“When life hands you lemons, make hot dogs and lemonade!”

Hot dog vendors are gearing up for the season and some are already in full swing. Who needs another $100 a day in profit? Adding other items to your cart can mean the difference between a $300 day and a $500 day. Recently during Hot Dog Vendor Radio Show (HDVR), my co-host Rob talked about his recent addition of lemonade to his cart. He purchased a juicer and got to squeezing lemons.

“You can literally make your investment back the first day out.”

It’s just this simple; Take one lemon and cut it in half. Place the lemon half in the juicer and press the handle down, repeat on the other half of lemon. Then empty the juice into your shaker. Add 1/3 cup of simple syrup. (simple syrup directions are below) Fill your shaker with ice, then add water to the top, place lid on and shake baby shake. Take of the lid and pour put one half of the lemon in your customers glass and fill the glass up with the contents of your shaker. You could go above and beyond and add a couple of mint leaves as well. That would be sexy as hell.

What you need:

Juicer / Citrus Press Rob swears this one is the best one going for the money. He wanted me to point out that the side handled ones may be cheaper but will not last as long. Maxam Chrome Heavy Duty Juicer
Bottles for holding flavored syrup. You can make an extra dollar by squirting a little flavored syrup in their lemonade glass. Really cheap bottles Rob found.
Jiggers: Rob went above and beyond and no, you don’t have to offer the flavorings, but why not? Here are some kick’n jiggers for your syrup bottles.
Flavored Syrup, you can get snow cone syrup or Rob found FC Purees to work great and taste great. They come in several flavors and will be a hit on your cart.
Lemons, don’t forget the lemons. You can pick these up at your local produce market or grocery store. Buy them by the bag and save.
32 oz. clear plastic cups. Rob only uses the clear cups as it looks better and now your customer is a walking billboard for you.
Shaker A good big plastic cup with a screw on lid or a metal shaker so that you can mix it all up before pouring it into your customers glass.

Of course sugar, water and ice are just as crucial to the set up so don’t forget those.

To make your simple syrup, take 2 parts sugar and one part water and mix. Warm or Hot water works best. For example; two quarts of sugar and one quart of water and you will have a batch of simple syrup. Rob does it by the gallons now and the mixture is always the same, 2 parts sugar, one part water.

How much profit is in one glass of lemonade? About $2.35 – Rob sells his lemonade in the big 320z. cups for $3.00. Cost including the cup is about $0.65 Themore items you buy in bulk, the more profit is made. 40 cups of lemonade a day is almost $100 in profit. 100 cups a day and now your really making another full time income from adding one simple item.

Rob says to offer artificial sweeteners too and you’ll never miss a sell. Artificial sweeteners dissolve easily in cold water so just add some sweetener and leave out the 1/3 cup of simple syrup. Keep in mind, if you’re working a high volume location, you will want to have help.

Tell us what you think below in the comments. Are you already serving lemonade? Are you serving something else? Share it with us!