Owning any business is no small feat, but when it comes to the food service industry there are even more rules and regulations for business owners to follow. From planning menus to finding the correct packaging and presentations, it can be overwhelming for many.
We spoke with experts in a variety of food services to learn about their journeys and get tips on how you can start your own, whether you want to jump right in and own a restaurant or food truck business or do things a little more behind the scenes with catering or cottage law sales.
Restaurant — Billy's Grille & Bar
First, beginning his career with a focus towards becoming a chef in the hotel industry, Gary Van Gurdy made the switch to the restaurant world, where he began to function as an operational restaurant manager in the food and beverage industry before becoming the Director of Food & Beverage for The EPMC Group/Schulman Family, which owns and operates Billy’s Grille & Bar in Downtown Bryan.
What types of formal education, training or permits are required to get into the restaurant industry?
“A formal education is not required to break into the restaurant industry, but Hotel & Restaurant school graduates, and Culinary school graduates enjoy amazing long-term careers in the restaurant industry. Those programs, and degrees provide a nice jump start when entering a competitive industry. On the flip side there are a million stories wherein people without those degrees go on to have amazing careers in the hospitality industry.”
If someone were interested in getting into the restaurant industry, what would their first steps be?
“I would say that finding a starting point and giving the business “a try” is a great starting point. I always say that there is really no place to hide in this business, so it boils down to whether you really enjoy it and want to continue. Learning the business from the ground up is very important, and builds confidence in people over time.”
What things are most important when starting a new restaurant?
“Make sure everyone understands your vision! What is the identity of your brand, and above all don’t skimp on labor when you open! Productivity levels are fairly low in the beginning, so it takes extra help to generate a consistent level of product(s), and service.”
For new or aspiring restaurant owners, what would be your best piece of advice?
“Restaurants require a fair amount of capital to start, and a little time to build revenue. Not every restaurant comes out of the gate with high volume, and often restaurants need time, love, and attention to grow sales. Many restaurant owners will tell themselves that they ‘don’t need much money to live on,’ but they don’t count on possibly having negative cash flow when starting out. In short, not only are they not making much money, but they may end up writing a check occasionally to keep payroll, and expenses paid.”
billy@billlysgrillebryan.com
(979) 721-9989
Food Truck — Raging Bill Street Tacos
Starting from a love of small businesses and family history, Michael Marks found his love of food service by helping his aunt with her catering business as a child. Wanting to share his passion for food, Michael and his daughter Katniss created Raging Bull Street Tacos to share their favorite tacos recipes with the community. Now, the operation has expanded to include events and catering across the Brazos Valley and even into the Austin, San Antonio and Houston markets.
What types of formal education, training or permits are required to get into the food truck industry?
“The only formal education or training we have is truthfully just the passion for cooking and some skills in the kitchen. However, we always have to have the most up to date permits from the county health department as well as city permits for both Bryan and College Station.”
What are some of the kitchen and equipment requirements? How do you find the right truck for your business?
“Everyone’s requirements, budget and needs are all different, we actually drew out a floor plan in our garage with chalk and literally moved around as if we were inside our truck and it really helped pull things together!”
How do you create a starting menu for a food truck?
“Create a very simple and small menu for starters, start out with a food you enjoy and have a passion for and you don’t always have to stand out, it’s more important to put something good out there and the rest will follow! Our specialty is our street tacos with a creative take as we top ours with freshly made pico de gallo and shredded cheese, which both aren’t typically on a street taco. We also offer our gigantic 12 inch Quesadillas, our Doritos Walking tacos and our extremely popular Street Corn that’s topped with crushed Hot Cheetos and our infamous Green Sauce!”
ragingbullstreettacos@gmail.com
(979) 551-5116
Catering — D'Vine Cuisine
With a dream of owning their own business, Billy and Kantessa Castillo combined their abilities to create a business model in which they would both excel. With Billy’s love of cooking and Kantessa’s attention to detail and logistics, the couple set forth to create D’Vine Cuisine to share their love of bringing joy to others. Now, D’Vine Cuisine offers full-service catering, which includes a variety of cuisine options and tiers of service.
What types of formal education, training or permits are required to get into the catering industry?
“Formal education is not required but can be helpful (particularly if you start in the food industry as a second career). Permits for a catering company are the same as a restaurant — you have to have a kitchen that is not in your home or connected to your home; you have to have someone with a Food Protection Manager’s Certificate, all staff preparing and serving food are required to have a Food Handler’s Certificate, anyone serving alcohol must have a TABC license, you have to have a Sales & Use Tax Permit for collecting and paying sales tax, you have to carry general liability insurance.
What is something people often forget about when it comes to running a catering business?
The long hours and physicality of the business are challenging. Depending on the size of the event, you can easily put in 10 to 12 hours just on the event day (that does not include the meetings/tastings with the client before the event, the grocery shopping, prep cooking, or cleaning up). One event can easily take 20 to 24 hours (from the first meeting through the clean-up after the event). Even though you may not have events seven days a week, you can easily work seven days a week.”
For new or aspiring caterers, what would be your best piece of advice?
“We would encourage them to spend time thinking about why they want to cater. It is not enough to say, ’just because someone likes to cook’ or ‘likes to throw parties’; there is a lot more involved in operating a catering company.
If they are new to the industry, we recommend finding ways to work a variety of events, either by volunteering or working for a catering company or restaurant, in order to execute an event from the beginning to the end.”
info@dvinecuisine.com
(979) 704-6024
Cottage Law — Brazos Bakehouse
After seeing a documentary in 2017, Brazos Bakehouse founders Josh and Chandler Hooton were inspired to try a natural sourdough bread process of their own. After four years of perfecting their craft, they were selling bread at the Brazos Valley Farmers Market and love to share about their journey to inspire others to check out the TX Cottage Law industry, who also may have that same passion.
With being an at-home bakery, what types of rules and regulations do you have to follow?
“As home-bakers, we must have a basic food handler’s certification, as well as follow the requirements listed under TX Cottage Food Law such as specific labeling on our products and restrictions on where and how and to whom we can sell our baked goods.
The rules are not complex, but you do have to be pretty familiar with them to ensure you are covered by Cottage Law in case anything were to go wrong with your product.”
If someone were interested in getting into the cottage law industry, what would their first steps be?
“We’d recommend reading through texascottagefoodlaw.com to make sure you understand the limitations under cottage law and are willing to stay within those bounds. Secondly, we’d suggest researching for and asking around about any farmers markets or local vendor opportunities in your area. While you can market and sell your products yourself, it is much easier to get your foot in the door at a place where customers are already present and ready to buy!”
What is something people often forget about when it comes to running a vendor booth?
“Your products won’t always sell themselves! Oftentimes you’ll have to break the ice and say ‘Good morning!’ or at least give people a smile to invite them into the booth. Being on your phone is a very unwelcoming way to showcase your products to potential customers, so you need to be “on” and ready to give a short synopsis of what you sell and why it might be of interest to them. While not being pushy, being awake and ready to share about your product is a must.”
brazosbakehouse@gmail.com
(214) 676-2426
