Typical Course Outline

 

Day One:

Introductions-

Meet Mark Reitman and your fellow students and find out exactly what HDU is all about.

Hot Dogs 101-

Explore the hot dog cart business, the products involved, permits and licenses, and how you can begin to think about the practicals of your new business.
 

Plant Tour-   

See first hand how hot dogs and other products are made from start to finish in the Vienna Beef state of the art factory using only the finest ingredients.
 

Taste Panel- 

Every day at Vienna Beef, they have a tasting panel where the products that are being made that day are sampled to ensure quality control and maximum deliciousness.  A great way to get familiar with the different products you might choose to sell, not to mention a very yummy snack break!
 

Exploration of the Course Outline from HDU manual- 

The Hot Dog University Manual will be a resource for you both during the class and beyond.  The manual is filled with important information and worksheets to help you launch your business, as well as contact information for some key vendors and government agencies.

 

 

Day Two:

Tour of Restaurant Supply Facility-

As the owner of a food service business, you will need to navigate your local restaurant supply store quickly and efficiently.  This tour of Chicago’s premiere vendor of restaurant supplies will familiarize you with the products you will need to have on hand, and the purchasing process.
 

Equipment lesson- 

An overview of how to operate a cart.
 

Set up cart-

You and your classmates will actually set up a cart from start to finish in order to prepare for your hands-on training.
 

Behind-the-cart training- 

Real food, live customers, this is your opportunity to take the theoretical and make it practical!  You and your classmates will run a hot dog cart for a lunch hour, making hot dogs, interacting with customers, and dealing with money.  Nothing can give you a better sense of the business!
 

Break down cart- 

You will go through the process of breaking down and cleaning up after your selling period is over.
 

Review-

You’ll have an opportunity to go over the course, and ask any questions you might have about the business, the materials, and the selling process.
 

Processing and Evaluation- 

Here at Hot Dog University we want to be sure that your experience is as valuable as possible.  We ask every student to give us feedback about the course so that we can continue to provide the very best training and materials.