiple sclerosis. Their illnesses have restricted them from finding permanent, full-time work.
The family receives about $1,300 a month in disability payments, Medicaid and food assistance. The three are having a hard time staying together. MLive confirms what the Mackinac Center learned Thursday — Nathan and his mother are staying at the Holland Rescue Mission.
"Nate and I are now in a shelter," Lynette Johnson said. "Doug can't stay with us because he takes prescription narcotics to deal with his pain and the shelter does not allow him with those kinds of drugs."
She said the situation has been stressful on the family. Lynette is afraid to be away from her husband in case she has a seizure.
Nathan wanted to help out his family by selling hot dogs from a cart he bought with money he saved. He worked out an arrangement with the owner of a local sporting goods store to sell hot dogs in the parking lot. The owner of the store thought it would be a great way to attract customers and even offered Nathan a sales commission if he got people to rent his motorized bicycles.
The city of Holland, however, shut down the business 10 minutes after it opened, informing Nathan it was in the city’s commercial district where food carts not connected to downtown brick-and-motor restaurants are prohibited. The Mackinac Center’s coverage of the issue has drawn national attention.
Last week, Nathan and his family made an appeal to the Holland City Council. Mayor Kurt Dykstra defended the city’s ordinance, saying it was to protect downtown restaurant owners, who asked that the "success of the downtown district not be infringed upon by those who don't share in the costs of maintaining the attractiveness of that space."
A video of the mayor’s comments and the latest on the family's plight will be posted soon. In the mean time, check out this video.
Stop number 26 on the National Hot Dog Month Tour was Harbor Dogs in Scituate, MA. This is probably the coolest location for a hot dog cart we have seen all month: right on Scituate Harbor. There's lots of boat traffic, especially on weekends, and Harbor Dogs is on Scituate's "main drag," so there's good foot and vehicle traffic too.
Harbor Dogs owner, Mike Healy is a life long Scituate resident and a local fire fighter. He started in the hot dog business this spring and hopes to grow into a strong catering operation. When Mike has to be at the station, he has "his man Will" taking care of business.
People who start hot dog businesses tend to be entrepreneurial and independent. Owning your own hot dog business is truly symbolic of the American Dream- it's a heck of a lot of fun too! I know myself and other hot dog vendors I speak to, gain a lot of satisfaction from owning their own hot dog business.
Building something yourself can bring the same satisfaction. Now, you can build your own hot dog cart and save thousands of dollars over purchasing a new or even a used cart. Building your own cart also allows you to tweak the design to the exact specifications for your local health department.
After such a mild winter, it is good to hear about local hot doggers opening their stands for the Spring.
One of the first is Auggie Dogs in Methuen, Massachusetts. This is a brand new business venture started by Mr. Paul Sandgren who I "met" online in one of the hot dog forums.
Paul's original plan to open up March 1st (that's today) will be set back a few days as we are experiencing snow for the next couple of days. It appears Murphy's Law is well in effect with regards to Mr. Sandgren. His website and Facebook Page will have updates on a daily (or as needed) basis with announcements about weather related closings and the like. Even though he plans on pushing his opening day back to Sunday, March 4, I wish him well in his new venture.
If you're looking for a good hot dog in Methuen, Massachusetts, make sure you check out Auggie Dogs.
On Saturday, July 30- the 30th day of my quest to eat a hot dog a day in honor of National Hot Dog Month, Little Miss and I were tooling down route 495 with the top down on our way to the beach when we decided to pull off at route 1A. We headed south on 1A a couple of miles into Plainville, MA until we came to the South Liquor Store parking lot at 431 South Road. That's the home of That's My Dog- a newcomer on the hot dog scene.
The "OPEN" flag was a flying...
...and the special looked inviting.
Little Miss and I had found the place where I would eat my 30th hot dog!
That's My Dog is run by Mike Hogan. He's a former Union painter in Boston who wanted to have a business of his own. He likes his new avocation, but acknowledges that it's hard work at times. Mike ought to know, he's open 7 days a week from April to November. Sometimes, he takes his show on the road and caters a company event or youth sports tournament. In the winter, he still dabbles in interior painting, but he really wants to be a 4 season hot dog man.
He ordered up the plans to build his own hot dog cart from the folks who write the Hot Dog Biz 101 course and put this little cart together with his brother in law in one weekend. He tows it around with his Chevy S10 pick up truck that doubles as a storage space for his soda coolers.
This cart has all the amenities of any cart you can find- new or used: sinks, storage, a small grill, and 3 steam wells.
The menu is straight forward: hot dogs and Italian sausages. The standard condiments including chili and cheese are available.
Mike cooks up an all beef Nathan's skinless frank "dirty water" style.
Mike serves them up hot and fast- here's two with ketchup. Don't worry folks, these are for a couple of ten year olds!
Mike caters to "real" dogs too. Our four legged friends get treats too.
Little Miss wanted to get going to the beach, so she ordered up a half mustard, half plain dog and
CHOWED DOWN!
She likes it!!!
I opted for an all around dog with the onions and relish under and brown mustard on top.
Then I CHOWED DOWN!
The dog was piping hot and hit the spot!
HAPPY NATIONAL HOT DOG MONTH!!!
When you're down in Plainville, or if you're traveling down 495 and you want a quick bite, scoot down route 1A south, avoid the franchised crud and stop by That's my Dog. Make sure you tell Mike "the Hotdogman and Little Miss sent me."
On Thursday, July 21 for the 21st day of my Eat a Hot Dog a Day in honor of National Hot Dog Month tour, I found myself in the hometown of my youth, Needham, Massachusetts.
That's the home of Dog Gone Ron's hot dog cart. Since 2003, Eric has been slinging dogs in downtown Needham and he's currently Needham's only mobile food vendor.
Dog Gone Ron's is located in front of the Mobil Gas station at 1111 Great Plain Avenue in Needham. It's owned by a classmate of my little brother's, Eric Wagner. Eric also owns the gas station, but he confessed he likes being a hot dog man better than a gas station man. He tows a small hot dog cart with a 1975 Chevy Blazer he's restoring (he's retired the 1971 Blazer he used to tow it with).
This is one of the smaller towable hot dog carts I have come across, but Eric manages to sell over 200 hot dogs a day. He's open from 11:30 to 3:30, Monday through Friday. He's also been known to do a few local events on weekends with his cart.
They serve up an all beef, skinless Old Neighborhood frank "dirty water"" style at Dog Gone Ron's. Eric says he grew up loving these hot dogs, that's why he sells them.
Like most hot dog carts, the condiment selection is streamlined. You can get hot sauce, celery salt, kraut, onions relish, brown or yellow mustard, and ketchup.
The dining room consist of a small bench surrounding a perennial garden in the corner of the gas station lot.
It was close to a hundred degrees outside, but Dog Gone Ron's was slammed at the lunch rush nonetheless. Eric sold a ton of cold drinks today!
The Boston Globe, who will be doing a feature article on yours truly in this Sunday's Boston West section, sent out a photographer to take a picture of me chowing down! That's Eric, the owner, looking on.
Dog Gone Ron's gets TWO THUMBS UP
HAPPY NATIONAL HOT DOG MONTH!
Stop by Dog Gone Ron's the next time you're in Needham. You can fill up your tank, then fill up your tummy. Make sure you tell Eric "the Hotdogman sent me."
Here is a story about a CBS news correspondent who went to check out Hot Dog University. This video offers some insight into how to start a hot dog business.
If you are looking to start a hot dog business, you will need liability insurance for your hot dog cart, trailer or truck. There is simply no way of getting around it-nobody will let you on their property (or on public property) without liability insurance - no insurance, no business. I get a lot of emails from vendors and those starting out looking for answers about where to get insurance for their new hot dog business.
After speaking with different insurance carriers and agencies, I came across Bolt Insurance - a national insurance agency that specializes in servicing small businesses and can provide affordable liability insurance for mobile food vendors. They have a simple online form that will generate quotes for you from all the major insurance carriers that will write liability insurance in your state. It's true one stop shopping.
The folks at Bolt won't give you any high pressure B.S. or sell your name to some insurance agent lead farm. They WANT your business. So if you are looking around for Hot Dog Cart Insurance, click the image below for a FREE Quote and compare quotes online from multiple insurance companies, FAST!
Have you ever played the Punch Buggy Game? If you have, check out the Official Rules to the Punch Buggy Game. Check 'em out even if you've never played before, it's a classic road trip game for your summer travels!
