Today we’d like to introduce you to Grant & Stephanie Francisco. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Early in 2019, new opportunities brought us to Michigan from Florida, where we worked in the yachting industry: Grant as a private chef for a prominent Michigan family and Stephanie as a stewardess for several different programs, working alongside Grant for the final 2 years.
In the Fall of 2021, we were let go from our land-based positions. The question was, “Do we stay, or do we go?” Ultimately, we loved our home in Michigan and decided to see if we had what it took to be able to stay.
Even while working on boats, starting a food truck had always been in the back of our minds. This recent life-altering change gave us the space and necessity to jump in feet first.
Start to finish; it took about 5 months to form the Francisco Restaurant Group LLC, attain a food truck, establish the Dune Buggy Food Truck brand, check all the licensing and permitting boxes, and eventually start serving to the public.
Through a Spring, Summer, and soon-to-be-Fall menu change, we’ve been bringing craft burgers, loaded French fries, and beach bites (our appetizer section) to the people of Grand Rapids, whether it’s a private catering event, a Food Truck Friday, or a Tuesday Trivia night at a brewery.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
When your business is a mobile one, the vehicles are pushed to the max; things break. Luckily, we’ve had friends, neighbors, family friends, and other people in the Food Truck business help us navigate issues and find trustworthy help. Shout out: We appreciate you all!
Maintaining product consistency is also a challenge. Whether a product is sold out or has increased in price, any change needs to be cautiously navigated to ensure a smooth transition for the business as well as for the customer experience.
Simply just figuring out where we can, and more importantly cannot, park has been its own challenge. Certain cities and townships have much stricter parking rules than others. It’s much more difficult than one might initially think.
As you know, we’re big fans of Dune Buggy Food Truck. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about the brand?
Dune Buggy Food Truck has Vintage Beach Americana vibes. We offer unique smash steak burgers, as well as our chicken Beach Babe sandwich and our fish Boat Ramp Champ sandwich, all with Vegan veggie burger and/or Gluten Free bun options! Our French fries are equally as varied, from a sea salted Classic Fry to our Lake Mac Fry: A loaded classic fry with macaroni and cheese, bacon, and cheese curds on it. Our “Beach Bite” section offers our very popular cheese curds or freshly beer battered fried pickles – each one with any one of 10 of our side dipping sauces.
The Dune Buggy team can accommodate weekend-long festivals, private catering for work or family, breweries and wineries, and even lunches at your local farm, flea market, or garden center. Feel free to reach out via phone, Facebook, or email, and someone will get back to you!
I believe what sets us apart from others is our portion sizes. The burgers are huge. The fries are huge. To-go boxes are necessary. We hope it’s a great talking point: You’ll only be left wanting more of something you didn’t order yet.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
Customer experience. We want people to love Dune Buggy. We both put, and continue to put, our all into this business we have created for ourselves. Through menu changes, break repairs, answering inquiries, we want people to try us once and keep coming back, of course for the amazing food, but also for the care we put into everything: new tip jar survey questions that make people smile, our easy buzzer ticket system, genuine “How are yous” and “Have a great rest of your day!” and more.
We oftentimes hold ourselves to impossible standards ultimately because we want to be proud of the work we do. And when there’s nothing but positive feedback coming through the window, it makes us feel that much closer to achieving it.
Thank you for taking the time today to read a little bit more about us and what we do! And if you haven’t tried us yet, we hope these photos convince you otherwise^_^
Burgers & Love, Dune Buggy
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dunebuggyfoodtruckmi/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dunebuggyfoodtruckmi
Image Credits
Brooke Nicole
