So now I’m sure you’re asking, “When will you be open?” I can’t give an exact date yet, but hopefully in a couple weeks. We are working to get everything switched over and legal again. Right now we’re just mostly waiting on the state, which hopefully with my persistent calling will be soon. Once we have an exact date we’ll will let you all know, until then please don’t forget about us and hold out a little longer for some delicious dogs!

]]> http://saltcitydogs.com/2012/04/03/city-dogs-sold/feed/ 0 saltcitydogs http://saltcitydogs.com/2012/02/06/city-dogs-is-for-sale/ http://saltcitydogs.com/2012/02/06/city-dogs-is-for-sale/#comments Mon, 06 Feb 2012 17:45:30 +0000 Bre & Dave Escobar http://saltcitydogs.com/?p=505 ]]> Sit under fluorescent lights behind windows that don’t open. Destroy your wrists and hands on years of keyboarding and mousing for the man. Continue the job your oppressive employer wants done regardless of whether it’s fun or ethical, much less meaningful. Ask permission for time off–and be denied.

Or do something completely different, completely your own, and completely awesome. 

City Dogs, an institution in SLC vegan eating, needs a new chief.

Yes, the beloved vegan hot dog street vending cart business is for sale. City Dogs is at an exciting stage of evolution–with at least two distinct avenues/strategies it can pursue–but I am not the person to do either of these. Over the past year I’ve become very busy with other projects and don’t have the time to give my all to City Dogs. It brings me great melancholy to let it go.

Since 2009, City Dogs has operated as a micro-enterprise, rewarding its owners with modest income and a relatively easy, stress-free life. City Dogs is well past the point where it can evolve successfully into a small business, generating a lot more revenue than it does currently, but also requiring more time and attention.

Avenue 1: growth strategy. City Dogs is beloved and recognized. Customers constantly beg for longer hours and more availability.  City Dogs can become a vastly more robust profit generator, but it needs to expand–either with longer hours, a second cart, maybe even a fixed location (and keep the cart for weekend festivals, catering, etc.). City Dogs probably becomes an employer of several part-time employees.

Avenue 2: freedom strategy. This is the business model that City Dogs regulars are familiar with. For three years, City Dogs has operated during lunch hours downtown and at special events across the Wasatch Front on many but not all weekends. The operating model has been honed over the years to create a small-business income that nevertheless demands a modest workload for the proprietor.  Even under this model, City Dogs has been profitable all three years promoted mostly with free social/online marketing, but also three years of advertising (in SLUG and Salt Lake City Weekly).

New in 2011: 

• Named one of the nation’s top 5 veggie dogs by PETA
• Served at the seven-week Twilight Concert Series
• Played a starring role in vegan diet project on KSL Radio’s Nightside Project
• Served at the Tour of Utah international bicycle race competition (an awesome event!)
• Nominated for best vegan food cart in the nation by VegNews
• Began accepting credit card and PayPal payments
• Introduced the hugely popular City Dogs original Mad Hatter salad wrap
• Introduced downtown delivery
• Improved social media presence/strategy
• Sponsored 3rd place state fair chili cook-off team (vegan chili!)

Included in the sale: 

• The City Dogs cart–meets all Salt Lake City codes for mobile food vending, including 10-gallon water tank, warm-water handwash station, two storage compartments, large grill and space for 6 full steam trays or 12 half-size. New tires, new battery, new jack and one new steam pan in 2011.
• All logos, menus, coupons and other graphics.
• Recipes for the chili, The Best Potato Salad Downtown, and the Mad Hatter tempeh salad wrap.
• Coolers, tables, condiment trays, and all other accessory items
• All online property (Facebook and Twitter account, as well as saltcitydogs.com), trademarks and other intellectual property
• Training, coaching and guidance on mobile food vending business
• Optional: 2004 Saturn Ion with trailer hitch ($5,500)
• Commissary lease and all necessary permits

This is the sale of a so-called “turn-key business.” Just step behind the cart and all the decisions, all the plans, all the strategies, and all the routines have already been planned, honed and nearly perfected (it’s up to you to make them perfect).

Price: $12,500, or best offer.

Think of it this way: it’s the price of a decent car, but how many cars make you money and provide you with meaningful freedom?

Interested?  Call 435-228-8087 and LEAVE A MESSAGE with your phone number. Or fill out the form below.

Our closeout sale continues.  Italian Sausages and beer brats are only $3.50 this week (reg. $5) and BBQ rib sandwiches only $4 (reg. $6).

Come down for your last favorite meal before you’ll have to wait until.

Thank you all for such an amazing year!

Starting today until the end of the season, juicy delicious beer brats and yummy Italian sausages are only $3.50–that’s more than a dollar off their original price.

The crowd-pleasing BBQ rib sandwich is dropping to only $4!  That’s two bucks off the regular price. If you’ve never tried one before, now is the time.

People keep asking: “when are you going to close for the season?” That day is undetermined, but will be sometime this month. We have some food in the cooler that needs to get sold or will expire over the winter. When that’s gone, we’ll close until spring. That last day could be Halloween, but we could be closed earlier.

update: I forgot to mention that we’ll have new fall hours.  From now until the end of the season, we’ll be open from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. 

We only have enough food to operate, oh, say, 12 to 15 days more, then we anticipate being close to zero-inventory, so around Halloween will be our last day unless something unforeseen happens.

That being the case, it’s hard to justify working in the rain and relative cold today and this week. This coming weather pattern–whose preview today promises isolated but frequent showers and some downpours–is expected to keep us soggy and wet until about Friday or Saturday. Our super-extended summer that made every single day of September an autumn dream is coming to a rainy end. Nothing gold can stay.

So, I’m going to close this week and reopen next week Tuesday (Monday is Columbus Day and downtown will be sleepy). Watch for details for end-of-season sales, discounts and offers which will be announced Monday or Tuesday.

We’re gonna miss you guys and gals during winter hibernation. Come get your favorite dog next week because time is running out.

Sorry for the unscheduled closure, but sometimes you do what you gotta do.

I’ll see you Monday.

It’s so cool that a KSL show is doing a multi-week project on veganism!

Millards’s reaction, after about 10 days: It’s a lot easier than I thought it was going to be.

Kirri’s reaction: there’s room for improvement in the vegan cheese market.

Tonight the boys were kind enough to invite us onto their show to keep the conversation going about vegan diets. I promised them that I would tell lots of wiener jokes, which I’m sure KSL’s ownership will love

Tune in tonight at 9 p.m., 102.7 FM in Utah or go to KSL.com/radio for live streaming. 

Tyler and Carl Smith

Let’s all thank brothers Tyler and Carl Smith, of Midvale, who took the 3rd place ribbon and $100 prize yesterday in the Utah State Fair Budweiser Chili cook-off! City Dogs sponsored their registration into the competition.

“When they announced the prizes, they made a big deal about how our chili was vegan,” Carl Smith said.

The Smiths’ award-winning “Chili #23″ is not just vegan, it’s also very local.

“It’s totally vegan and, except for the beans, it’s 100% made from incredibly fresh, local produce from the Downtown Farmer’s Market,” Carl said. “All of our spices were roasted fresh and ground this morning for the best flavor. We used two different sizes of TVP granules for the best texture. We really just put a lot of time and effort into making the best chili possible. It just goes to show that you don’t need to hurt animals to eat good food.”

Woo-hoo! As we promised  back in August, we think SLC should all bow before the Smith Brothers as local gods of vegan cooking

The Smith Brothers were nice enough to share their recipe with the community. Mmmmm… maple syrup.

Chili #23
3rd Place Winner 2011 Utah State Fair Budweiser Chili Cook-Off
Tyler and Carl Smith

Meat
2 cups textured vegetable protein
1½ cups water
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp mushroom broth powder
2 Tbsp sweet Barbecue sauce

Chili
1 can black beans
1 can kidney beans
1 can chili beans
2 medium onions
10 cloves garlic
1 green pepper
1 red pepper
2 jalapeños
2-4 Anaheim peppers, roasted
8-10 Roma tomatoes
1 cup fresh corn
1/4 cup chili powder
2 tbsp fresh-ground cumin
1 tsp cayenne powder
1 Tbsp garlic powder
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 cup Ketchup
1 Tbsp Mustard
1/2 cup olive oil

Start by mixing the wet ingredients for the meat in a sauce pan. Bring
that to a boil and add the TVP. Remove from the heat and set aside to
soak.

Next, heat a large pot over medium heat and add the olive oil. Add the
onions, bell peppers, garlic, jalapenos, and roasted anaheims. Reduce
heat and let it cook slowly for 10-15 minutes until onions are almost
browning. Turn heat up to medium-high and add spices. Stir it
carefully until a slight brown crust builds up on the bottom of your
pot. Be careful not to burn it. When the crust is golden brown, stir
in the tomatoes and a little water. Scrape the bottom of the pan to
deglaze. turn down to medium and simmer until the tomatoes break down
and you have a nice saucy chili base. To this add the meat and
remaining ingredients and season to taste. We usually let that simmer
slowly over low heat for 1-2 hours, adding more water, ketchup, cumin,
chili powder or garlic powder as necessary.

Thanks again Smith Bros!

Shelters from across the valley will bring adoptable pets to the event, creating a one-stop, see-them-all pet mall. If you’re looking for a dog or cat, now’s the time to find your friend. I know people who go to this just to swoon at the animals!

See you there.