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Page 1B • The Leader • October 5, 2013 • www.theleadernews.com

Good Dog finds new home by Michael Sudhalter michael@theleadernews.com

When Good Dog Hot Dogs owners Daniel Caballero and Amelia Pferd opened their food truck in March 2011, they always envisioned having a brick and mortar restaurant someday. Later this month, that dream will become a reality when the Heights couple opens their restaurant location at 903 Studewood. Pferd, 30, and Cabellero, 29, met when they both waited tables at Chatter’s Cafe & Bistro in the Heights. They began dating and came up with the idea of a food truck that would sell gourmet hot dogs on artisan buns, with a logo of their own Dachshund, whose name is Olive Oil. They purchased a $15,000 van on Craigslist and were among the first entrepreneurs in Houston’s “Food Truck Revolution.” Now, they take the truck to cater special events, but they’ve set most of their focus on the restaurant. They’ll continue to cater events with the truck, upon request. Some of their recent events were an art opening at Rice University, the First Christian Church food festival and the Houston Astros Hispanic Heritage Festival. Pferd, a graduate of La Notre Culinary School in Houston, handles the food aspect, and Caballero runs the business side. The couple got engaged last December, but their wedding plans are on hold until they get the restaurant started. The restaurant’s menu will go beyond hot dogs, and include soups, salads and desserts such as floats and shakes.“We will expand our menu (eventually),” Pferd said. “We have big

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Good Dog Hot Dog owners Amelia Pferd, left, and Daniel Caballero, both Heights residents, will open their restaurant at 903 Studewood. (Photo by Michael Sudhalter) plans for Good Dog, but we’ve got to open up this puppy (the restaurant first).” Pferd and Caballero enjoy living in the Heights and considered it a good place to start a business. “It’s kind of a small town feel and you have everything you need,” Pferd said. “We like the bungalows and all of the history. I think the (neighborhood) is evolving in the right ways.” Pferd said Good Dog’s recipes are heavily influenced by her grandmother who lived in

New York City. Some of the hot dogs include whole grain mustard, roasted garlic aioli, chili and jalapeno relish. The couple is proud of the “Food Truck Revolution,” which has produced several trucks that have eventually become brick and mortar restaurants. “(The Food Truck Revolution) brings a sense of community to Houston,” Pferd said. “Events become that much cooler because you have a food truck.”

Food Truck Park coming to Mangum by Charlotte Aguilar charlotte@theleadernews.com

After Brent Fisk returned to Houston after working in Austin, there was one craving he couldn’t shake –– a yearning for the simplicity and variety he devoured almost daily at the capital city’s thriving food truck parks. “They were perfect for grabbing lunch or a quick dinner,” he said, “and the variety is a big selling point.” So when the family of his girlfriend, Paige Hughes, was musing about what to do with a large, wooded piece of property on Mangum Road, not far north of Highway 290, he and Paige had the perfect solution: Create a food truck park to cater to the area’s businesses and residential communities. They hope to open the Mangum Food Park, as they’ve called it, on Oct. 19, and already have a lineup of trucks ready to serve. And they have commitments for the first few days from some of Houston’s favorite mobile eateries, including Bernie’s Burger Bus, H-town StrEATS, Porch Swing Desserts, Speers Rolling Bistro, Cupcake and a Smile, POCKet to Me and Phojita Fusion. “We’re finding lots of support because nothing exists like this in the area,” said Hughes. The couple met in their days at Jersey Village High School, bonded at the University of Houston and share a degree – and visible expertise – in marketing. Already, they have a web

Paige Hughes and Brent Fisk are aiming to open the bare bones Mangum Food Park on Oct. 19 at 2924 Mangum Road. (Photo by Charlotte Aguilar) and social media presence, which they’ll rely on heavily to make a success of the venture. The property at 2924 Mangum Road has been in Hughes’ family since the early 1900s and has been a dairy farm and residence. The main work so far has been clearing “lots of dead trees” from the lot, said Fisk. Enviably, there’s a row of large trees still standing along the south side of the land, which, along with canopied areas and plenty of tables, will provide shaded eating for those who prefer “dinein” to takeout.

They’ve met the city requirement for sanitary facilities on site or nearby by making arrangements with the bowling alley next door and a business in the strip center to the south for customers to wash up there. To hear Fisk and Hughes talk, creating such a park is relatively simple. The food trucks run off their own generators and are responsible for obtaining permits to operate. They must check in daily at city-operated commissaries (one of which is just a few miles up 290, the couple said) and largely provide their own publicity about daily locations through Facebook and Twitter. Still, Fisk and Hughes plan amenities to make their park a good stop for the food trucks. They’re already devising games (including a giant Jenga set that Fisk is creating from 2 x 4 boards), will book live music, and as the daily fees flow in, plan to install electricity for lighting, so they can extend their currently planned hours of 11 a.m.-6 p.m. daily. “We really want to bring something special to these areas,” said Fisk, “whether it’s workers who are here for a few hours or the families who live here.” “It will be a great addition, and we think it’s just going to grow and grow,” said Hughes. For more, visit www.mangumfoodpark. com, or @MangumFood Park on Twitter or on Facebook.

Cleaning up small business practices by Cynthia Lescalleet For The Leader A decade ago, Michael Bright left the corporate world for small business ownership when he purchased On the Spot America, which moved recently to the Oak Forest area. Among the services his venture provides are carpet repair, cleaning, odor elimination, air duct cleaning and emergency clean-up for residential and commercial properties. Bright’s career-switching decision came after a successful run in hospitality and also multi-family development. His shift of perspective to that of a service vendor meant learning about a new industry -- as well as the infinite demands of its day-to-

grow even further. When Bright heard about the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program offered with partner Houston Community College, he was determined to make the cut. The application process is as rigorous as the coursework, but he

persevered until he landed a slot. In September, Bright completed the program’s most recent fourmonth session of business management trainingBright described

see Cleaning • Page3B

Heights Office

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