Like Bringing Home a New Puppy...

I picked up the little hot-dog cart and towed it back from Texas with my Subaru Forrester. It was like bringing home a new puppy. A few weeks before, I had a big garage sale to make a space to store the cart. My style of garage sale is where you bring out your stuff without tagging a price on any of it. That way you know someone has an interest in an item when they ask you, “How much?” From there, the name of the game is making sure they take the item home with them. As it turned out I was able to make enough space, not only for the hot-dog cart, but my wife’s car too. Garage sales should be a regularly scheduled event.



Now that I’ve got possession of the cart, let me give you a little tour. The original owner named his business after his father-in-law’s name Darby. I’ve got a different idea in mind with a name and new cartoon character I envisioned. I’ll have the signage changed as soon as I get the artwork from Curtis. The cart had been in storage for about a year and a good scrubbing has knocked off the dust and cobwebs.

Here is the shiny 36” griddle after I put some elbow grease to it. There is plenty of workspace in front and to the left of the grill. Stainless steel is everywhere.

The steam table to the right of the grill can manage different tray configurations, and the 3 cold condiment trays hover over the ice chest. Behind the sliding red doors is a great place for storing extra buns and supplies.

The grease trap and gas flame control knobs are nicely positioned out of the way under the grill workspace.

Lifting out the steam tray you can see the burner, and by sliding away the condiment tray, you can see the large capacity ice chest for cold drinks. The ice chest compartment is encased with two inches of insulation foam. When you open the stainless steel door behind the grill, there is easy access to the propane tank.

There is also a quick-connect coupler right there at the door so you can recharge the battery with out having to remove the signage to get to the battery posts.

When you slide the 22” x 73” inch sign out from its frame you can see some more of the inner workings.

The ten-gallon fresh water compartment sits behind the sign and the propane tank cradle. And in another compartment, there is a high capacity marine battery.

This battery powers a water pump that pressurizes the water lines. The water lines split off; One line runs through the insulation of the ice chest for cold water, and the other line runs along the gas burners to make hot water. The battery also powers a 1000-watt inverter that can be used to operate lights, cash registers, or other electrical appliances.

At the leading end of the cart there are 4 stainless steel sinks for washing hands and cleaning utensils.

Each one of the sinks and the ice chest drain water into a holding compartment mounted under the trailer where it can be easily drained and serviced.

And the entire contraption can be towed from one location to the next using the standard towing package.

I ordered a bright red 9 foot diameter umbrella to replace the old brown one. In the next post, I'll have all of the new signage and cartoon character logo in place for the new Grilla Ray's.