Gettin' my brag on!

Mr Tony's BBQ · Posted: Jul 30 2014 Post subject: Gettin' my brag on!

Were up to 4 regular different vending spots, and doing fairs / festivals and KCBS gigs....2 spots in a small / big city 30 min North of home...3 weeks in and were breaking sales record every time we set up! All of which are higher than the 2 spots we have been setting up in for the past 2-4 years, which are also setting sales records!!
Last weekend we had our best [ and worst ] event to date!
I start off the 3 day weekend with 4 full, 6" full size hotel pans full of pork and brisket [ something I hate to do, but knew it was gonna be needed ], 3 more cases of brisket, 4 cases of pork, 4 cases of chicken thighs, 30# jalapeno sausages, 4 cases ribs and 9 cases rib tips....ALL the pork and beef was sold out by 7pm Sat.as were what ribs, tips and sausages I could fit on smoker, only had a handful of chicken sammies left...JUST as the crowds REALLY picked up ... Confused

[ thats the worst part....I was humiliated...nothing worse than a broken ego....LOL]
I had bought OUT the local GFS store of brisket and butts when they opened Sat. am as based on Fri nights sales, I KNEW I was gonna be short....Ran smoker hotter than normal, and sure enough, it ALL sold, ribs were gone by 2pm ...had ribs and rib tips stacked on top of butts, on edge leaning on walls of smoker etc..7pm Sat I am in Sam's club signing up for membership, grab their last case of brisket [ OVER $6.00 / lb...holy chit!! ] and another case of butt, boats, napkins and other misc. supplies we were out of [ my son was splitting styro sandwich "to go's to send sammies out the window ]..Didnt bother with more ribs or tips as I had no room in smoker......sure as chit, all the brisket was gone by 5pm Sunday....freaking event went until 7... Crying or Very sad

It was a love/hate kinda thing Sat pm as I am prepping meats , watching all those /$10.00 bills walk by, seeing and hearing people say "sold out???!!!???"....probably missed out on another $3-4K.....
On the up side, I cleared almost double what I just paid for my new [ to me, 2006 ] cube van....On the down side, my wife was miserable as she talked me out of bringing the second smoker " thats 2 trucks burning gas 90 miles each way"....last time I listen to her!!...LOL...I knew I could only fit so much on the Lang, so stocked fridges / freezers accordingly...
My freaking staff is AMAZING!! The 4 of us are STILL plumb worn out!! this Sunday - cooking a couple hogs and a couple cases of chicken for a gig of 300 head 90 miles west of here...[Our name is getting out there to say the least!!]....
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BonzBBQ · Posted: Jul 30 2014 Post subject: worn out

Nice job Tony, thats the kind of worn out everybody likes, question for ya, I am almost finished with my new trailer, love how yours looks nice job, up to this point have only catered and done events with tent settup, now getting into it full time and with the trailer almost done trying to secure a couple spots, I know you are up north and I am in Fl. but maybe you could give me a ballpark on what to look for as far as what to pay for a spot, any help you could give would help, thanks

Mr Tony's BBQ · Posted: Jul 30 2014 Post subject:

We pay anywhere from $250 - $1000 depending on venue and amenities for 2-3 day gigs, some are 5 day for same price range, but have paid $500 for a 1 day gig plus %...its nuts! Most will supply the power needed [ I run 50 amp 220v ] Number of attendee's historically and amount of advetising they do does count! Last weekend was over 40k attendance! I often need to pay for a larger spot as our rig is 24' firebox to tongue... and we need room to work fire..Some charge us for 2 spots, some want 3 [ "normal " spots are 10-15' wide, depending on venue ] If they say 3, I usually work them down or dont attend! Work with the promoters...Many are crooks, some are not - that will come to light REAL quick! There's usually not a need to write down the bad promoters names...They usually are QUITE memorable!
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Pkerchef · Posted: Jul 31 2014 Post subject:

Great news Mr. Tony . Good to see a fellow ringer doing well doing what we love to do. I hope to join in on the fun soon. The trailer is almost done and genny is on the way. Pkerchef
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jar · Posted: Jul 31 2014 Post subject:

Congrats Mr. Tony !!!! I love to hear success stories.

Painless · BBQ Fan Joined: 23 Aug 2013 Posts: 107

Good work.
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Papagallos · Newbie Joined: 12 Jun 2014 Posts: 28 Location: South Texas

That's outstanding!!!! It's better to sell out than not to. Heck, Franklin barbecue has a cult following because you have to get there early before everything sells out. It keeps the people coming back. I endured 5 hours in line to try his brisket and pork spare ribs. Smile

vexter1 · Posted: Aug 02 2014 Post subject:

CONGRATS Tony!!! That's what you like to see! We've had apretty good run ourselves this year overall - but some of the rain/heat has gotten us a couple of times - but almost every event has been a sellout but those 2.

I agree with you on the organizers - you can sure read em quick if you pay attention!

I'm working on getting setup in a usual 'spot' so people will know how to find us easier - we get a lot of 'we've been waiting a year for you to come back' when we hit events again the next year and they didn't know we had our schedule on our web page/fb pages.

It sure is a lot of work, but we truly enjoy watching the people enjoy the food and making the money doesn't hurt either Wink

Congrats again - I'm glad to hear it's going well for ya! Keep it up!

Quietman · Newbie Joined: 09 May 2014 Posts: 29

Congrats Mr Tony,been following your story a bit as it has many parallels with my own. Walked away from 30 yrs of self employment in the trades to vend (non BBQ) at music festivals. I had attended these fests for years, lamenting that there was nothing different than carnival food there. Fast forward seven years and wow. I never dreamed that we could move so much food. We run at least two stands, one in the food court area with our cafe menu of paninis, wraps, hot subs etc, and one in the campground serving breakfast to order 24/7. This past weekend at Gathering of the vibes, we brewed 190 lbs of coffee alone(7,500 cups+-) Shocked

And cooked over two thousand breakfast sandwiches. We have a crew that can handle non stop lines for hours/days on end.

Looking forward to adding our Q to the operation for next season but you got me thinking that the lang 84 i bought this season may have to be traded up for a double. Many of our contracts read that you can not run out of product during the event. There is a lot of people in line for your spot at any given time. The only loyalty is to the bottom line, and with the house cut at 35%...................
They already have a number in mind that your spot needs to turn for you to be invited back.

Keep killin' it Mr Tony, my hat is off to you. I will be watching and hopefully learning.

Blkandrust · Newbie Joined: 31 Oct 2010 Posts: 97 Location: virginia

Congrats Mr. Tony!!!! You are on the level that I hope I can aspire to one day. Way to go!!!
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Mr Tony's BBQ · Posted: Aug 06 2014 Post subject:

Thanks guy's! It is getting BRUTAL trying to keep this pace up....I just look to my bank book for relief..LOL!! November can hardly get here quick enough - I'll be Riviera May Mexico bound for a week - let someone else cater to me Wink

Gig for 300 went without a hitch, monday it looked like severe storms coming so we fire up the smoker and didnt set up at our regular spot, and boy did the phone and internet blow up with "where are you" as the storms fell apart as they got here [ if only we could microwave BBQ!!??!! ] Embarassed

Still didnt find but 2-3 hrs to relax all day between catch up, clean up, shopping and stocking....Yesterday was 2 shifts 100 head - noon AND 8:30 at a factory...then they hired me for huge ribeye's next month, and their Christmas Prime Rib gig!!!!!!
I think I might be getting a bit of an ego...LOL....but am told I deserve it Wink

Gonna have to go buy bigger hats if my head gets any bigger! Laughing

[ I just hope it doesnt pop ]
Keep that smoke a'rollin' my Brothers in BBQ!!
Just got almost 5.5 hrs sleep!! Keep in mind, thats A LOT in my world! [ Yea, I need a nap already!]
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