Getting the catering van ready to trade

A coat of paint and the safety checks

We spent a few weeks cleaning and painting the van, and making sure all the equipment was working properly. I also had the LPG gas and electrical safety checks done so everything on board was safe to use — very important — and I came away with a test certificate for both the gas and the electrical appliances.

Once the painting was finished it looked amazing. What a difference a bit of paint makes; it looked like a totally different vehicle. It was still old, but now it stood out from the crowd in a good way — see for yourself in the photo above.

Practising the cooking

Everyone was excited for me, but I still had to get to grips with the cooking. So I invited some friends and family round, bought some food, and had my first proper cooking session in the van. It took me a little while to get familiar with the equipment, but I soon picked up the basics and genuinely started to enjoy it. Feeling more confident, I practised further with burgers, sausages, eggs, onions and some chicken.

People really enjoyed the food, and seeing that gave me a real satisfaction and a confidence boost. I was nearly ready. All that was left was to sort out my public liability insurance and pass the food hygiene test.

The food hygiene certificate

The test turned out to be a series of multiple-choice questions — things like the right temperature for reheating food, stock rotation and fridge temperatures. Most of it is common sense and easy enough to remember. If it is something you have to take, do not worry about it; it really is straightforward.

Finding a pitch to trade from

The time was getting nearer to actually start trading and try to make an income. Cooking for my children, family and friends was fine, but now I was going to be cooking for a living, and to be honest the reality of that was daunting.

I did not really have a site lined up, but I did have a place in mind that I could try. It was a remote location with no other food traders nearby. I reckoned my customers would mainly come from the big truck depot opposite where I planned to park, along with the other industrial units in the immediate area.

It might not have been the perfect spot, but I needed to get started, and how would I ever know unless I gave it a go? Stay with me for the next chapter, where I will tell you exactly how my first day of trading went — and what a start it was.