Picnic Pops Grilling Guidelines

Picnic PopsThe following is a set of guidelines for planning for, setting up, and running the Grill station at the Picnic Pops Event, held each year in May. Of course, these are simply guidelines, and can be edited for improvements or changes, as needed.

Prior to Picnic Pops

  1. Apply for Temporary Food Permit 2 weeks ahead of the event.
  2. Applications are available at the County Health Dept at 705 N. Zeeb Rd. Phone # 222-3800. List all foods to be served, but most details about the grilling area. Also get the Temporary Food Establishment Operations Checklist to help with filling out this application. List your own phone number on the application to get a call to schedule the inspection. List Pioneer High School as the Establishment Name.
  3. Return completed application at least 5 days ahead of the event. This will schedule the inspection that you need to pass before you can serve food.
  4. Ask the person who is organizing the volunteers to set aside 4-5 volunteers for each time period: In the morning and late afternoon hours, you will need one or two volunteers to grill, one to serve, and one to take orders. During the 12-2:00 time-slot, you will need the two volunteers grilling, and a fifth volunteer to make sure supplies are kept filled for the grillers and servers.
  5. Grill is rented by Event organizers from A-1 Rental.
  1. Order the meat from Gordon Food Service, on Carpenter Rd, at least one week ahead of the event. Order in 2006 came to about $670.
  2. For a picnic pops held in good weather, outside with tents, order:
    1. 500 hotdogs, all beef (ask for all the meat to be thawed out, but refrigerated, prior to pick-up)
    2. 500 pre-cooked Bratwurst – Johnsonville Brand, skinless
    3. 1000 hot dog buns (Bratwurst buns are too short!)
      • If Event will be indoors for whatever reason, then cut food orders by about 30%
    4. At least three 8"x10" aluminum trays on the grill to heat up the meat prior to grilling, and to store the grilled meat prior to serving.
    5. Ice; two 22lb bags, to keep the meat below 40 degrees F prior to cooking.
    6. Catsup, Mustard, and Relish single serving packets, if not enough in stock in the Band Room storage room.
    7. Paper hot dog "Serving Trays", to serve each hot dog or brat, if not enough in stock.
    8. Napkins, at least 1000, if not enough in stock.
    9. Hair nets for the cooks, if not enough in stock.
    10. Food-handler gloves, if not enough in stock.
  3. Need max 5 coolers, four to store meat with ice on top, and a fifth cooler to keep opened meat containers cold as you are grilling.
  1. Other grilling supplies needed:
    1. At least one meat thermometer (in storage bin in Band storage room) to make sure the interior temperature of the meat is kept either below 40F or above 140F. Meat stored for over about 2 hours at temperatures between 40F and 140F can spoil.
    2. Buy: max two 2.5 gallon containers of potable water in containers with spigots, for washing hands and utensils, and to fill trays used to heat up meat before grilling.
    3. Large bucket to catch water while washing.
    4. Paper towels for drying hands.
    5. Hand soap dispenser (no rinse needed)
    6. Three plastic trays to hold soapy, rinse, and sanitizer water.
    7. Detergent to make soapy water mix.
    8. Bleach (add ~½ cap-full to ½ gallon of water, and check for 50-100 ppm using check strips available in supply carton
    9. Wash and dry clothes for washing tongs at least 3 times during the day.
    10. At least two tongs to grill with. (in storage bin)
    11. Hand-held grill lighter (in storage bin)
    12. Tray to hold extra tongs…
    13. Hot pads and aprons for cooks (in storage bin)
    14. Paring knife to open meat wrappers.
    15. Three clean plastic bins to hold catsup, mustard, and relish single serving packets.
    16. Access to janitor's closet in A-Hall for fresh water.

Set-up

  1. Keep all containers containing food at least 6 inches above the ground, using special pallet for meat coolers, and table for buns.
  2. Keep bleach container apart from food.

Suggested layout: (sketch in process)

Grilling Guidelines

  1. Cooks and servers must wear plastic food handler gloves and hair nets.
  2. In an aluminum tray on the LH end of the grill, in about one inch of water, heat up the brats and hot dogs to over 120F degrees
  3. Grill the dogs and brats until the interior temps are at least 140F.
  4. Store the dogs and brats, before they burn, that are ready for serving, in an aluminum pan on the RH end of the Grill: keep this meat above 140F as much as possible by keeping the grill lid closed occasionally.
  5. When there is an order, use the tongs to put the meat in the bun in a serving tray, and serve.
  6. Have fun!