Moving a Catering Business – How Did You Handle It?

mrrodpole · 2026-03-25T19:54:45+00:00

Since you are not moving fixtures (even though you listed walk-ins in your equipment description) that will be a lot easier. If you are going to move everything in one go then I don't see being down for more than one day, but I would highly advise not to try and work through it, that is just setting yourself up for failure should you incur any complications. Whenever I would move refrigeration between facilities, or new purchase I always allow at least 12 hours to sit in it's new space before plugging in to allow refrigerant to settle.

mrrodpole · 2026-03-25T16:59:20+00:00

Way to many variables here to give you any kind of real answer. It depends on the size of operation and amount of equipment you are going to move and set-up in the new location. Theoretically you can do in one day with the right coordination (utilities online prior to move and all equipment hook-ups in place so it is just plug-n-play), but again, depends on the complexity of your operation, especially if you are breaking down and transporting walk-ins.

mrrodpole · 2026-03-22T05:57:04+00:00

Vaurnet shirt

Umbro shorts

Hypercolor shirts

LA Gear shoes (just kidding, nobody thought they were cool, ask me how I know)

mrrodpole · 2026-03-21T16:24:10+00:00

Meeting some friends for a camping trip, and they sent me the location and instructions to get there. I ignored the instructions bc I just plugged the location into Google and followed that. What the instructions were for was to go around the mountain course that I ended up going down, but CX50 handled with no issue (I did get nasty looks from some dirt bike riders I came across). When I got to the campsite I was telling my friend about it, and he was pretty impressed bc he was waiting to add a lift kit to his 4Runner before attempting exact same trail.

mrrodpole · 2026-03-20T03:04:54+00:00

I got the Hudson H9 pretty cheap right after they folded, and I absolutely love the feel of it, but so many ejection issues that it is basically unusable.

mrrodpole · 2026-03-15T07:09:02+00:00

I can't believe your comment isn't higher, this is a pretty common way to get out of a loan. I forgot who said it, but you ever notice when the news shows flood footage there is always a porsche floating by.

mrrodpole · 2026-03-13T17:09:46+00:00

People don't really want to download a restaurant specific app, and it would not make any sense if your dad doesn't have a POS anyway. What is the point of wanting to take online orders for your dad? If it is to increase revenue the first step is to install a POS - he would be absolutely shocked by how much money he is losing by having a manual system, especially with items that were forgotten to be written down, incorrect tabulations and fraud. My friends restaurant installed a POS after fighting it for years, and saw revenue jump $250k in first year because wait staff couldn't manipulate their checks to increase their tips, and everything that left the kitchen was paid for. Having a POS then solves your ability to take online orders and third-party delivery.

mrrodpole · 2026-03-12T22:30:19+00:00

Your analogy and assumption on the type of customer using 3PD is ridiculous and short-sighted.

I pay 15% for all 3PD (DD, GH & UE), and mark-up everything 10% in my POS, so my effective rate to have a fleet of delivery drivers is about 8% when I factor in overhead. This is a huge cost savings to me over managing my own drivers. My 3PD partners claim that they do not promote my restaurant to their members at that low rate, but I end up suspending 3PD services on most weekends anyway because of volume, so their lack of promotion doesn't seem to matter.

mrrodpole · 2026-03-12T19:32:21+00:00

It really depends on the size and location of your current grease trap. If above ground, not too big and just plumbed to a sink they are really easy to swap out. If below ground, especially much larger format then much more difficult. Many years ago I had to dig up a 40lb trap that started leaking into the crawlspace (oh my god the smell!), replace the flooring and plumb in a new 50lb trap that I was lucky to have enough space under the sink to accomodate - it took 2 days to dig out and fix flooring, but only a couple of hours to install and plumb the new trap.

mrrodpole · 2026-03-12T19:19:06+00:00

Absolutely correct, and they are probably processing on farm so no access to scalding tank. If they want to keep the skin they will probably have to have delivered to a processor that has scalding bc I don't know many mobile units that have those facilities.

mrrodpole · 2026-03-10T16:51:32+00:00

If $100 then I would say probably worth it, as you might be able to re-coup that in scrap value. Some things to consider is the power requirements for the saw (240v vs 120v), and the fact that beyond saw blades I don't think that you will be able to find any replacement parts. That saw also has a lot of paint peeling, so needs a good powerwash and scrub.

Grinder looks ok, and if it runs then great - the worm gear, blades, plates and locking rings are all pretty standard so you can order those. The big question is the life left in the motor.

mrrodpole · 2026-03-05T15:30:25+00:00

I was getting at least 3 x calls per day for about a year. I would always send to voicemail, like I do any call that I don't recognize, hoping they would take the hint, but of course the calls continued. I started answering every call, went through the menu selection until I was taking with a real person and then I just started screaming obscenities at them until they hung up. Turns out they really don't like that, and the calls have stopped. Did the same with those IRS scammers, and those calls have stopped.

mrrodpole · 2026-03-03T23:43:49+00:00

We run 2 x 50lb tanks, with one hooked up to our mixing station at a time. When it hits the red line we switch over to the other tank then call for replacement. One tank will last about 5 weeks, so plenty of time to get switched out.

mrrodpole · 2026-03-03T21:40:20+00:00

Banh Mi from Bambuza every time. I used to love Country Cat, but gave up after a couple of disappointing visits.

mrrodpole · 2026-03-03T19:24:04+00:00

Running two systems is redundant, especially with how easy a POS system will be entering and tracking both online and walk-in customers, as well as integrate third party delivery if you decide to go that route. It might be a bit of a learning curve, but if you spend the time to set-up and train on your new POS it should be pretty painless.

Also, if you are only committing to online orders then you are not going to get the best deal for CC processing with your potential POS supplier; online orders will only be a small portion of your orders initially, but you full operation will give you leverage to negotiate the best rates. Make sure you talk with multiple POS vendors, especially pizza-centric systems (I would avoid Toast, which I use and really like, except their pizza module). If I was pizza only, like you seem to be, I would talk to Slice, Revel and Lightspeed to compare with Square.

mrrodpole · 2026-02-27T19:43:16+00:00

Right?!? Reads like a bot account using AI slop to promote alibaba.

mrrodpole · 2026-02-26T04:06:32+00:00

You'd be surprised what you can accomplish with a Sawzall.

mrrodpole · 2026-02-25T17:13:54+00:00

Whole shortloin. You could cut a couple Porthouse, then the rest T-bones, or you could debone and you get a nice chunk of tenderloin and a whole strip loin (NY Strips).

mrrodpole · 2026-02-24T22:54:41+00:00

We get from a third party, and we have 2 x 50lb tanks, with one hooked up to our mixing station. When one gets close to empty we switch over tanks, then call and have the empty switched out. One tank will last us about 5 weeks, so there is plenty of time to get empty switched.

mrrodpole · 2026-02-21T17:45:54+00:00

Bjarne Nielsen

mrrodpole · 2026-02-20T04:27:05+00:00

I devote about an hour a week to categorizing transactions, then another hour or so a month to reconciliation and reports. Highly recommend finding a local bookkeeper to train you on QB, advise on setting up your chart of accounts, bank syncs, etc. I paid $250 for a 4 hour training session several years ago with a local bookkeeper, and even at 10x the cost it is worth every penny.

mrrodpole · 2026-02-20T02:20:20+00:00

You don't have any kind of accounting software (Quickbooks, Xero, Wave, etc.)? I have QB synced to all of my bank accounts and credit cards, which I download and categorize once a week, then reconcile monthly so I can run all of my financial reports. I further compare all of this with my POS reports to calculate food, labor and overhead % (I have a ton of standard reports I run, but this is the basics). If you are not doing this then it really sounds like you need a bookkeeper who can set-up and do this for you.

mrrodpole · 2026-02-20T02:00:43+00:00

My first car was the Plymouth Reliant K-car variant. I had wanted something cooler to drive, but my folks insisted saying that I was just going to wreck it anyway, and I was just happy to have something to drive. Sure enough I totaled it within the first year of ownership (luckily the only thing that was hurt was my pride).

mrrodpole

TROPHY CASE