I'm back. And so is my trailer. Now it's time for a restoration.

[SmeltshackBBQ]

Thank you. It's not me that's sick though, it's my father in law. He wanted to have a BBQ 'like we used to' after he got the diagnosis. So I dug this thing out and went thru it. I don't know if he's up for today, but I have a small plate of pulled pork and a couple of smoked drumsticks for him to hopefully whet his appetite for this weekend.

I am very impressed with what you have done there. Keep it up and you will feel bette

 

[SmeltshackBBQ]

Well, we got to looking at the amount of food we had, and decided it wasn't enough. It never is...

Anyway, last week, we found four briskets at walmart. In the past, I had good luck with theirs. This time though, wow. Out of those four, ONE looked OK. The price was right, so we got it.

We had pretty much given up after the only other briskets we could find were anywhere from ten to fourteen bucks a pound... Then my wife remembered that they had just opened a Market Basket about 30 miles away. She called, and they said they had 'plenty' of them. So, off we went at 8pm last night.. The butcher knocked the price down by a buck a pound if they didn't have to trim it, making it $5.99. Whether I made the right choice or not is up in the air til I trim it up. It looks good. So, come Sunday we'll have a taste test of Walmart vs Market Basket's meat. With the 10 pork butts, and the 25 or 30 pounds of drumsticks we're buying tonight for 99 cents a pound, plus all the burgers and hot dogs other people are bringing, we should have enough food... I wish there was more brisket, but we just can't do $15 a pound right now.

And, of course, they're calling for showers on Sunday.. My sister-in-law rented a huge tent, and I have a roof over my rig, so we'll do it either way.

I'll spend the day today getting the trailer ready for travel. It's supposed to be 99 degrees out there, with a dew point near 80. Yeehaw.

And a shot of the sunrise over this thing this morning.. It's already hot out there. lol.

 

[SmeltshackBBQ]

Well, 'showers' has turned into full-blown RAIN. We got the trailer moved last night, only to find that their brand new house's GFCI system doesn't agree with my 110V-to-220V power cord adapter. It pops the second you plug into the building. Yay! (I think the 30A 4 prong plug is worn where it connects to my box, but I'm not sure. My wife's electrician cousin will be there today, I'll bribe him with the promise of the best slice of brisket to take a look for me)

So, we'll set up some work lights later today just in case, and make something happen. Luckily the house has power and water now, so I can 'not' worry about keeping a pot of hot water going on the Weber grill.. lol. Fingers crossed that the tarp stayed on my pallet of wood...

I'll grab some pics when we go down there later. Now to make 40 pounds of coleslaw.

 

[912smoker]

You've got the right attitude to turn things around! Do you have access to a power inverter or small generator?

Keith

 

[SmeltshackBBQ]

You've got the right attitude to turn things around! Do you have access to a power inverter or small generator?

Keith

Well, let's wait til 3am tomorrow when it's POURING rain to discuss 'attitudes'... lol.

I have a 5000 watt Honda that works, but we're set up just outside a garage, and my brother on law has a string of worklights that we plan to hang off the rafters of the trailer. They have hot water and a bathroom there, so I should be all good to go. It runs off our power here, without a hiccup. Weird. He thinks it's those fancy 'new' GFCI's that are WAY more finicky than ours that were installed 17 years ago..

Either way, I think my eventual plan is a solar battery charger, and some 12V LED lights for the trailer. I've got a pile of Odyssey PC2150 batteries from a lowrider I parted out. 12 deep cycle batteries should do the trick. lol. The only thing that doesn't help with is hot water. I think I can set something up there using a coil of copper tubing and a 12V RV pump sent thru my firebox... I used to brew beer as well. I'll McGyver something up...

 

[912smoker]

Umm....I live near the moonshine capital of GA and can neither confirm or deny of that plan would work

Edit:
Let me know if you need any Mason jars


Keith

 

[SmeltshackBBQ]

Umm....I live near the moonshine capital of GA and can neither confirm or deny of that plan would work

Edit:
Let me know if you need any Mason jars


Keith

Mason jars? Got some. Yours probably have a little more octane inside than mine. lol.

 

[SmeltshackBBQ]

Well, I'm headed down to the trailer soon, to do this thing. I've got a cold, rainy, windy night ahead of me. But I have beers, and a big old Fattie to look forward to in the morning. I'll be down there alone til 6 or 7 am, then the cavalry starts arriving. I'll cross my fingers if you all cross yours!!

 

[irvin78787884]

Well, I'm headed down to the trailer soon, to do this thing. I've got a cold, rainy, windy night ahead of me. But I have beers, and a big old Fattie to look forward to in the morning. I'll be down there alone til 6 or 7 am, then the cavalry starts arriving. I'll cross my fingers if you all cross yours!!

And u got this

 

[JLeonard]

Well its Sunday morning.....Hope your survived the night. Looking forward to the finish!

Jim

 

[SmeltshackBBQ]

Well, it's done and over. Memories were forged. Bellies were filled. A good time was had by all. The rain poured down from 5 gallon pails in the morning, and everybody was terrified that it wouldn't stop. Not me though... I wrote a message to the sky on my menu board. Two words: STOP RAINING. And it did. Half an hour before the band arrived. Then tt stayed dry until 45 minutes after the last guest left, then it POURED again. I closed my trailer windows, and said "we'll be back for this thing later"...

We got home, sat down, and I guess the house got hit by lightning. Took out our internet, and blew a couple other things up. Nobody got hurt, besides some minor welding flash and some ringing ears. Wow, was that loud. And bright. One new router later, and here I am again.

The food was a HIT. I almost got tired of people asking when I was going into business.. lol. I'm doing some homework this week, to see if it's a possibility. The licensing fees here in Maine are ridiculous.

Either way... All that work and all those hours spent were so much more than worth it. This trailer has sat in the woods for so long. Rotting. Not anymore. My father in law has a birthday coming up next June, that I told him I'm cooking for. The look on his face told me he's going to try his best to be there.

Two words sum it all up: Mission Accomplished.

 

[Brokenhandle]

That's awesome! So glad it turned out so well for everyone!

Ryan

 

[JLeonard]

WOWSA! Glad the weather gods held you (and family) in their favor. looks like a great time was had by all. I'm sure it will be talked about (favorably) for quite a while!

Jim

 

[Winterrider]

A job well done. Glad the weather cooperated with you for all your efforts.

 

[SmeltshackBBQ]

Well thanks everybody!!

I've spent half the morning on Reddit. Reading about different people's experiences with their food trucks and restaurants.. I don't know, but if I can get some money set aside, I just might try opening this thing up as a part-time deal next year. That would give me the entire rest of this summer and fall to play with things, fix issues with the trailer, and do more research. We've been getting a LOT of people asking WHY it's not already a thing... And I didn't really have an answer besides the startup money. Which, if I sold off another 'unused in ages' toy or two, I could most likely raise.

It looks like this little 'party we really didn't want to have' may have been the start of a new chapter here. We'll see.

 

[912smoker]

Awesome resto and cause !
Food looks great and glad the weather finally cooperated!

Keith

 

[Fat Old Guy]

Shitty reason to find your new career.
Glad it worked out for you and everyone. Wish you had a better reason to find your new "job".

 

[SmeltshackBBQ]

Shitty reason to find your new career.
Glad it worked out for you and everyone. Wish you had a better reason to find your new "job".

Well, after a lot of thought and research, I'm not going to try to run a food business in this state. Not worth the headaches. But, I did get the trailer set up in it's permanent home, with picnic tables, benches and a nice big old firepit to keep it company. I'm cooking a full load of wood in the warming box right now to get ready for a brisket and pulled pork fest this coming weekend. Leafy green to 'dry enough' in a few hours... I love this smoker.

In other great news, my father in law is still around. The first course of chemo seemed to do some real good stuff, and he's doing pretty OK, considering the initial diagnosis/ prognosis they gave. He's definitely not out of the woods yet, but he's not giving in, either.

 

[jcam222]

Glad your father in law is still with you. Food service requirements are pretty daunting for sure.

 

[SmeltshackBBQ]

Glad your father in law is still with you. Food service requirements are pretty daunting for sure.

Thank you. I'm doing a clean-out burn now, getting ready to do a small cook this weekend, we'll drop off a big old plate of brisket and pulled pork for them and hopefully do another cook 'just for him' before we lose this ridiculously great stretch of weather we're seeing up here. Almost 80 on Halloween? What?

The issue with the business is the state we're in. Maine is a pretty terrible place to try to start a business unless you can get the government to pay for it somehow..