This past Friday was the unveiling of "Johnny Meatballs On A Roll," The World's First Mobile Meatball Cart. This mobile meat machine took nearly two months to custom construct, it took lots of blood, sweat and tears and nails and wood from lots of hands.

We got very creative and added tons of unique things and went far off the original "blueprint." There are still going to be many more additions as the feast season goes on! But the main thing for this Friday was that the gas fired right up and we had hot meatballs! I'm looking forward to more fun at all these feasts and things will be even more fun as we tweak the cart and make it not just the "world's first" but truly the #1 in the world.

The "JM-01" (the serial number of this model which we proudly printed on our custom made NJ license plate) is no longer just an idea or a dream, it's officially a fully-functioning food wagon-on-wheels! Our "ribbon cutting" party at Star Ravioli in Moonachie was a great success. My partner Ray, my product co-packagers at Star including "Big Mike" (who we named our sandwich combo with everything on it after) and the rest of our staff were all there as well as my wife and kids, my grandmother, my parents and in-laws. It was a fantastic debut and everything was very much like the atmosphere at my house on a Sunday afternoon. My family and friends are such a strong support system. My foodie friends were also on hand from Carmine & Karen DeMarco to Lou Palma, my paisan Tony Mangia, and of course Eat Italian's Alan Watts--who took footage of all the festivities!!!

A day later we rolled out to our first feast of the season at the Haworth Woman's Club street fair and craft show. That was another amazing day for me and the "Meat & Greet" team! At first arrival at this event, I was a bit nervous. We got there real early to set-up the cart and fill up our toppings bar. There weren't many people at first. But once ten a.m. rolled around, we got our first huge rush! There were actually lines of people at our cart. We were right next to a very nice couple who ran a barbecue grill and the only other food vendor was a hot dog wagon. Not to knock either, but we were exactly what I had hoped we'd be--the place to be at the event. The best feeling in the world was when people came back to the cart to tell me how much they loved the meatballs. Wow, that means more to me than anything!


Once again, family and friends came out and that always makes it extra special including my friend Andrea from Chef Central and Christine from the Bergenfield Sons of Italy. This street fair was filled with lots of arts & crafts, jewelry, sports collectibles, toys, a multitude of flea market items old and new. It also featured Sparky's Cigars who I ran into last season at another feast, treats for dogs, an elaborate windchime stand, and many other unique stands. We sold every last meatball and some t-shirts, I met some wonderful individuals and I couldn't have asked for a better day weather wise. For our first event of the season, once we unhitched the cart, things went off without a hitch. It was fitting that it was a Sunday...aka "meatball day" for any Jersey Italian. I'll be posting our next appearance with the cart real soon! Stay tuned...


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See Ya Saucy...
I was contemplating not addressing it, but unlike some, I like to acknowledge my counterparts in the food/TV business so I will give my final overview of NBC's "America's Next Great Retaurant" and Joey Saucy Balls (aka: Joey Meatballs / Brooklyn Meatball Company). I don't wish bad on anyone, especially my fellow Italian-Americans. As everyone knows who has been following this show, Joey lost Sunday night in the season finale and my overall take on him is that he had no business attempting to be in the food business. From the beginning, he came off as clueless...maybe his meatballs are edible but without tasting them I am not going to remark on how I think they tasted.

But there's so much more to having your own restaurant or food product besides just the actual product. Yes, that is very important, but you have to know the basics of food service and the guy had no idea what was going on most of the time. I tried to root for him but his marketing ideas were a complete joke. What really got me is when he began his whole "mafia" schtick with the gangster suit and the gun. How that represents his grandma is beyond me. His logo was him holding up a loaf of bread yet he needed one of the judges to point out that he should offer meatball sandwiches on his menu.

And Sunday night he looked like a chicken without a head in his execution of the practice restaurant. He was "in the weeds" (backed up with piled up sloppily-written tickets and it took diners over an hour to get their orders.) He had no idea how to fix the problems either. Joey, how about getting back there and cooking something???? The sandwich he introduced Sunday night included salad between two pieces of sliced toast. Sauce and hot meatballs with salad on a sandwich? Come on now, I get a bit crazy with my toppings bar but that combo just does not work!! One shouldn't be surprised considering in the food truck episode his main "topping" was a packet of Restaurant Depot red chili flakes. Hey, some think that is a good topping but I think my banquet hall quality alla cart station with my six gourmet options is a little bit better.

Look, forget the fact that Joey was trying to be a clear second-rate rip-off of yours truly and that the whole concept of the show was absurd for the get-go (handing over three fast food joints to people with really no background or experience with food). Devauling the "Sunday dinner experience" into fast food---sorry, "fast casual"--just does not work. At least, Joey failed to make it work. So now I guess I know why he never replied to my request for a meeting / throwdown, he is probably back to selling insurance or whatever it is he used to do. I'll repeat, I don't wish the guy any bad wishes, maybe one day he will reappear and who knows, maybe he will get his restaurant. If and when that happens, I'll be driving my meatball cart right up to his door to truly let America decide.

Until then, I won't be mentioning him again in any posts or notes. I know someday I will get my restaurant and be back on TV and until then I have many projects in the works. My book launches in less than two weeks, and I'm loving every minute of Johnny Meatballs On A Roll thus far. Look for the cart to be rolling out all over the tri-state area all spring and summer long! Can't wait to "meat" all my friends and fans out there who have been so supportive in all my ventures!!! Congrats to Soul Daddy for winning. He had a clear vision from the start and deserved it.