Adding, Subtracting & Crunching the Numbers

In January 2018, we rolled out our first Cheezer with chicken as the main ingredient.  We been getting asked more & more frequently about chicken at the markets, so we came up a new Cheezer of the Month.  "Cluck Norris," featured a grilled Chicken Breast with homemade BBQ sauce, fresh red Coleslaw, Swiss & Provolone.

With my folks out as financial backers on the shop we needed to make as much as we could.  So, Kate & I decided to go back to doing apartment complexes on Tuesdays.  It was a short 3-4 hour setup, where could make a few hundred bucks on a good day.  That gave us six setups each week with Friday's open for catering or other pop-up gigs if they would arise.

We also discontinued our internet at home & stopped going out to eat in OB every Monday.  I started riding my bike to the beautiful Point Loma library to use their internet & work on a business plan to try & secure a loan. 

I had already ordered as much of the large kitchen appliances that we needed for the shop (besides the exhaust hood).  The interior walls were painted Pacific Coast Blue with the rest of the paint I had left. 

Now, we were waiting on Chris, our architect, (who we'd already paid nearly in full) to get our building plans stamped so we could hire & contractor & get started with the buildout.  

I had emailed, spoken over the phone &/or met in person with close to ten area contractors & had gotten bids ranging from $125K-$250K.  Luke's first sticker shock bid in December 2017 turned out to be median par for the course.

Bottom Line:  We were gonna need some serious moolah.  

We kept to the market grind, making small tweaks to entice more customers: adding several Breakfast Cheezers to the lineup at our morning markets (a.k.a. the Donnie Special, Hashy Larry & Cheezy Like a Sunday Morning).  

Kate even came up with a new beverage.  We started making our own "Sweet & Creamy Iced Coffees," with Folgers coffee & sweetened condensed milk.  

I spent most Fridays working on our business plan, so I knew just how much money we would need to borrow.  Mondays we went to the beach religiously to sit by the ocean & blow off some steam.           

Munching Back On Sundays

Kate & I decided that in the new year, we'd go back to work on Sundays.  Football season was over for the Chicago Bears & there were a plethora of Sunday morning farmers markets out there, compared to the limited Tuesday & Friday setup options.

A vendor next to us at the OB market, Matt, who sold raw fish & poke bowls, often spoke highly of the market in Rancho Santa Fe.

"Where is that at?" I asked.

"Pretty much straight inland from the Del Mar racetrack," he said.  "You guys would do well out there.  People have money & they don't like to cook breakfast."

So I grabbed a few extra loaves, meat & cheeses that week, set that Sunday morning alarm & headed north on the 5.  After leaving the freeway at Del Mar Heights, you take some country-like backroads through a valley full of golf courses & horse stables.  It was an area I hadn't yet explored in San Diego county.  

Then, on the right we came up to a Spanish-tiled shopping center that could have been dropped out of the sky & placed in the tall grass.  There was a large cluster of tents scattered about the large parking lot in the middle, adjacent to a luxury car dealership.

At first it reminded me of the Leucadia farmers market, but no this was a bit classier than that.  We weren't next to the railroad tracks here & there weren't any public elementary schools in sight.  

Diane was the manager & was very personable. 

"You guys will be over here in the food court," she pointed down one of the walkways between tents.  There was a large chromed-out trailer that sold rotisserie chicken to anchor the area.  He was definitely the stud horse of the market, but we were the newcomers & people loved something fresh & different.

The seating reminded me of Scripps Ranch but with nicer chairs & again, not next to a school.  We were next to a tent that sold Greek food & gyros.  The girls working it were younger than us & very friendly.  

"We have a shop down in Mission Beach called Arlan's.  We've been doing this market forever," one of them told us.  "You guys food looks so good.  You'll do well here."

They eyed the "Display Only" grilled cheese that Kate always propped up on a paper plate at markets to showcase our food.  And to avoid the inevitable, "What do you guys sell?" question.

We traded with Matt for some Poke bowls (before he sold out) & enjoyed some great live music by "Pan Diego," a quartet with guitars & a steel drum that played tropical, Caribbean music.  I liked the atmosphere out there. 

Mad Munch did pretty well that first day, going through almost 6 loaves of Sourdough.  We spent the better part of the next year setting up from 9:30am-2 on Sundays in that parking lot.  It really takes about 6-8 weeks to get the ball rolling on a new market & attract some regulars, but we seemed to fit in right away. 

Always Give Back & Support Your Community

When things seem like they are out of reach or you get overwhelmed by something, it's always good to take a step back & reflect on the journey that got you there.

Sure, Mad Munch had it's share of highs & lows & bumps in the road, but we still had a pretty consistent schedule of work that was fairly close to home.  We had positive income coming in & we were paying the bills.  Kate & I were still able to take a couple days off each week.

Life wasn't so bad.  And, it was the holiday season, which always raises the human spirit.  

We entered a store decorating contest in Ocean Beach & asked Audrey from Ballast Point Home Brew Mart, who used to draw something to advertise us every Thursday on their A-board.  She worked on the windows for probably three hours & didn't ask for anything in return.  It turned out great:

Audrey's generosity rubbed off on us as well.  Later that week, we donated two Mad Munch gift certificates to Raglan Public House's fundraiser to help benefit special needs kids at the local Pioneer School.  

Kate & I would donate to local causes from time to time, but this was one of the first we did as a resident on Newport Avenue.  

Giving back to the OB community that has given us so much, not only felt great, but also made us new friends & customers in the neighborhood.  People remember who shows good will & generosity & who does not.  When it comes time to support a local business, they will recall your name.  

A good deed will lead to others.  But, that's not the only reason to give back to your community.  You wouldn't be who you are or where you are without your community, so you shouldn't ever turn your back on them.  It's a big enough world that we can all help one another be our best possible selves.

Fire & Ice at Old Poway Park

We got our tent in place into a what I felt was a good spot on the end.  Our booth was right by the restrooms of the Heritage Museum at Old Poway Park.  There were probably close to fifty tents out there, peddling other hot foods, drinks, crafts & merch for the holiday season.  

It was Poway Christmas in the Park, a couple Saturdays before Christmas but, like the Poway farmers market, it drew hoards of people.  Kate & I came in with a renewed attitude after the wildfire cancellations & & had plenty of buttered Sourdough to go through.

If only I could get the grill lit.  We had a little bit of extra time before the start of the event, but the either  one of the burners or the lighter weren't cooperating.  

"Hi there, is this Mad Munch?" a woman with a clip board asked.  Kate acknowledged her & said that we were.  "I'm with the health department & I'm here to inspect your booth."

Just great, I thought.  The timing couldn't have been better.  

She looked around, marked some things down with a pen & then went for the cooler.  Now, we spend most of our time at home emptying the ice machine when it's full & stashing the frozen cubes in our deep freezer.  But, there's never enough ice for the health department.  They want you cheeses & meats to be buried with ice.  

"Your cooler here is at 47 degrees, you need to be below 41.  Is there away you can get more ice?" she asked.

"Sure," Kate said.  She knew I was in a bind with the grill, so she left to track down some ice.  Add more to our overhead costs for the day.  It was either that or the health department lady could shut us down with zero in sales. 

Kate was back in no time with two bags.  That seemed to please the health department lady & she handed us our yellow copy of the report.  We passed.

"Where the hell you get ice so fast?" I asked when the lady was out of ear shot.

"Doggo's Gus over there," Kate pointed.  "Said he had extra."

Kate had told Gus about this event.  I don't remember how we found out about it, but Kate shared the info with some of the other vendors we knew from OB, Sony & Scripps Ranch.  Vendors helping vendors.

His nice gesture seemed to give me good luck.  I was able to get the flame going & keep it steady by twisting one of the manifold burners just a quarter inch.  It had warped over time & needed to be replaced, but that would be a chore for another day.

Once the sun went down the event started to take off.  Families & strollers were everywhere.  We had a line & about a 45 minute wait for Cheezers that continued for over an hour.  I had to relight the grill a handful of times but we made it work.  

That big pile of Sourdough had dwindled to only about 4 or 5 sandwiches by the end.  It was a great event for us & we would return the following year.

Kate & I were pretty beat by the time we pulled the Escape out of there.  When we got back home I checked my phone & saw a message from my mom:

I talked with your Dad & sorry but we won't be able to loan you the money to buildout the shop.  It's just too much money.  

Kate & I would have to borrow money from somewhere else.

The Hits Keep Coming on Pearl Harbor Day

"What's wrong?" Kate asked.

"It won't start," I said & tried to turn it over again.  "Hear that?  I think it's the battery."

We were about to leave for the Sony Thursday lunch market.  Instead, I called AAA & Kate called Dave, the market manager.  AAA showed up in about 30 minutes.  We ended up replacing the battery in the Ford Escape for $135.  Dave never answered Kate's call so we just made the drive to Rancho Bernardo as soon as we could.

We got there about an hour late, Dave didn't seem to mind but we didn't make enough to cover the cost of the new battery.  

From there, we continued on to Oceanside.  We always got up there with about an extra hour or so to before we had to start setting up at the Sunset Market.  I liked to park at the south end of town, "South O," as the locals like to call it, & walk around the neighborhood or along the beach.  

"Whoa," Kate said as I put the Escape in park next to Cassidy Street Beach.  "Luke gave us a bid.  Are you ready for this?  One seventy five!"

"Damn, that's a lot," I said.  "Well, I'm still gonna meet with a few other contractors.  Maybe he's just really high."

"I hope so.  Will your parent's let us borrow that much?"

"I don't know, but I'm about to call 'em & find out."

I found a spot on some rocks along the water & made the call.  My mom's reaction was about the same as Kate's.

"One seventy-five?  I don't know Zach, that's a lot," she said.  

I told her that was probably high & that I still had other bids to get.  The sticker shock was real on both ends of the phone.

"Ok, well, I gotta go.  We gotta get set up here at Oceanside," I told her.

"Are you guys close to those fires out there?  I seen something on the news about they were in San Diego county," she said.

"Yeah, I don't think we're that close.  Although, now that you mention it, there is a little bit of ash in the air."

I met Kate back at the car & told her about the phone call.  It was with an uneasy feeling that I drove the final half mile to downtown Oceanside.  We were parked & just started to unload when Kathy, the market manager at Oceanside came around with a megephone.

"Listen up everybody.  I have an important announcement," she said.  "Tonight's market has been cancelled due to the Lilac Fire.  For the interest & safety of all vendors & customers, we've decided that this is the best course of action."

I was just glad that we hadn't unloaded all of our supplies like some of the other vendors had already done.  It was the first Thursday that we'd drove home from Oceanside before it was dark.  When I say dark, I mean after sunset at night, even though on that particular day the sky was a reddish sort of gray that left a darkness over our hour ride back to OB.

When we got home, Kate & I decided  we needed a little cheering up.  We cracked a couple of beers & then decided to go to the OBMA Sundowner.  It was about a mile away at the Brown Marketing Group office next to the Point loma library, but that seemed like a welcome way to clear our heads.

"I thought you guys did Oceanside on Thursdays?" Denny asked.  She was the head of the OB Main Street Association.

"It got cancelled because of the Lilac Fire," Kate explained.

"Oh, wow.  Just be glad you guys got outta there.  Some people might not have been as lucky.  You never know with wildfires."

She was right.  And, even though Kate received an email on our walk there that the San Marcos Winter Wonderland, which we were due to setup at the next day, was also cancelled because of the Lilac Fire, things could have been a lot worse.

It was a tough day for sure, but the silver lining came for us when I won a $40 gift card to Pepe's Italian in OB in one of the Sundowner raffles.  The first time I ever won one of their raffles on a night when I didn't think we were attend at the start of the day.

OB's Most Wonderful Night of the Year

For the last several years, dating back to our old apartment on Cape May Avenue, Kate & I had been hosting an Ocean Beach Holiday Pre-Parade Party at our place.  The running joke was that unlike most get-togethers there was a hard end-time.  

"Alright!  Everybody out!" we'd yell at about 4:30 each year.  That gave us just enough time to put away the extra food & drink & make our way the three blocks to Newport Ave where the parade started promptly at 5:05pm.

"You've never seen so many people drinking from coffee cups at night," I bragged to my brother about the event over the phone.  "Oh yeah, & Kate makes it snow in our yard, too."

It was probably our favorite day of the year in OB.  Sure, the OB Street Fair & Chili Cook-off every summer had it's charms- the community mural squares, the five stages of live music, as well as the chili taste test- but there was no parade.  

But, there's just something about a night parade with all of the lit up floats & street walkers in their Christmas best attire that made it a holiday all it's own.  So, we basically created a pre-game/tailgate party in our yard, with party favors, photo backdrops, hot toddies, Christmas music on the speakers, Christmas movies on the VCR, & yes, even a snow machine.  To give San Diego more of a winter wonderland feel. 

We encouraged people to show up early, anytime after 1pm, & they could go home with a koozie to commemorate the joyous event:

In 2017, though, for the first time, we had a viewing spot on Newport Ave, with a restroom.  That was huge!  While we couldn't invite everyone from the pre-party up to our new storefront, my brother, Ross & his wife, Sydney, along with a handful of others walked up there with us to catch the parade.  

You really couldn't see a whole lot from behind the window inside, but having a great view from the sidewalk, along with toilet in the back hallway was key.   

Being able to play Christmas music on my old 2006 laptop connected to my new OB Yard Sale find Kenwood stereo was priceless.  Hearing my I-Tunes music bouncing off the white primed walls & several scattered, unboxed appliances really made the season bright for me.  

Kate & I were embarking on a new era with Mad Munch on Newport Ave & though, sad to say, this would be the last OB Pre-Holiday Parade in our yard, at least we got to spend it with some family.

And, Sydney took this amazing photo, perched on top of a random car parked in front of the "Cape May Cage," to commemorate this historic moment in time:  December 2, 2017, around 4pm.

This photo shows just about everyone I knew/know in OB/San Diego.  It's now framed & hangs in our house.

Little League & Liberty for All

Eva liked our Cheezers so much that she asked us to setup again at Fletcher Hills Little League ballpark on a Friday afternoon.  This time it was for the first day of their "Fall Ball Invitational Tournament."  There were only two games that first night but we already had plans for Saturday.

"We're doing San Diego Made, tomorrow," Kate told her.  "It's an Arts & Crafts Fair at Liberty Station.  Apparently, they sold out of tickets months ago."

"Good for you guys.  Today won't be as busy as Saturday, but you guys should do well," Eva said.

She was right about that.  We got slammed a few times next to the concession stand next to the ball diamond in El Cajon.  Any sales were a plus on a Friday & it turned out to be a good warm up for San Diego Made the next day.

We didn't know all of the details when we arrived early the next day around 10am, but soon figured out we were just one of two hot food vendors along with Parana Empanadas.  They were next to us on one side & there was a tent peddling booze on the other.  A long line started to form outside of the old barracks building where the craft fair was about to start.

Kristin had given us a another golden opportunity with a good sized crowd.

Kate & I had paid $100 ahead of time to be there, but after doing there last event six months prior, we knew it was worth the gamble.  We brought our our whole menu out there & treated as a if it were a farmers market.  A market with very little competition.

The goat cheese crumbles disappeared at an alarming rate- we ran out of the two containers I brought before the event ended around 4pm.  It didn't make that much of a difference though.  As long as you still have bread with our special seasoning blend, butter & cheese, people will keep ordering.  

And, they did.  We also went through a lot of bacon & turkey that afternoon.  Grilled cheese & craft beer- the perfect pairing for hungry shoppers & the artisans working their booths inside.  

We traded food with Parana Empanadas & it was a great snack while we were packing up.  They pretty much sold out by the end, like we did.  

It was a great feeling too, when everything was packed up, ready to roll back to the Escape & the guy from the Beer Bar gave us a few cold ones.  It reminded me of the good old days, setting up at breweries.

I really savored that craft beer, knowing I only had to drive over the hill & we had the next two Saturdays off- for Thanksgiving weekend (There was no Scripps Ranch market) & in two weeks, the annual OB Christmas Parade (when my brother & his wife were coming to town). 

Great Alternative Saturday Setup

More & more events kept snowballing our way.  Some from past gigs where we got invited back for future setups & others from new customers who enjoyed our Cheezers so much at the farmers market that they wanted us to cater their event.

In November 2017, we were still hitting apartment complexes on Tuesdays, OB Wednesday, driving to Sony & on to Oceanside Sunset Market Thursdays & filling in on Fridays, Saturdays & some Sundays when we could.  Kate & I came into a few great events on Saturdays that conflicted with Scripps Ranch morning market, but luckily Bev (the market manager) was understanding about it.

"Go & do what you gotta do," Bev said with great enthusiasm.  "You guys are building a shop, take all of the opportunities you can get.  Your spot will be here when you need it."

It was a blessing to have that kind of Saturday flexibility. 

Veteran's Day weekend, we catered another first birthday party for Finleigh at his home in Solana Beach.  Kate & I had gone to the San Diego Gulls hockey game the night before with a group of friends & stayed out a little longer than we should have.  

As I used to say back when I worked in a warehouse in Tennessee, "Do what you want & enjoy yourself [the night before], just don't bring it to work with ya [the next day]."

We followed my old advice, but at one point my stomach would not agree with me.

"I gotta use the bathroom," I told Kate.

"What?  I think it's inside next to the living room," she said.  

At that point, we hadn't even set foot in their house.  We'd unloaded everything from the driveway around through a gate into the backyard.  I really didn't want to ask.  

"Can't you hold it?"

"No," I said. 

"Oh no, please don't go here."

"I think I saw a Vons when we got off the 5, just down the road.  I'll be back."

So, I walked non-chalantly back to the Escape on the street out front & drove as fast as I could to the grocery store.  It was a Saturday afternoon, so everyone & their brother, sister & grandpa were shopping for groceries.  I found the men's restroom up front but it was closed for cleaning.  I walked straight into the women's restroom next door & found an open stall inside.  I had the place to myself.  

Desperate times call for desperate measures.

I felt like a million dollars when I walked out of there & no one batted an eye.  By the time I got back to the party, Kate had already started breaking everything down.  I was probably gone thirty minutes, though it seemed like two hours.

"How it go?" she asked.

"Got there just in time," I said.  "Did I miss anything?"

"Nope, except for me packing everything up."

-----

About a week later we got a new Yelp review from Corinne B, Finleigh's mom.  Her words summed it all up for everyone to see online:  

   

You Better Shop Around

That fall I started to buy equipment for the store.  I had a list of the make/models of all of the sinks, refrigerators, tables & shelf, etc. that we had to have.  I went on a few excursions down south to check out some used equipment, but ultimately I ended up going with mostly new equipment.

My list of places to look for equipment in & around San Diego.  Craigslist was also a great source for me.

"Used is tough, because you can find a deep fryer at a price but maybe it has a small pin-hole leak.  And then you're screwed," Mark, one of the sales reps at Chef's Toys in Miramar told me.  

He'd worked in restaurants for years & gave me a lot of helpful advice when it came to kitchen appliances.

Chef's Toys was like the third retailer I looked at, but it was the first place that had most of right sized fridges & cold tables that I could look at up close to get better familiar with.  

And, they would price match anything I found online.  Which was huge because they had free shipping & most of the good priced stuff I was finding was from an online retailer called KaTom that was located in Tennessee.  When you order big ticket items, shipping can add on hundreds of dollars (as well as tax).

So, I made my list & shopped around for the best quality, with the best reviews & purchased them from the company with the lowest price.  

A few items I did end up finding on Craigslist.  I bought some wire shelves for dry storage from a broker in Vista who said they came from Belmont Park.  I got a six compartment storage locker, which you have to have in a restaurant in San Diego per the health department, for $80 in Escondido.  

My favorite used appliance by far, though, is my Hobart Meat Slicer.  I looked all around & couldn't find a new Hobart for anywhere south of $2000.  But, I got lucky on Craigslist & found one that a guy who had sold his Italian deli was getting rid of.  He wanted $950, but I talked him down to an even $900.  It even has it's own built-in blade sharpener.  It still use all the time & it continues to save us money on meats, cheeses & produce.    

The Dynalectric Hackmaster Golf Tournament

"This is so good!  You guys need to do my golf tournament," Johnny White said.  

Kate & I were busy replenishing Cheezers on the front table at the Reno Golf Tournament to take any special notice to his comment.  He was just another contractor golfing on his day off, who was excited about our food after having a few drinks.

"Here's our business card," Kate said & handed him one.  "Send us an email if you want us to cater."

But Johnny, wasn't an email kind of guy.  He was more of a phone guy & liked to talk it out.  And, he did follow up on his bold statement from the day on the golf course in Rancho Bernardo.

A few months later, Kate took his call, since at that time her number was Mad Munch's phone number, & they worked out the details.

"It's on a Friday [November 3, 2017] at Carlton Oaks Golf Course in Santee," she told me after the call.  "There's around 100 golfers & he said he could cut us a check this week!"

Amazing!  A pre-paid gig, on a Friday, (still one of our open days) & we get to setup on a golf course!

"What time do we got be there?" I asked.

"Johnny said the raise the flag at 7am, with a crane or something, so we gotta be there before that, at like 6:45," Kate said.

It was the day after a Thursday, Sony/Oceanside doubleheader, but Kate & I had been doing those for over three months, so we were use to it.  When the check arrived in our mailbox a few weeks before the gig, it was more than enough motivation to get us out there.

"How much is it?" I asked.  

Kate told me & I can't remember what the number was, but I do recall we were both over the moon about it.

We unloaded & loaded most of the stuff in Ford Escape that we could the night before & got out to Santee before the crane raised one of the largest American flags I've ever seen.  We had the wind walls up & the grill lit long before the shotgun start to the tournament around 8am.

Kate & I went out there with 12 loaves (we came home with only 2) & made a rotation of 5 or 6 alternating sandwiches that she cut into bite-sized pieces & our tent was a quickly a fan-favorite.  Construction & contractor guys have a real soft spot for grilled cheese when their drinking Coors Lights, taking Fireball shots & puffing on cigars.

We had a menu up to show off what we do & one guy begged me to make him our peanut butter & raspberry jam grilled cheese- the After School Special.  I was annoyed by the request, because it was toward the end of our setup & the wind kept knocking out our grill's flame.

But, I gritted my teeth & said, "Sure."

The guy was super stoked & loved that Cheezer so much he tossed a $20 bill into the tip jar.  As fate would have it, we hired that same guy to do the buildout on our storefront about a year later.  His name is Eric & that $20 After School Special might have sealed the deal for him & for us!                  

Slinging Cheezers for the Masses

We lucked into a few other great events that were close to home & a lot of bang for our buck.  

Point Loma is home to large Portuguese population & the Portuguese Hall close to Shelter Island hosts many events throughout the year as well as Bingo on Thursday nights.  

When Kate & I got an email asking Mad Munch to setup at the Hall for a Curators & Creators Halloween Event with an expected head count of over 500 people, they couldn't turn it down.  The event was on a Sunday from 10am-5pm, & Mad Munch was only one of two food vendors.  

There were costumes, drinks, live music & even an Elvira impersonator to get people into the Halloween spirit in early October.  Kate & I served up over 70 Cheezers from under their pop-up tent in the parking lot.  Not bad for a Sunday afternoon.

A couple weeks later, we took off Scripps Ranch to setup on the infield of the University of San Diego Toreros baseball park for USD's Homecoming Weekend.  That gig was great, because we were paid ahead of time by the school.  Students & family just walked up to our tent & gave us tickets for either an O.B.C. or a Bacon Street.  

It was that easy, though I was making Cheezers pretty much nonstop from 10am-2pm.  It was still way more money than our best Scripps Ranch market.  We never came close to making 100 Cheezers there.

The hardest part was loading & unloading everything.  We had to cart everything in from the third base line gate & the twenty-some vendors all had a lot of equipment to squeeze through that one gate.  A small gripe for how great of a day it was.

New Setups on Tuesdays

There was only one farmers market in San Diego county on Mondays & I went & checked it out after hiking outside of Fallbrook.  The lone Monday market was at the Lawrence Welk Resort, was from 3-7pm & was a little over an hour's drive from OB.  

There were a few hot food tents there but it was mostly arts & crafts for the tourists to mill over.

I just couldn't see Mad Munch having a booth there or Kate & I driving north on the 15 past Escondido every week.  I wouldn't have been worth it.  

Besides, I felt like having Sundays & Mondays off, were the best days to have off.  Sundays in the fall we spent watching NFL football with our friends, unwinding at the beach or in our yard & Mondays were a great day to go for a hike or run errands without all of the weekend traffic.  And, Saturdays we were usually home from Scripps Ranch by 2pm, leaving the whole rest of the day open as well.

But, Tuesdays were the big question mark.  We definitely weren't going back to Mira Mesa & when I checked out one of Dave's (the OB Market Manager) other markets in Otay Ranch, he already had a grilled cheese vendor- Ye Olde Grilled Cheese Shop & the market wasn't big enough for two grilled cheese vendors.

So, Kate ended up finding a different kind of setup for us.  We'd drive out to a suburb of San Diego & pop-up our tent at an apartment complex.  

The first one we did was at Del Mar Ridge Apartments.  We set up there in a parking space next to the office seven different times through the end of the year & into spring 2018.  We averaged selling around twenty Cheezers each visit & it was a nice way to ease into the week after doing my shopping trip to Restaurant Depot on Tuesday mornings.

There were a few other apartment complexes we tried out on other open Tuesdays.  There was Canyon Ridge in Clairemont, Portofino in Mission Valley & Montierra Apartments, just down the road from the Scripps Ranch market.  Del Mar Ridge was the best moneymaker for us.

We also setup at a elementary school's Book Fair one week & a "Trunk or Treat" on Halloween that was very good for us back at the Bonita Valley Church.               

Get The Best Equipment You Can Afford

"So, when can I start buying equipment?" I asked Chris over the phone.  I had been surfing around online to try & get an estimate of what all of that was going to cost.

"Whenever you want to," he assured me, "Just make sure, & I can't stress this enough, make sure you get the same equipment that is listed on the approved health plans.  Same exact make & model numbers on everything.  They're real sticklers on that."

I read in a good book about starting your own restaurant, that my friend, Tony, gave me: "Buy the best equipment that you can afford."

With that in mind, I went on a few drives downtown & to south bay to check out & see what some used equipment was going for.  But, it was actually a guy named Phil, who came to pick up the old leftover shelves from $2 Thrill that we listed for free after there were no initial takers, that had a some slightly used equipment.

"I could probably help you out," he said.  "You ever been to Joltin' Joes?"

"I think so.  Is that down by the ballpark?" I asked.

"Yep, but I run the one in La Mesa.  I gotta a bunch of extra equipment just sitting out at my place in Lakeside though," he said & gave me his number.

I followed up with him a couple weeks later & drove out there after I went on a hike at Lake Jennings.  He showed me to an old shed with a bunch of bar equipment.  Reach-ins, sinks, freezers & a few stainless steel tables.  I had a written list with me with all of the make & model numbers & dimensions of everything we needed to get for the shop.

After scouring through a lot of crap, I did come away with the perfect sized hand washing sink (one of three that we had to have).  And, a nice fold up dolly & one extra-large chrome beach cruiser.

"Would you take $250 for all three?" I asked.  

"Sure."

It was a good deal.  I didn't have a smart phone at the time, but I knew the sink was in good condition & would cost me at least $150 brand new.  The beach cruiser was in great condition & I knew that I could shine it up & sell it on Craigslist for close to $200.  And as far as the dolly, whatever.  I needed one for the markets anyway.

The next Monday I went hiking up in Mount Laguna & I found a free oak desk on Craigslist in somebody's driveway in El Cajon, with, "Must be able to pickup," in the description.  I slid it right into the back of the Escape's hatchback & then continued on out to the trailhead.

I picked up a Kenwood stereo for $20 in OB that Saturday afternoon at a yard sale on Froude Street.  Later, I snagged a filing cabinet at another yard sale on Saratoga Ave for $5.

We still have & use most of that stuff.  Except, the dolly, which lasted for about five years before the metal shaft snapped in half & that beach cruiser which I rode for about 6 months before I sold it to a taller lady & her husband who lived in Mission Beach for $185.              

Scaling Up to the Largest Cheezer

Once we were done working with John on the plans, I found another outlet for my artistic side.  It all started with a 8'x4' sheet of pine, the largest one I could get at Home Depot.  It was so big, I had to hold it with one hand through the moonroof on the Escape to to keep it from sliding off of the roof.

Once I got it home & into the living room, it was time to draw it to scale.  To achieve this, I learned in Art II in 10th grade, that you draw a grid on a small paper & then calculate it to a larger size.  (For example: 1 inch on paper is equal to 1 foot on a large piece of wood).  You grab a yardstick or T-square & draw out your squares:

I did this on an old cardboard printout from one of Kate's Birthday Bar Crawls.  I used that as a model so I knew where I needed to cutout the outline of "Sammy" our logo.  I also found it easier to work without a shirt on in September, one of our warmest months in San Diego.

Next, I fired up my handheld jigsaw, a used Ryobi model that I bought with a power sander at a yard sale in OB years ago for under $20.  

"What are you cutting out there?" Kate asked me out in the yard.

"I can't talk right now," I told her.  "One wrong move & this board turns into firewood & I have to start over."

She took the hint & I was able to pull it off.  After I sanded down some jagged edges & tight corners, I primed & painted it white.  My new canvas looked like this:

Well, this photo is actually after I drew in all of my line in pencil, carefully using my square grid to keep things in proportion.  In all my drawing experiences since middle school, there's nothing worse than drawing something great but it's off center or you run out of paper to finish it.  That's what's so great about the grid- it keeps you in the right territory.

Once the pencil drawing & erasing errant grid lines is done, it was time to paint.  Dottie from OB Hardware helped me pick out some good colors to match our logo.  I believe it was a simple Royal Blue for the words & Yellow Sun for the actual melted cheese part (that's the same color as the back menu wall in our shop today).  A lot of the browns & tans I mixed up at home with leftover paints I had lying around.

I did three coats on each color & there were 7 colors in all.  By now it was late October, so I had to wear an A-shirt to be comfortable, but it took just under two months working in my spare time at home.  I think it turned out pretty well.  And, Dottie helped me pick out some good outdoor paint, because it still looks the same today hanging high above our shop's entrance.

The Order of Operations

Typically on Fridays, I found myself up at the shop, filling in holes & smoothing out the walls, priming & painting.  I had one of my dad's old alarm clock radios & would jam out some classic rock cassettes while getting lost in the white roller's path.  

Sometimes, I'd find myself up there after dark, tuned into the "Saturday Night Fish Fry" & later on, the "Blues Ball" shows on KSDS, San Diego's Jazz 88.3.  Under the dusty chandelier, I'd be whiting out corners & getting lit up on a few cold ones.  

It was fun to have project, something to kill time away from the house, but it was kind of busy work that filled the void of limited farmers market setups.

"That's great you're getting stuff done up there, but isn't painting the last thing you do when you do a buildout?" Kate asked.  

She was right & I knew it.  I mean, we probably needed to add a wall or two first before it was time to paint.

"John keeps emailing us questions about the plans," Kate said.  "We need to focus on that right now.  Like when you did those sketches for the Beaver kitchen.  That's what matters now."

So, I shifted gears to the John's plans for the Health Department.  Those needed to be approved before we could get our architect Chris going on it & before we could get bids for a contractor to start building it.  

Like my junior high math teacher, Mr. Kennedy, used to say, "Remember, the order of operations."  Math is used in the real world a lot more than we realize.

Anyway, John was quick to respond.  It was: "How about this here?  What about that over there?  And, can we move this over here?"  After a several back & forth emails & some small tweaks to his digitally printed sketch, he sent them out to the county health department.

Two weeks later, on September 15, we were approved & ready for Chris to start on the blueprints for the buildout. 

Long Summer Days & Twice on Sunday

Kate & I left the house around 8:30 in the morning on a Sunday, which thankfully, at that time was our last day of the work week.  It was only our third week setting up at Ron's other market, in Leucadia, about a forty-minute drive north.  

From 10-2pm, we peddled our Cheezers to the hungover folks amongst the health conscious majority.  After a dismal first appearance, Ron offered a bit of advice.

"Maybe you guys should try putting Kale on your sandwiches," he said & was not joking.  

Well, we didn't change anything on our menu, but sales rebounded nicely over the next few weeks.  Several vendors even liked to trade with us, including It's Raw Poke Shop, who I believe, still does the Leucadia market & has one of the most popular restaurants in OB to this day.

On this Sunday, we had swindled ourselves another gig in the Solana Beach area but we didn't have to start serving Cheezer there until 6pm.  This left a large time gap in between, so rather than driving all the way back home (& back), Kate & I played tourists & ate an early dinner at Kate's favorite spot in nearby Cardiff, Bestawan Pizza House.

The place is on a side street, looks like it's in somebody's house, uses album covers for menu backs, & has some of the best restaurant ranch dressing you'll find anywhere.  We sat down & ordered the Banksy pizza (which later inspired our Cap'n Kook, renamed, Sophia Petrillo with it's Sausage, Pepperoni, Pineapples & Jalapenos) & took the leftovers to nearby San Elijo Beach.

There we watched the waves from an near empty blufftop campground picnic table & tried not to worry about our next gig.

It was a "Speakeasy-Themed" Dance Recital.  I'm not making that up.  And, it was just as you would imagine that to be- people dressed to the nines & taking down fancy cocktails & wine.  There was a bit of a misunderstanding over our food & the breakdown time, but we took care of it. 

We didn't make it back home until after 9pm, but were able to enjoy some more delicious Banksy pizza with a few drinks of our own.

Appreciate Your Customers (Well Most of Them)

Kate had been busy emailing around looking for more Friday gigs, since the BLVD market was only happening once a month.  While, I was in charge of finding a replacement market for Tuesdays, now that we quit Mira Mesa.

As luck would have it, we got an email from a Jim Johnson at AC Pro, an HVAC Equipment, Parts, Supplies & Service store in El Cajon.  From time to time, they offered a "Customer Appreciation Day" outside their warehouse from around 11am-1:30 on a Friday.  He had heard about us from a friend who'd loved our sandwiches at one of the breweries in East County.  

We packed the Ford Escape nearly to the ceiling with nine loaves of Sourdough & all the fixins to make plenty of Bacon Streets, Tommy Applewoods, Katers Taters & Zach Daddys.  I grilled them up fresh & Kate boxed them up for their customers to grab on their way out.

There was one guy, though who took it too far.   This guy had absolutely no shame whatsoever.

"All of this is free of charge?" he asked Kate.

"Yep, AC-Pro already paid, so it's all for the customers," she said.   

He nodded & grabbed (no joke) at least eight boxes & as many bags of Dirty Brand Chips that he could juggle.  It was towards the end of our setup, but still this guy was just being a selfish jerk.

"Wow," Jim Johnson said to us afterwards.  "You give 'em an inch & they take it a mile."

It didn't affect our day out there or our relationship with AC Pro, though.  Mr. Johnson invited us back for two more Customer Appreciation Days & we never saw that jerk out there again.

Raspberry Jam: A Grilled Cheese's Secret Weapon

Back in 2013, the plan was to start Mad Munch at Golden Hill in early April, but there were some schedule conflicts: 

The first weekend, we made plans to go camping out in the Anza-Borrego desert & I was gonna do my first run through of making Cheezers on the grill (See A Cheezer Dinner Near the Mud Caves post).  

Saturday (4/20), was no good.  Kate had convinced me into going to Coachella with her, her roommates & their whole crew of festival fanatics.  It was a long weekend that almost took another weekend off to recoup from.   

My birthday was the second Saturday & I had already reserved a Best Western with points up in Huntington Beach so we could get to Knott's Berry Farm early the next day.  

Neither one of us had ever been there, & after visiting Legoland with free tickets a couple months prior, I had the theme park itch.  It was a great experience & for about half the price of Disneyland, it's where the teenagers go to ride roller coasters, not so much the families with strollers & toddlers.

If you do go, make sure to visit Mrs. Knott's Chicken Dinner Restaurant.  It was my first day being in my thirties & we treated ourselves to a family feast.  Fried chicken is one of my favorite all time meals & being able to try out the different Knott's jams with fresh biscuits was something else.  

And, that sweet taste stuck with me for years to come.  

Even as I celebrate my birthday, twelve years later, that sweet jam slathered between two buttered slices of our specially seasoned, local sourdough bread can still be found on our menu.  

We took Mrs. Knott's Raspberry Jam & took it a step further, melting it between Colby Jack, Mozzarella & Goat Cheese Crumbles- transforming it into the Pump Up the Jam.  One of my favorites & a virtually unchanged Mad Munch masterpiece, since August 2015.             

The Worst Market Appearance in Mad Munch History

Tuesday Afternoon: 6:33pm

"Damn, are we even gonna sell a sandwich today?" Kate asked.

I was starting to sweat a bit.  It was a hot August afternoon & we were surrounded by concrete, but going "0" for a market was not something I was prepared for.  

The week before, I actually left Kate their solo & drove to the other Restaurant Depot in Miramar, unloaded our supplies & came back- all during the Mira Mesa market.  The fact that I was gone for over two hours & Kate only sold a couple of grape sodas during my absence should have been a clue as to how bad it was.

"Let's give it one more week," I said when I got back.  

So, here we were, now sitting on the big cooler with our fingers crossed behind our backs.  There a few things more humiliating than standing around inside your booth watching others ring up sales to a handful of market goers wandering down the midway.

I am happy to say that we did make a sale that day, in the final hour, before I told Ron, the market manager, that we would not return.

"Well, not all markets are a good fit for everyone," he said.  He knew how much (or little) we made when we handed him our slip each of those five weeks we set up there.  "You guys have been doing alright at my Sunday market though, right?" he asked.

"Yeah, Leucadia's good for us," I agreed.  

We'd made the forty-five minute drive up there the last two Sunday mornings.  As much as I didn't want to work Sundays, it was way more enjoyable than any Tuesday had been at Mira Mesa.  

Our display Cheezer at our final Mira Mesa market.  Our worst outing in the history of Mad Munch. 

Pacific Coast Blue

Kate & I were itching to get started on the build-out of our new space.  John had already emailed us renderings of the shell & I printed out a bunch of them to start sketching out equipment dimensions to get a visual.

But that wasn't nearly as exciting as actually being in there.  I couldn't help myself.  I started patching holes, sanding the walls & priming them to be painted.      

With most Fridays now open, we decided to paint the outside of the shop.  Kate & I agreed on Pacific Coast Blue.  We wanted something beachy that would lure tourists in.  We also wanted something that stood out between our neighbors on each side- the gray of OB Hardware & the faded off-white of The Corner [Antique] Store.

I'd picked up the paint a few days before from Home Depot & the the hardware store had plenty of ladders that we could borrow, so we were ready to roll. 

We started early, around 8am, first taking down the "$2 Thrill" sign & wiping down the red rectangular area with soap & water.  I kept the old sign & later gave it to one of the employees there who I used to see walking by our house all the time.

We taped everything off, primed it as best we could to cover the bright red & then grabbed some Nico's burritos for lunch.  In the afternoon, using only brushes & rollers, we put three coats of the Pac Coast Blue on.  

While I was painting high up & Kate was holding the ladder, a lady pushing a baby stroller said, "You missed a spot."

I guess even painters get heckled.  By women in their forties.  

We were now in the public eye & in the public's right of way all at once.

Kate & I finished up before the sun went down & it still holds up to this day.  Other businesses around OB have also adopted various shades of light blue over the years.  Maybe we picked the right color, maybe not.  I never realized how important choosing a color is for your business.  We thought it looked pretty good.   

       Pictured is our friend Marley, who doesn't seem too impressed with our paint job, standing in front of our old shop windows, August 2017.

Catering to Our Friends & Families

We took a break from doing markets & working on the new storefront to pop-up one Sunday for lunch on Vacation Island.  Kate's friend from high school, Abby, paid us to grill some Cheezers on site for an "Employee Appreciation Lunch,"her & her husband, Patrick were putting on for their workers & their families.

It's always nice when we're able to work with a friend on a catering gig.  They are usually more flexible on dates & times & which sandwiches we offer.  Abby & Patrick picked four of our most popular (2 vegetarian & 2 with meat) to keep constantly replenishing as guests grabbed their bite-sized portions.  

What made it even easier, was the fact that they both ate Mad Munch at the OB market frequently so they knew that Bacon Street & Kater's Taters would definitely be crowd pleasers.

The setup was at a park on one of the islands in the middle of Mission Bay, so there was ample space for our tent & it was about a ten minute drive from our house.  

All told, the wind was the only thing challenging about our setup, but that was to be expected.  We found it's direction, put our grill in that corner & blocked it off with our side panels (pictured above).  This was the technique we started with & then we'd adjust the panels as necessary.  Like I imagine sailing on a boat must be like.

But, we did feel very rich that day.  Abby & Patrick rewarded our 2.5 hour total setup with a nice tip & enjoyed the great compliments from there workers.  Kate & I later took public transit downtown to Petco Park to see Avenged Sevenfold & Metallica live in concert.  

Cheers...to running your own business.  It really does have it's own kind of perks.  

We're In. Now What?

Two days later, Kate & I went out to Funner, California to celebrate.  

We had a discounted room at Harrah's Casino from the previous summer when we came back to a hotel room with a ceiling leak in the bathroom.  We splashed around the lazy river, soaked in the hot tubs & made our own cocktails up in the room.  It was wonderful day in the heat of the summer.

When we got back, we started to access our new space.  Eli had given us free rent through the end of July, but it was a daunting project to build out an approved kitchen, equipped with a exhaust hood, underground plumbing for a bathroom & many sinks, a grease trap & all of the necessary electrical upgrades.  

It was a blank canvas, but we couldn't be more excited to call it the future headquarters of Mad Munch Grilled Cheezer Co.

Our friend, Brad who was co-owner of Nomad Donuts in North Park gave us a few recommendations.  He had done a complete build-out similar to what we were looking at, a few years before.  He put us in touch with John, who would come up with plans for the Health Department & with Chris, who was an architect, who would draft up blueprints for the build out.

"They're real good people, who aren't too expensive & did a great job on our build-out," Brad said.  "We even came in under budget."

The first week in there, Kate & I went to work clearing out the shelving & taking apart the dressing room walls.  We put the shelves on Craigslist along with the chandelier.  

"Might as well make some money off the stuff they left behind," I said.

We started sketching out some ideas for what our new setup would look like.  Here's one of the first drafts that we came up with:

It was a very early sketch but after John came out to take measurements, he'd come back with some definite & accurate schematics to build on.         

Seas the Day. Take the Plunge.

July 21, 2017-    It was our first open Friday since I proposed to Kate on the beach in North Carolina back in April.  

We decided to got out for breakfast at a new place called Jake N' Eggs.  We'd heard great things about the pop-up restaurant that was only open for breakfast & lunch Friday-Sunday inside of Sundara, the go-to Indian Food dinner spot in OB.  We had a table in the shade with the back patio to ourselves.

"I think we should do it," Kate said.  "I mean doesn't it feel like it's time?"

"Yeah, I mean it's been over four years now," I said.  "Remember back at Golden Hill...didn't Marisol say most vendors get a store after about four or five years?"

"I'm pretty sure she said five or six years, but that doesn't matter," Kate said.  "What matters is only so many spots open up on Newport.  We won't get an opportunity like this all the time."

"That's true."

"And, I can't do this market life much longer.  I mean do you wanna be out there, setting up & breaking down a tent a year from now?  Two years from now?"  Kate asked with a disgusted look on her face.  "Ugh...five years from now?  I can't.  I won't."

"Yeah, you're right babe.  That & I don't want some other grilled cheese place to swoop in here & claim OB.  We've done the work, we've earned it." I said.

Then, our food came out.  It was pretty good, too.  I wish I could remember what we'd ordered.  

I do remember thinking about what if Mad Munch "daylighted" or "moonlighted" at an established place like Jake N' Eggs?  But, then we'd have limited hours.  

Or what if we got into the newly opened Liberty Station Public Market just over the hill?  But, then we'd have to work everyday 11-9 or whatever their hours were.

Yeah, I needed to check the lease to make sure we could be open whenever we wanted to be.  That NOLO book had taught me a lot about how much flexibility & rights the lessee has.

After lunch we took a walk together down Sunset Cliffs Blvd. to No Surf beach.  There we sat to watch the waves roll in.  Kate was always looking for a "sign."  I don't remember exactly what that sign was that day out in the water, but on the walk back we both agreed to take the plunge & make that shop ours.

The Thrill of Finding a Brick & Mortar

Kate & I talked & talked about the $2 Thrill, the pros the cons, our visions of what it would look like & fulfilling our dream of having our very own brick & mortar store on Newport.  

Robert showed us two other places on Newport Avenue that may soon be vacant & we went & had a look but they were both too big for our operation.  

We met up with him at the Subway on Cable Street (one of only two chain restaurants in OB) to take a look.  They had gas & all of the plumbing intact, but without a grease trap, it wouldn't be a quick switch around to move in.  That & it was across the street from the one of the dirtiest bus stops in San Diego- the Cable & Newport stop.

Next door to Subway was another of Eli's properties that could be converted into Mad Munch's flagship store.  It had gas, got a good amount of foot traffic (not just from the dirtiest bus stop in town) but was about the same size & configuration as the $2 Thrill.  It was currently a message parlor but was on it's way out according to Robert.

Like Subway, it had alley access for trash & loading/unloading supplies, but with that you also could end up with some unwelcome visitors.  By that I mean, vermin & vagrants.

"Let us think about it," Kate told Robert.  

I checked out a book from the public library on "Lease Agreements."  NOLO has a line of legal books that I highly recommend on subjects such as these.  I didn't know the first thing about any of it but they put it in layman's terms.  I took some notes:

My cousin & his wife & two boys came into town that weekend coming down off a Disneyland high & we showed them around OB.  The standard stops for any out-of-towners: the Beach, the Burritos & the Breweries.  If you have more time & are in town at the right time of year, Baseball is the bonus "B."  

After burritos, we took them to Belching Beaver.  Even after all the "kitchen sit downs" we had with them, Kate & I weren't bitter about them not choosing us.  If anything it lit a fire under our butts to find a place of our own.  

"How's the grilled cheese business going?" my cousin, Jonathan asked.

"Good.  We just transitioned back into farmers markets.  We were doing breweries but now we can't anymore.  They changed the rules on us," I explained.

"Yeah, but see that place over there," Kate pointed to the FOR LEASE sign across the street.  "We might be moving in there real soon."  She said it with a proud confidence.

"Oh wow!  You guys are gonna have your own storefront...that is amazing," his wife, Janessa said. 

After we ordered up a round of Peanut Butter Stouts & root beers at Beaver, I walked back to use the restroom & couldn't help but notice that the back room was still empty.

"Looks like there's still nothing in that back room," I told Kate.  

Installing a kitchen inside of box is a lot harder than it looks.

Keep a Skeptical, Yet Open Mind

"I got a spot that might be perfect for you guys," Robert told Kate over the phone.  "It's on Newport & it has a gas hookup.  I can show it to you on Saturday."

"Yes, we want to see it.  We have a morning market but can meet you there around three," Kate told him.

He gave us the address & Kate spent some time on her phone while we we at Scripps Ranch looking at photos of the place.  It was the $2 Thrill Thrift Shop, a small yet deep rectangle of a unit that I'd been in a few times as a customer to buy used vinyl.

"That's a good size for us- not too big.  And he said they have gas?" I asked Kate.

"Yep.  It's next door to OB Hardware & close to the Cable [Street] light."

It definitely had potential & we couldn't wait to pack up & go take a look at it.  The early weeks at Scripps Ranch could make you want to quit farmers markets altogether & sign the first available lease for a storefront.  But, we both knew we had to look at each place with a skeptical, yet open mind.

Robert was already there when we arrived & the first thing I noticed was the large bare front windows.  I walk & ride my beach cruiser down Newport Avenue quite a bit, but I would have noticed this empty storefront.

"Wow, they're completely outta here then, huh?  That was quick," I said.  

All that was left was a few large DVD & VHS shelves on the right wall, three changing room walls with curtains still on their rods on the back wall & a dusty chandelier still hanging from the royal blue painted ceiling. 

"Yeah, within a couple of days they had everything out.  There was some kind of a family emergency," Robert said.

"Oh, whoa.  Damn," Kate said.  "So, when did you say that it's available?"

"September 1st.  But, Eli may be flexible on that," Robert said.

I opened a door to a room off of the back wall & flipped the light on.  It also had the same high maybe twelve foot ceiling, forming a big cube of a room.  I imagined a large walk in cooler or maybe a half bathroom, half office setup.  There was another door to the right.  I turned the knob & it opened up into a hallway full of ladders & other yard tools.

"That goes to the hardware store," Robert said.  "And the shared bathroom, in here."

"So there's no alley access?" Kate asked.

"No, well you'd have to cut through OB hardware, through that door."  He pointed down at the end of the hall.

"Where does this door go?" I tried the hallway knob at the right in the direction of the alley, but it was locked.

"So there's a unit behind this one.  There entrance is off the back alley." Robert said.  "Here, I'll show ya."

We followed him through the rear entrance of the hardware store to a small three car parking lot off the alley.  There was in fact a little door back there with a small window.  "Green Collective Consulting" was painted in green with a leaf logo on the white ceramic brick wall.

"It's a little studio they rent from us for an office," he said & moved a blue recycling bin aside.  "Here's the gas hookups back here.  They still look like they're in good shape, but you'd still want somebody to inspect them."

"Yeah, definitely.  I'm sure we can find somebody to do that," I said.

"Well, that's about it.  What'd you guys think?" Robert asked.

"I like it, but how much is the rent?"

"He said this one would be $2,884 a month & the deposit would be the same."

Two-thousand, eight hundred eighty-four.  It was a big number, but it was only a number & it reminded me of when I first tried to get Mad Munch going in San Diego.  

That number was $1,840.  My goal of money needed to get started at the markets.  Somehow this new number was only about one and a half times greater, but it didn't feel nearly as intimidating.    

Family Fun & Helping Others

We knew Doggo's Gus from some other events that we'd popped up at & he was also transitioning from the brewery scene to find other places to pop up at.

"It sucks, but I've found some school & church events have been pretty good," he told us.  "You guys would be great at Bonita Valley Church.  They have events all of the time- I'll recommend you."

It was as simple as that.  To get our foot in the door with a new group.  Lucky for us, beer drinkers aren't the only people who like grilled cheese sandwiches.    

So, we got an eleven to one Friday lunch gig about a half hour away in Bonita (which means pretty in espanol).  The "Family Fun Friday" was in the large grass & parking lot area in front of the church.          

There were carnival games, large inflatables & only three food vendors- a taco tent, Doggo's Gus & us (red, white & blue respectively in the photo).  Most importantly, there were more potential customers there than Mira Mesa probably saw in two months.  

We were getting so much traffic, Kate had to ask people for their names to call out when their Cheezer was ready.  My favorite was a woman who said, & I quote, "It's Christy.  Christ with a 'Y.'"  

Indeed, we were in God's country & He was looking down favorably upon us that sunny day.  

From then on, we kept in touch with Doggo's Gus & included him in some gigs that we found out about.  If it was a good opportunity for us & they needed more vendors, we recommended him.  We helped each other out, each carving out a path through an uncertain calendar, but happy to see a familiar face at those Bonita Valleys, along the way.           

Back to the Market Future

Our schedule filled up faster than I thought.  Kate & I found ourselves with three debut markets on the schedule for that first full week of July:  

Lucky for us someone cancelled at the Oceanside night market & Cathy called us to fill in, so Thursday was a double.  And, Friday was a lunchtime gig in South Bay that Kate finagled from another hot dog vendor we knew, Doggo's Gus.  

I did my shopping trip early on Tuesday, we prepped everything & drove to the Mira Mesa high school parking lot.  It was a long market (2:30-7PM) but we worked our way into it.  We were next to an older couple who sold hot dogs & nachos & also had a booth inside the San Diego Sports Arena.

"Yeah, it's great.  We basically run our own concession stand there.  We just pay rent to the arena," the wife said.

That did sound great.  And, here we were, just hoping to break even at a 10-tent market on a Tuesday afternoon in Mira Mesa.

Things perked up on Thursday, though.  We made twice the sales in half the time at Sony (a market about the same size) & then packed up & hit the road for Oceanside.  The market there didn't start until 5pm but we still got up there right away so we could get a lay of the land.

I'm glad we got there early.  I'm not sure if you can call their Thursday night shindig a market.  It's more like a street fair & somehow they put one on every single week.  There's close to 80 food vendors alone & other tents hawking everything from jewelry to artwork to timeshares at Lawrence Welk Resort.  

The sunset "market" comes together a at giant cross intersection with a large stage dominating one of the  quadrants.  The live music could best be described as your dad's favorite rock cover band.  Even if you couldn't see the stage, it was impossible not to hear the throbbing bass, drums & guitars.  

Kate & I were just glad to have a spot & ride out the waves of people who ordered in succession.  To have a permanent spot there would keep our business alive & thriving.  

Cruisin' On The Boulevard

We heard from a fellow vendor at the OB market about another street set-up in North Park.  It was on Friday nights with a different theme each week.  The first one featured craft beer, cars & live music.    

The location was about two blocks away from the Belching Beaver tasting room that we'd set up at over fifty times in the last three years.  But, we got the necessary insurance & showed up early on a hot Friday afternoon to unload the tent & grill & nab a parking spot a few blocks away.  

I think the coordinators were going for a some sort of neighborhood "block party" theme.  There was a little stage, a trailer serving cocktails & brews & a play area for kids all crammed on Utah Street between a local butcher shop, furniture store & a Sonic Drive-In.

Local TV, Channel 8 was even there do to a story on diversity, interviewing most of the other hot food vendors (all 3 or 4 of them) besides us.  A nice guy with a hair net on his beard selling "Chicken Piri Piri," got a good spot on the segment we watched later on the 11 o'clock news.

After the sun went down & things cooled off, we found our groove selling Cheezers.  It ended up being a good night for us, even though a bit unorganized for loading & unloading our car.

We also found out it was only to be held on the first Friday of each month- & only through September (something about permits).

It looked like next week I'd have to go on another market scout trip.