Rob:
I have no practical advice for you. I looked into what it would take
to sell my bread at a farmers' market a few years ago. The requirements
weren't worth it. I would have to have sold, I think, 40 loaves just to
meet the up front expenses. And sadly, growing food out here is difficult,
so farmers' markets, while there are a few around the valley, are not much
of a thing, and the only two we found that were worth going to are far from
where we live. I also looked into renting commercial space to make and sell
bread, but that, too, was a joke. The space we looked at only had a few
steel tables on which to work, and maybe a half dozen small ovens that
couldn't even accomodate a full-sized sheet pan. There were no large mixers
available. Any equipment or tools used had to be provided by me, and would
all have to fit on two small shelves on wire racks. The entire concept was
absurd! This is what I found just where I live, so maybe, hopefully, things
are easier for this sort of thing where you live. I can't tell you what I'd
give to have a chance to taste your barbecue. And I'm glad to hear you're
mastering the art, as I haven't yet managed to do it myself. Sure, I have a
smoker, but I have a freaking sand pit for a back yard, and where as we rent
and don't own, I can't do anything to spruce it up, which I won't just walk
away from when we eventually move from this house one day. I have dreams of
not only a better kitchen, but a back yard kitchen of sorts as well. This
latter would include a hybrid grill, as well as a large, long table as work
space, a couple of burners, and maybe even an oven for baking outside. I've
even thought how much fun it would be to do deep frying outside as well.
Ah...one day.
Jon
----- Original Message -----
From: "Rob" <captinlogic@xxxxxxxxx>
To: <blindcooks@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wednesday, February 15, 2017 2:55 PM
Subject: [blindcooks] Selling Food at Farmers Market
So I have been playing around with barbecue for a year or so now and I think
I want to try selling some of my creations, at least on a small scale. I
wouldn't call myself a veteran pitmaster, but I know what i'm doing now.
The other thing I've been considering is starting a small taco stand. But
barbecue is nearer and dearer to my heart, so I don't know yet.
I'm not ready to try opening a full restaurant, because, being that this is
the upper midwest, richly spiced (not necessarily hot) food is not all that
popular, based on what I've seen. The barbecue i've had up here isn't very
interesting compared to what I make and what I have experienced down south.
There has hardly been even any salt and pepper on the brisket I have tried.
And the ribs are over cooked and somewhat dry a lot of the time. The pulled
pork needs more chili powder and black pepper, as well. Those are just a few
examples.
I feel there is a big niche missing--at least in my town. But is it willing
to be filled? That is the question.
SO I came up with the idea of a sort of trial run. Set up a little steam
table at the local farmers market and sell a limited quantity of barbecue
favorites from it. I could make perhaps three racks of Saint Louis Style,
one of baby back, a brisket (and burnt ends of course), and ten pounds of
pulled pork. I could do a pot of my barbecue beans and a batch of cole slaw.
I also have a couple of barbecue sauces that I have created, one sweet and
one spicy, and of course one that's fiery hot.
Of course this won't be cheap at all and I am aware of that. The plan would
be to sell it all and see how customer reception is. I could do this for a
week or so and let word of mouth spread. Hey, that blind guy Rob, you got to
try his ribs. Best in Alexandria, my man. Something like that.
What do you guys think of this idea? Have any of you sold stuff at a
farmers' market before and can give me an idea of the cost involved in
setting up a table there?
