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Business Idea

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  1. spacemandave spacemandave is offline

    Youngstown, NY
    United States

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 4:52am)

    Just something I thought of tonight, looking at prices and permits and such but, how about a food truck!

    i dont have the money to make it some state of the art shit, but can get enough room and supplies to cook a lot of stuff(i dont really cook) in a used truck for like under 20k(new over 50k)...

    there are rules in each area and im still investigating but, if i have a prime spot maybe i can stay there, or drive to a few different offices throughout the day or something(hype your appearance on twitter)

    anybody have experience with this, or any ideas suggestions? can post your ideas too?.....just noone do this on long island, my territory.








    i couldnt find the falafel truck from the simpsons but this made me laugh.
     
  2. SyphonSoul SyphonSoul is offline

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 4:54am) in reply to spacemandave

    lots of mexican bars around here have those food trucks. line is never empty at night and the food is sfgood. i think you should do it. gl
     
  3. IbizaCF3 IbizaCF3 is offline

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 4:55am) in reply to spacemandave

    I feel these, especially hot dog carts, are generally the best food known to man.
  4. P0KERDUUDE P0KERDUUDE is offline

    NH
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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 4:55am) in reply to IbizaCF3

    I was in NY a few years ago riding the LIRR, and there were trucks like this at Huntington Station in the morning
     
  5. Pker4Dummies Pker4Dummies is online now

    Toms River, NJ
    United States

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 4:56am) in reply to P0KERDUUDE

    Im sure the fees in NYC are redic. LI is probably the same or worse.

    Profit margin is very slim, with rising food and fuel costs, it doesnt seem like a viable option these days.

    (Ive done basic research on it. The fees and various liscences and restrictions have completely turned me off from it.
  6. zeppelinzoso16 zeppelinzoso16 is online now world traveler

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 4:58am) in reply to Pker4Dummies

    Sell these. Waffle with ice cream toppings folded into a taco



    Thank me later
  7. thereraise thereraise is online now

    San Diego, CA
    United States

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 4:58am) in reply to zeppelinzoso16

    Wanted to open one here in San Diego but they only allow a small # of trucks and the wait list is like 5yrs+...Our food truck would have crushed as my food is rather good

    it would be a great business if you don't mind working during the prime times, esp the after midnight bar hrs, and love to be ina kitchen setting cooking all day
  8. spacemandave spacemandave is offline

    Youngstown, NY
    United States

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 5:07am) in reply to Pker4Dummies

    looks like the license and permit fees are pretty cheap, not sure if thats all there is.....i know nyc its like 300k for 3ft on the street, not sure if its the same at all in li?
     
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  9. miamifunks miamifunks is offline

    Cuba

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 5:12am) in reply to spacemandave

    Food trucks are blowing up in Miami right now. Close to 100 trucks on the road. They're having these food truck round ups where like 30 trucks show up and have a cool family vibe. Some events even have a bounce house for the kids and a cash bar. Unless you have some real cooking experience I would not go for it. It takes a good amount of money to get started. You're also going to have a lot of competition out there. If you do decide to take the plunge, I suggest either coming up with a cool concept that is not being done. or make the best burgers/slidders/pizza in town. A mediocre food truck will survive for a little while but you will not bank. Imo, ethnic trucks do the best. Find yourself a Colombian or an Argentinian chef/cook and make some cool street food. Good luck.

    There is a bunch of really cool street food in South America that is super easy to make out of a truck/cart. Colombians have these crazy hot dogs with a bunch of different sauces. Argentinians make a nice sandwich with chorizo and fresh bread, a choripan.

    Also, dessert or grilled cheese sandwich trucks kill it down here. Good concept if they are not being done in the area.

    This link can give you some ideas. http://miamifoodtrucks.com/
    Edited By: miamifunks Jun 15th, 2011 at 05:16 AM
  10. zeppelinzoso16 zeppelinzoso16 is online now world traveler

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 5:16am) in reply to miamifunks

     
    Originally Posted by miamifunks View Post

    They're having these food truck round ups where like 30 trucks show up and have a cool family vibe. Some events even have a bounce house for the kids and a cash bar.

    Have seen people talking about similar on facebook in Los Angeles and Vegas recently. Soooo many trucks in LA. When I ride my bicycle past them I usually can't resist stopping for a few tacos (like 4 of them near my house and all are taco trucks but everything from falafel to korean can be found in LA. They have become very popular)
    Edited By: zeppelinzoso16 Jun 15th, 2011 at 05:16 AM
  11. rocket5 rocket5 is offline

    MA
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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 5:20am) in reply to zeppelinzoso16

     
    Originally Posted by zeppelinzoso16 View Post

    Have seen people talking about similar on facebook in Los Angeles and Vegas recently. Soooo many trucks in LA. When I ride my bicycle past them I usually can't resist stopping for a few tacos (like 4 of them near my house and all are taco trucks but everything from falafel to korean can be found in LA. They have become very popular)

    Are you back here now?

    My friends who work union jobs in Boston call it the roach coach or the coffee truck. They buy from both ;)
  12. miamifunks miamifunks is offline

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 5:20am) in reply to zeppelinzoso16

     
    Originally Posted by zeppelinzoso16 View Post

    Have seen people talking about similar on facebook in Los Angeles and Vegas recently. Soooo many trucks in LA. When I ride my bicycle past them I usually can't resist stopping for a few tacos (like 4 of them near my house and all are taco trucks but everything from falafel to korean can be found in LA. They have become very popular)

    I'm really into the food truck scene as you can tell. I know LA made the trucks famous. Miami has really caught up. The rules down are sort of laid back so not a lot of red tape. There have been some problem recently where neighbors complain about the trucks suddenly showing up. Other than that, the community, the police and the county for the most part are really happy the trucks are around. The trucks are even moving out of Miami and into Broward and Palm Beach counties.
  13. zeppelinzoso16 zeppelinzoso16 is online now world traveler

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 5:25am) in reply to rocket5

     
    Originally Posted by rocket5 View Post

    Are you back here now?

    My friends who work union jobs in Boston call it the roach coach or the coffee truck. They buy from both ;)

    No, I am in Macau. Tomorrow will be one year to the day since I left LA :) Just reminiscing on my bicycle rides and Mexican food

    We call it roach coach too. My step dad use to own a clothing store in LA near the Coliseum, a food truck parked on the sidewalk next to the building. Their burritos and tortas were pretty damn good.
    Edited By: zeppelinzoso16 Jun 15th, 2011 at 05:26 AM
  14. Geoff Moore Geoff Moore is offline

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 5:30am) in reply to zeppelinzoso16

    roll around to construction sites as well
  15. XXEDPXX XXEDPXX is offline

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 5:30am) in reply to Geoff Moore

    the only ones they had in my hometown were owned by mexicans and they sold mexican food(obviously) they sold drugs out of them also.
  16. Moonlight Graham Moonlight Graham is online now

    PA
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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 5:37am) in reply to XXEDPXX

    I drove a lunch truck for a year, it kinda sucked. I could see it being a little better if I owned the truck and had more control of the menu.

    There's a cupcake truck in philly that crushes. Probably way less overhead than a truck with cooking capabilities.
  17. spacemandave spacemandave is offline

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 5:40am) in reply to thereraise

    Wonder how tough it is to have a good selection of food....maybe jewish food can be my ethnic hook? knishes, kosher hot dogs, matzoh ball soup, bagels and lox, etc(just spitballin)...ive seen a couple of these here and there on li and think theyre catching on......may have to hire a cook/my mama to keep up as learning how to cook may be a distraction to selling.

    seems like those are the main ones i am seeing, cupcakes and desserts, havent seen much else.
     
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  18. Geoff Moore Geoff Moore is offline

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 5:43am) in reply to spacemandave

    khlav kalash
    Edited By: Geoff Moore Jun 15th, 2011 at 05:43 AM
  19. miamifunks miamifunks is offline

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 5:45am) in reply to spacemandave

     
    Originally Posted by spacemandave View Post

    Wonder how tough it is to have a good selection of food....maybe jewish food can be my ethnic hook? knishes, kosher hot dogs, matzoh ball soup, bagels and lox, etc(just spitballin)...ive seen a couple of these here and there on li and think theyre catching on......may have to hire a cook/my mama to keep up as learning how to cook may be a distraction to selling.

    seems like those are the main ones i am seeing, cupcakes and desserts, havent seen much else.

    The toughest part is getting a good selection of food. If you already have an in on the jewish food, I'd go for it. You need to make sure your food is really good.
  20. PANTERA PANTERA is offline

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 5:48am) in reply to miamifunks

    if ur not the chef but you have to pay a chef, bad idea if ur short of cash.
    You may be able to sell or lease the food truck but you don't know whats needed in a truck,right?
    Work in 1 till you think you can run it by yourself then add 6 mths.
    If you just want to do a experiment then go for it now.
    But it's harder to start,run,succed at business then you can imagine.
    If you go forward do ur due diligence.
    Edited By: PANTERA Jun 16th, 2011 at 01:52 AM
  21. RaiseAllDay RaiseAllDay is offline

    Cincinnati, OH
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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 5:58am) in reply to PANTERA

    I worked with a guy that had a Food truck. He did it part-time but made pretty decent money given how many hours he put into it when he did it. He usually made 1K-2k everytime he did it. Apparently going to factories and big businesses brings in good money from what he said. Also, doing catering as well.
  22. edwardt1988 edwardt1988 is offline

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 6:09am) in reply to RaiseAllDay

    Like people mentioned, the margins are probably pretty thin and you have to stomach a lot of uncertainty over food and gas price inflation in addition to dealing with a ton of fees and a bunch of food regulations.
    Most importantly you said that you don't cook, and I imagine that you plan on doing the cooking yourself for this job, so if it is not something you'd enjoy doing, you might want to re-consider

    If you do decide to do it, I hope you make a ton of money. Good luck!
  23. spacemandave spacemandave is offline

    Youngstown, NY
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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 6:25am) in reply to XXEDPXX

    thanks everyone, good tips...lots of stuff i dont know, will do some research, will look into the extra fees and cooking
     
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  24. Stopthatquit Stopthatquit is offline

    Bothell, WA
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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 6:47am) in reply to spacemandave

    I'm working on opening one in the Seattle area. If you're in NY, I don't believe there are any available permits. A good percentage of trucks/stands get their permits on the black market. Check out a new book called....drumroll... Food Trucks by Heather Shouse. Highly recommend. Just make sure you can put out good food on a consistent basis!
  25. R_U_Nuts R_U_Nuts is offline

    South Bend, IN
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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 2:57pm) in reply to Stopthatquit

    Take that idea and put it on a boat and cruise your local water ways and now you got an idea.
  26. SevenCostanza SevenCostanza is offline

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 6:19pm) in reply to R_U_Nuts

    Portland also has tons of food carts. Within a mile of my house are 3 pods, which are basically parking lots that always have at least ten food carts in each. It's pretty sweet with a group to head out there since you know everyone will be able to find something they like. And downtown there is an entire city block filled with them (at least 50 by my estimate).
  27. StlngMyChps StlngMyChps is offline

    Great Falls, MT
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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 6:36pm) in reply to SevenCostanza

    Damn i miss those taco trucks in CA! You would shit your self afterwords but was well worth it!
  28. tamayo85 tamayo85 is offline

    Addison, IL
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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 6:59pm) in reply to zeppelinzoso16

     
    Originally Posted by zeppelinzoso16 View Post

    Sell these. Waffle with ice cream toppings folded into a taco



    Thank me later


    Wow that looks SFGOoOOOooooooOoood
  29. nasabuzi nasabuzi is offline

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 7:34pm) in reply to spacemandave

    http://www.newsday.com/long-island/s...slip-1.2951733

    looks like your timing for this idea might be right. but the whole food cart thing is getting a little crazy in the city at the moment.
  30. Acpittboss Acpittboss is online now

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    Jun 15th, 2011 (6/15/2011 8:22pm) in reply to nasabuzi

    didnt read all the replies but if you could some how work your way on to large factories or comapnys and figure out when there lunch/dinner breaks are and set up a a few of those a night should be steady income. Then hit the bars/ night life areas in the evening.
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