Magus

Jason...Maybe you are right. It will make my life so much more simple. I can save my other ideas for future ventures. On another note, Has anyone tasted the shakes from Steak and Shake. I think thoes taaste pretty good. Also, I notice that there isn't anyone...at least in my area that makes fresh potato chips instead of fries...wonder why. I have never been to the shake shack...how are their shakes? Does anyone know if they use ice cream or custard for their shakes?

I never thought that I would say this but I am greatful for growing up in Marcy Projects (Brooklyn) I have learned most of my busiess skills watching the Hustlers on the street. I took this street knowledge and paired it with book knowledge and this is what I have found: People are human, t does not matter what product you are selling for profit..the first formost issue is the customer. Treat your customers like they are kings and they will take care of you, treat people like sales and you wont be in the game long. Only take calculated risk...this means that I not only have to know about my back office but the back office of my competiton...who are their distributors, what price are they getting, how do I go in and take market share. Keep my ear to the street and stay flexable, be adaptable...or die. I short, I dont like supprises, so I focus on what can go wrong. If I know what can go wrong I can take care of thoes things before they become a problem. I have been thinking about this for the past three years, running what if analysis I also put effeort in planning to go out of business. Yes, there are things that I can not contol, things that just come up...there is even a way to go out of busiess withough loosing your shirt. I have run a food cart business for the past five years and I am proud to say that my company is still debt free.

Well...I am a strong believer that if it doesn't make dollars it doesn't make sense. So I am very well aware of all the numbers. Commited to an excellent product?...I think that may be an understatement ...I am in the obsessed relm at this point. My first goal is to please my customers by making sure that EVERY burger that is served form my establishment is of great quality and taste. By focusing on all of my customers first...all else will be a piece of cake.

That is a hard question. I like the "idea" of havig fountain drinks and I may do this, but I remember on my visits down south, they had soda in tall skinny bottles. I liked thoes alot...the drinks just seemed to taste different. I believe that I will go with fountain drinks. I cant afford to take any shortcuts. The reason why I want to push my own brand of items. I "want" to be as self reliant as possible. Yes, Can soda would be less trouble but live in MI where a deposit is 10 cents. These are dimes that I will spend and never see again and this adds up. On the other hand...I did find the distributor for Papaya King Juices.

Progress: Red fish I would rather drill screws into my toenails than to serve that!!!! No, I have not thought of that, BUT! I am currently working on a salt and balslamic vinegar combo. I am trying to get the mixture right to be able to mist the mixture over the fries without making them soggy. I like thoes ideas...I also like feta. Funny you say that, I already have one and it has been very well recieved so far. I also have a garlic mayo for the lemon garlic marinated chicken burger. I think I would rather remain a small guy with a big rep.

I have not heard of them but I am researching them now..thank you so much.

Potato issue: I just got off the phone with my local produce guy and he informed me of the following. The kind of potatoes that I wanted Russet Burbank are not available all year, I guess there are two months out of the year where they are not available. He also went on to tell me that the Burbank is only one kind of Russet. They also grow a potato called Norcoda and Gold Rush. From what I gather, the Burbank is the best because of the low moisture content. They will be unavailable from the middle of Sept to the end of Oct. This means that I may need to switch to the Gold Rush potato and adjust the fryer temp to acount for the higher moisture content. With a fresh potato, I will also have to deal with the price going up and down along with potato size. These I can not control...I have to leave this up to mother nature and the whole supply and demand rules of the market. It takes alot of work to produce a great product. Now I see why so many (fast food) establishments go with a frozen fry

High smoke point? Does this mean that the oil breakdown is less. (last longer) I can cook at higher temps?

Well, the entire trailer (kitchen) will be about 350sqft Roughly 8x30 or 8x40...that range. Yes, I have access to a commercial kitchen.

Progress: I found a place to park my establishment. I went to the owner (an older gentleman) and told him that I would like to park my establishment on his property. After I told him what I wanted to do, with the detail that I was going for the 1940-50 look he was so happy...he said that he will charge me $35 bucks a month....Wow. Also, I have tracked down another source for Beef tallow. The only issue is that it is 95% beef tallow and 5% soybean oil. Does anyone know if this combo of shortening will be an issue. Other offerings: My thoughts. Breaded red fish burger Chopped lobster burger Portabella burger black bean burger Blue cheese burger marinated chicken burger (sorry I dont have any names for the burgers yet) Friers: Regular potato Sweet potato O-Rings Does anyone know anything about onion rings? I would like to make fresh onion rings but dont know the best onions to use for this. Should they be beer battered. or breaded. Or Should the menu be trimed down a bit...again, I would rather have a fantastic small menu than a good big menu.

Well, as far as packaging...these are my thoughts. Cold cups for sodas and milkshakes. (paper) Burger Wrap (white butcher paper) with a sticker of the logo to hold the paper together. On this, I can short hand things like sandwiches (plus or minus) something. Fries..(white paper cone) Takeaway bag (white) with logo on it

I have been doing some more burger recon. It seems that there is a lot to take into consideration First, meat to fat ratio. It seems that if you go with a lean cut of beef, then it lacks that juiciness. Where as if you go with a modest fat content, you get a great tasting burger, but it shrinks all to heck, so you are almost forced to go with a bigger burger. With this said, what would be a good size. 1/4lb or 1/3rd lb. (Based on precooked patty weight.)….I always wanted to say that. This leads into my next question. Burger presentation. I already know that it is unacceptable to have the bun bigger in circumference than the burger itself. What seems more pleasing, the burger being the same size as the bun or overhanging the bun. Condiments I personally like romaine lettuce over iceberg . Beefsteak or Heirloom tomatoes. Kosher dill pickles. Red or White onions. Home made mayo or Helmans. What condiments do you like? Next would be burger thickness. I don’t want to be anywhere near the (oversized, super size, biggie) craze. But what would be a good thickness of a burger. Keep in mind that it will be cooked on a griddle rather than a char broiler. Griddles have more cooking surface area than a char broiler. I have also been thinking about grinding my own burgers. I was thinking, If I could make the burgers into meatball shapes, I could fit more fresh burgers in the fridge, not have to worry about them being smushed…if that’s a word, and then give them an initial smash when they are put on the grill, then they will have those beautiful irregular edges. What are your thoughts?….

Let me guess: Something derived from seaweed? Nonfat dry milk powder? Sodium caseinate? Chocolate flavored Coffee-Mate®? Congrats on scoring a copy of "How Not to Make A Hamburger Worth Waiting For." I'll bet--completely without sarcasm--that it's fascinating reading, and that Mark Twain quip about laws and sausages probably applies to reading this book as well. ← It is fascinating..To know what the used to do...when I worked there many moons ago vs. what they do today. They have totally dumbed down their whole system. Just by reading the material it brings to mind one of my favoite sayings ....If you want square work, you cant cut corners!!

Burger Recon. There is a very popular burger (M)aker that we all know of. Some how, I have in my hands the Standard Operation Procedures of said burger maker. I now know everything that goes on in the back office. what they cook, how they cook it and for how long. It is very detailed. I do have one thing to say...I thought they at least used a real dairy mix for their shakes...

The establishment will be located in Michigan

Burger Size. Does size matter. There are a couple of pubs that serve a 1/3rd lb burger. I have found that the "norm" is a 1/4 lb. The 1/4 lb is based on McDee's. Also, I have a seasonal food stand now that I opperate at major football games. I cook the burgers on a 24 in gas griddle. The problem is even with a 24in commercial griddle, I cant keep up with the demand. I wanted to make a name for myself before I went into anything bigger. I wanted to see if the market could handle more burgers. Right now I am only serving my classic burger. My last event, I timed it...I served 120 burgers in one hr. I know because I cooked all of them myself! I see repeat customers, they know my name...its a GREAT FEELING. I have been doing this for the past three weeks. I had an older man tell me "now I can die.. That was the best burger that I have ever had"...I just stood there...floored, and said Thank You, gave him his money back and told him that it was on me. This guy looked like he has been around a while. The sad thing was my thought at the time was, Im just getting started...I'm still learning. I want to thank everyone who responds to this list...I am learning something new everyday and that will only make me better. Please keep the ideas comming.

Ive been thinking. When ever I go to either Mcdon's , the BK lounge or Wendys. They always have burgers ready. My issue is to cook a great bruger, it is going to take some time. Do you think that people really mind waiting if the food is good. Should I keep the burgers somewhat thin so that they cook faster. Or should I put it in the marketing that good food takes time to prepare. Its not like I am going to have a drive thru or anything. We just live in a time where people want it yesterday. I have been thinking about this and how I would feel if I had to wait outside for my food. Another thing. I "want" to be open all year round but that may not be possible with the weather.

I rememberd when I worked there as a lad, the pies came frozen. They were kept in the freezer and then deep fried. Now, because of being sued. they are just baked.

That sound like a great idea. My mom taught me how to make pies. She always made her own crust...so thats something I picked up. (parents are from the south) But how about cookies as well, or Cookies instead of Pie. A cookie, I can make the dough ahead of time and have anyone pop them in the stove at a certain temp. But Pies...that requires a lot of attention. I think that may be appealing, Fresh warm cookies all day long.

Beef Tallow, I just spoke to a Beef Tallow Refinery and they educated me on the following: They have two kinds of beef tallow. Deoderized and Undeodorized. The Deoderized Beef tallow has been rendered down and refined. This does not contain any beef flavor, there was no meat protien added . The Undeoderized tallow has the natural beef flavor, this contained some beef protien added in the rendering. This is what give the oil a beefy smell and taste. There is an 80-20% mixture and then there is a 99% mixture...I think I am gonna go with the 99% and if I need to cut the oil with another oil, I can do so at that time. Price is about $22 for a 50lb block. I can just taste thoes fries now thanks to everyone for giving input. Now for the milkshakes. With a premium icecream along with heavy cream (instead of milk), would one also use a syrup. Also would it be worth trying to make my own custard instead of buying a premium icecream or custard.

Good News...well maybe. I think I may have found a good source for Fryer shortening. One is called either A/V Animal & Vegetable shortening or M & V Meat and Vegetable shortening. They come in 50lb cubes...I think I remember this from my days at McD's. The other is "All Beef Fat" I would imagine that this is Tallow. My question is which one would be better? 100% Beef Fat, (tallow) or a blend of beef fat and a cottonseed oil. I would love to try cooking in peanut oil but there is a growing population of people who have peanut allergies...including my youngest son. But...I have no problem cooking fries in beef fat

Thanks Jason....I will try....back to the computer I go....

Well, I took a long look at the name Dining Car and all who responded to thiswere correct. I would rather have a limited menu but have everything taste GREAT! I am also working on making the logo look more aged...maybe it is not necessary to do so but here is my first try: Vintage Look New Look As far as me making my own tallow, freezing it and mixing it with burgers. I have to make sure that the final secrets wont be let out by employees. I may have to have two types of frying oil. If someone orders Veggie fries then I can cook thoes in regular oil. I have also seen alot of post about hand cut fries and double frying. I have never tasted a fresh cut fry that was double fried. Can anyone weigh in on this. Is it worth the trouble. From what I gather, you must cut, soak in cold water (how long I dont know) then let them dry on a towel, fry once at mabe 300 degrees, put them back in the fridge, then fry them again when ordered. If this is what it will take to make the best fries in town then I must do it. No one else in my city is doing it, so that would make me original. Thoughts...

WOW! Thanks Alot

When I am done with it, it wont look like an travel trailer at all. I will be making aluminum skirts for it so it looks like an actual structure.