Hot diggity dog! - The expression of summer that everyone recognizes! Well, it applies to the little wiener dogs running around enjoying life,and it applies to that old American summer staple, the hot dog. It even applies when the wiener dog eats a hot dog for dinner! Ever see those cool hot dog rollers and hot dog toasters at concession stands? Gumballs.com is the #1 hot dog machine store with competitive pricing and zilch for sales tax! Our machines are made by some of the top manufacturers in the country and are up for the challenge of being placed in a 24 hour convenience store or doing time at a carnival hot dog stand. Even the wiener dogs approve and watch for scraps. All of the hot dog carts and machines sold by Gumballs.com are professional grade and built to order brand new.

How do Hot Dog Machines Work?

There are several different kinds of hot dog machines, including the roller cooker, the steamer and the rotating cooker. Each one operates in its own unique way, as suggested by the diagrams below.

• Roller Cooker: The roller cooker rolls the hot dogs while cooking them in full view of customers. Often used in convenience stores, this arrangement allows customers to "help themselves". Hot dogs cooked this way have a crispy bouquet to them, which is appreciated by some customers. Space considerations limit how many hot dogs can be cooked at one time on the roller grill. The number of dogs it holds normally figures in the name of the machine.

  

• Steamer: The steamer cooks the hot dogs with hot steam in an enclosed area, resulting in a plumper and juicier finished product. A steamer can cook a large number of hot dogs quickly.

  

• Rotating Cooker: In the rotating cooker, hot dogs are skewered lengthwise, or laid in a cradle wheel, and rotated inside an enclosed cabinet. If a pan of water is also placed in the cabinet, then the effect on the hot dogs resembles that of steaming them, in that they are a juicier finished product than if cooked without the steam.

  

How to Use a Hot Dog Machine?

1. Roller Cooker: Plug in the clean machine, lay the hot dogs on it. Ensure sneeze guard is in place. Set out tongs, buns and condiments so that customers can help themselves. 
2. Steamer: Prepare the steamer, load the hot dogs, cook for appointed time. Remove hot dogs to a serving dish, or prepare hot dogs one by one to sell. Add buns and condiments as needed.
3. Rotating Cooker: Lay the dogs in the cradle wheel or skewer to the rotating portion, provide steam if desired, cook, remove , serve individually or set up for customers to create their own. 

Do People Make Money Selling Hot Dogs?

In terms of raw materials cost, hot dogs are one of the most expensive concessions. A good quality hot dog carries a commensurate price tag, in contrast with some other concession choices. Customers can taste the difference between high and low quality hot dogs.

Hot Dogs are Meals: People think of hot dogs as being all or part of a meal. Other types of concessions are a treat or a dessert that people splurge on every once in a while. Hot dogs check the mental box of being enough food to count as a full meal. People spend more on a meal than they are willing to spend on a snack. The typical amount that people are willing to spend on a hot dog based meal is around $5-10. The cost of that hot dog meal might be around $3.00 or $4.00 when you consider the hot dog, bun, condiments and a drink. That is still a profit of $5 - $8 per customer.

Lunch is Not Just for Special Events: In contrast to the food offered at most concessions, lunch is not something that people eat only at a fair or carnival. How often do you stop for a cotton candy or a snow cone? Not very often. Most people eat lunch each day. This greatly increases the number of options for selling hot dogs to people. Sure... you can show up at large events, but you might just as well find customers by setting up shop outside of a busy office building.

How Much can I Make? As in most of the vending and concession worlds, earnings come down to location and how hard you are willing to work. You can easily make $30,000 a year by selling hot dogs and if you are really good, it is not unheard of to make $100,000 per year. We still advise starting small and working your way up instead of starting out with the most expensive hot dog stand you can buy and then hoping that your business will grow to use it.