outdoor flea market food trailer

[tejon]

Oh, my - the thought of fresh lemonade while flea marketing has me salivating. I'd pay big time for that.

[PicnicChef]

In Jersey, where there is so much fresh seafood available everywhere, I would hesitate to serve it at a flea market. If you are doing festivals down the shore, that would be different. A chef I know does that route with oysters, clams, fries, fried fish and that ilk.

My favorite flea market is in PA, and there is one spot that just has a line from morning to closing...they serve homemade sausages, about eight different kinds, and serve 'em with eggs in the morning, then move on to sausage and peppers, sausage and chili, sausage and plain old ketchup. Fresh lemonade and fries and they are set. Just a thought...

[Rebecca263]

At my favorite flea market in Hialeah (at the Dog Track), there is a guy who sells ceviche out of coolers, he sells out by noon every day! There is also a family that sells Cuban pastries, I hate them because I CAN NOT resist their products. There is no substitute for true passion when it comes to making guava filling. I think that you should make what YOU are passionate about , not just what you think will sell. If you are really passionate about it, instead of just passionate about 'being the best at something', it will show, and your business will have an edge. Marketing and just wanting to be known as the best by being clean looking and such won't really get you the same results as a true passion. It sounds to me as if you are passionate about having a reputation, but not about the product, as yet. Close your eyes, think about your favorite foods, and go from there. Tripe? Fine, go for it. Onion balls on a stick? (anything on a stick is good, if you ask me) Great! Pho? Who knew? Educate and elucidate the world! Find your true niche by finding your true food passion. I honestly believe that the rest of your drive will take you far, once you find your own food passion.

[maui420]

thats funny you say that because all the food that i listed are my favorite! lol

i am very confused. one day i see myself sticking to bbq, the next day its garlic shrimp, the day after its french fries and chicken wings etc.. heck i even have a passion for carrot and chocolate cake thanks to the threads over in the baking section. =). .ive spent maybe the past yr or two working on the few things(or should i say many) i like to eat. searching for recipes, tweaking them, making sure the food is cooked just right, and having plenty of bbq's over the summer to 'test' things out with all the friends and friends of friends. the best feeling is when you meet a friend's friend, and they say, "oh your the guy who makes some really good food, i heard about you..." i guess i get a kick out of that because i feel 'happy' when cooking and serving people. the food business is where i totally see myself.

in the end, one day, my wife and i would like to own a small cafe and breakfast place or a small food takeout specializing in something. but before that happens, ill need to work my current computer job and hope to get some profit and practice with a food trailer. i have a long road ahead.

think about your favorite foods, and go from there. Tripe? Fine, go for it. Onion balls on a stick? (anything on a stick is good, if you ask me) Great! Pho? Who knew? Educate and elucidate the world! Find your true niche by finding your true food passion. I honestly believe that the rest of your drive will take you far, once you find your own food passion.

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[maui420]

i will have to check that out. thanks for the reply!

i always get a craving about once a month, to get a spicy keilbasa on a toasted roll packed with saukraut, relish, onions, mustard, and ketchup.

In Jersey, where there is so much fresh seafood available everywhere, I would hesitate to serve it at a flea market. If you are doing festivals down the shore, that would be different. A chef I know does that route with oysters, clams, fries, fried fish and that ilk.

My favorite flea market is in PA, and there is one spot that just has a line from morning to closing...they serve homemade sausages, about eight different kinds, and serve 'em with eggs in the morning, then move on to sausage and peppers, sausage and chili, sausage and plain old ketchup. Fresh lemonade and fries and they are set. Just a thought...

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[Rachel Perlow]

Fried chicken is one thing, but I wouldn't do buffalo wings. Anything that is eaten out of hand shouldn't be messy too.

How about a Falafel Stand? You could make a variety of middle eastern salads as well. Then the menu would flow out of various combinations of your a la carte items. If you feel the need to add meat, then grilled chicken or gyro or schwarma easily fit in, but going all vegetarian has a lot of financial benefits: inexpensive product means more markup, less complicated sanitation issues, no meat spoilage.

[Deldino]

There used to be a guy in Montclair that did ROASTED corn on the cob with different butters and seasonings - it was AMAZING and there was always a line for firsts and then a line for seconds.

I am not sure what kind of Equipment they used - He was at the Montclair food festival a few years back , did anyone see him or remember what kind of Equipment they used.

[maui420]

yea im thinking about that to, specialize in kabobs cooked on a wood fired grill with pecan and oak. keep the meat refridgerated, marinated, assembled, and cook and finish on the grill close to order time(probably take about 20mins to cook thoroghly). what ever is not sold(the meat in the fridge), i can use the next day. unlike bbq, that cooked meat would have to be tossed since it wont be as fresh.

kind of like bahama breeze kabobs( meat with vegies etc...)

forgive my bad spelling.

Fried chicken is one thing, but I wouldn't do buffalo wings. Anything that is eaten out of hand shouldn't be messy too.

How about a Falafel Stand? You could make a variety of middle eastern salads as well. Then the menu would flow out of various combinations of your a la carte items. If you feel the need to add meat, then grilled chicken or gyro or schwarma easily fit in, but going all vegetarian has a lot of financial benefits: inexpensive product means more markup, less complicated sanitation issues, no meat spoilage.

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[maui420]

i was able to try out the roast corn at the wildwood bbq fest. it was pretty good. i guess my main concern with that is a steady supply of super sweet corn.

There used to be a guy in Montclair that did ROASTED corn on the cob with different butters and seasonings - it was AMAZING and there was always a line for firsts and then a line for seconds.

I am not sure what kind of  Equipment  they used - He was at the Montclair food festival a few years back , did anyone see him or remember what kind of Equipment they used.

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[Kim WB]

I still think that the food needs to be determined by the kind of market it is. If it is Columbus, Englishtown, etc..a place that primarily sells discounted products, cheaper clothes, discount items...like a 99 cent store on steroids...then I can't imagine anthing over $5 bucks would work. If, however, you are going to more of an antique place, that might be a possibility..however those places are MUCH busier in the early morning..the crowds are gone by 11am, just a few browsers in the afternoon. I can't speak for all Farmer's Markets, but in my experience, thoses tend to be more crowded before noon than after.

What are the costs for renting spaces at these things, anyway?

[Cook456]

I noticed at the last Montclair Arts & Crafts Festival that there was a serious lack of food. Anyone with any food would have made a fortune.

I once had sweet potato fries at a fair that were addictive.

or

How about those sugared nuts that you see on the streets of New York?

[Terrasanct]

When I'm at a farmers market or the fair I'm attracted to things that smell good, things I can eat while walking, and things that won't make me sick later on. If you will be selling to other vendors, you might consider what would work for them. I lived in NJ years ago and couldn't get over the wide availability of good foods. What about hoagies made with great fresh breads and lots of good ingredients? I know it's not fancy but it's something that is easy to assemble and people will buy. Everyone likes a good sammich. They don't have to be the huge hoagies that take all day to eat, but something on a smaller bun, maybe. A one-handed hoagie.

And with an interesting side--like the sweet potato fries that someone mentioned. Sweet potatoes are cheap and there's a great markup there. Someone else mentioned pickles--also a good thing to have on the side of a hoagie.

I didn't quite figure out if you're from Hawaii, but incorporating that idea into your business would attract people and if your food is good they'll come back.

[Rachel Perlow]

I didn't quite figure out if you're from Hawaii, but incorporating that idea into your business would attract people and if your food is good they'll come back.

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Hawaiian Shave Ice!

Talk about markup! You can walk with it too and it's so refreshing on a hot day. Heavily promote "Lemonade Shave Ice" so people won't just think of it as a dessert. Hmm, what can you pair with Shave Ice that smells good to attract people with aroma?

[Cook456]

I didn't quite figure out if you're from Hawaii, but incorporating that idea into your business would attract people and if your food is good they'll come back.

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Hawaiian Shave Ice!

Talk about markup! You can walk with it too and it's so refreshing on a hot day. Heavily promote "Lemonade Shave Ice" so people won't just think of it as a dessert. Hmm, what can you pair with Shave Ice that smells good to attract people with aroma?

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Pineapple and coconut...