Q. Do I need a special license?
A. Yes. Very likely. Check with your local City Hall in person or on your city’s web site for details, by-law requirements, license cost, etc. See the section “Getting a Business License" in our "Business Planning" section on the front page.
Q: Do I need approval from the local Health Dept. authorities?
A: Yes, very likely. Check with your local Health Department. They may be listed on the city’s web site. Get the details on the local health code requirements. There may be an initial inspection fee on your cart. Go to our "Business Planning" section on the front page. See the section “Getting Health Department Approvals” as well as the subsections “Health Department Links” and “Health Guidelines”.
Q. How much does a license cost?
A. Anything from free to about $300 a year
Q. How do I find a good location for my hotdog cart?
A. We will help you. You are limited only by your imagination. A good location will have lots of pedestrian traffic and no competition. Go to the "Business Planning" information on the front page. See the section “Searching for a Location” for more information and the subsection “Location Ideas” for a comprehensive list of good location ideas.
Q. Will I have to pay rent?
A. If you locate on private property you will likely have to pay a bit of rent. There is further information in our "Business Planning" section on rental locations and how to negotiate for one.
Q: Can I move the cart or must it stay in one spot?
A: Yes. You can move the cart all you want. We want you to make as much money as possible. The large carts are all equipped with a trailer hitch for highway towing behind a vehicle. However there are good reason to find a regular steadt location. It is best to find a good location and stay there so that people will know where to find you. This way you can quickly build a good base of regular loyal customers. The cart can be moved during “Off” hours to special events for extra income such as in evenings or on weekends. However you should have a regular consistent schedule at a good location. Go to our "Business Planning" area on the front page. See the section “Searching for a Location” for more information on regular locations and special events locations. See also the section “Tips for Success”.
Q. How much can I expect to make?
A. Many locations earn $200 000 yearly. A fair average is about $50 000 yearly with your "take home pay" about $30 000 - 35 000 yearly.
Q. How much do I pay for ...?
A. As a general rule your food costs would be less than 30% of your retail prices.
If you sell a sausage for $3.00, it should cost less than $0.90.
Q: What does NSF certified mean and does my hot dog cart need it?
A: NSF (National Sanitation Foundation) is a non-governmental, not-for-profit organization that develops standards for food service equipment manufacturers and provides third-party conformity assessment services for these food service equipment manufacturers.
To have NSF certification means that NSF has assessed and certified the conformity of the equipment with the appropriate NSF and ANSI (American National Standards Institute) standards.
Part of the certifications process is to have the equipment production facility audited annually so as to ensure that all the relevant standards continue to be met.
For hot dog carts this means that the materials used in construction are nontoxic, corrosion and heat resistant, and any coatings are tested for durability and abrasion resistance. In addition, the equipment has demonstrated that it can attain and maintain appropriate temperatures for reheating food in a prescribed time. Also temperatures indicating devices used are verified to be accurate.
Your local Health department may specify that your hot dog cart must meet NSF standards. Or they may not. Most actually do not require this.
Hot dog carts come under NSF/ANSI Standard 59 for Food Carts.
Q: Does an NSF certified cart come with documentation and an NSF label?
A: Yes. An NSF certified cart has a special serial number and will be labeled as such.
Q: Can your hot dog carts serve pre-cooked chicken or ribs?
A: Yes. However, your local health department may not allow this. They may not allow vendor carts to serve what they classify as hazardous pre-cooked meats which often includes pre-cooked chicken or pre-cooked pork ribs. Check with your local Health department first before planning to serve such items.
Q: Can your hot dog carts cook raw steak, chicken or pork?
A: Yes. However, your local health department may not allow this. They may not allow vendor carts to serve what they classify as hazardous uncooked meats. This definition often includes raw or frozen chicken, raw or frozen beef, raw or frozen pork, and ground meats. Check with your local Health department first before planning to serve such items.
Q. Where do I get the products to sell from my cart?
A. We will help set you up with good, local wholesalers and we will wholesale our private label meat to you. Our "Business Planning" area has excellent information to help you know what you will need (both food and non-food items) and where you can find them in your area. It has a sample menu and daily checklists you can use.
Q. Do you deliver?
A. Yes! We deliver anywhere in the world, right to your door.
How long does it take to get my cart shipped to me?
Anywhere from 2 days to a few weeks depending on the model. We ship anywhere in the World. Call 1-800-915-4683 for a specific ship time.
Q: Can you attach a coffee pot to a WillyDogs cart?
A: Yes. Coffee pots are shown in our Cart Options and Add-Ons page at www.willydogs.com top right corner. It would require a 110 volt AC power supply outlet near the cart.
Q: Does the cart have hot and cold running water?
A: Yes. Most of the carts are completely self-contained with hot and cold running water. Check the specifications page for each individual cart at www.willydogs.com . Click on the picture of each cart for more details and specifications of equipment included with each cart.
Q: What is the BTU rating of your burners?
A: The BTU ratings vary according to the cart requirements. They start at 17,000 BTU and go up from there. Call us with your specific requirements and we’ll specify a burner to do the job.
Q: Do you sell used carts?
A: No. Not usually. Our customers are so happy with their WillyDog hotdog carts that we don’t have used ones on hand. We pride ourselves in helping our WillyDog customers be successful and often they call back wanting to order another cart to expand their business.
Q: Do you have financing available?
A: Yes. We have a financier that we refer customers to if they require financing when purchasing a hotdog cart.
Q: Is there a local dealer or a place near to me where I can see a cart before purchasing?
A: We have dealers in 6 states. Just click on the “Dealers” section on the front page of our website to check for a location nearest to you. Otherwise, contact us and we may be able to direct you to a WillyDog vendor cart location near you.
Q: Do you have a catalogue you can send?
A: Yes. We can mail you a catalogue or you can download the specifications and pictures of the different hot dog carts from our website.
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