For their first job, these teen brothers started a hot dog cart

It all started with the pickles.

A jar had been sitting in the back of the fridge untouched for some time when Sam and Janna Fischer’s youngest son, Viggo, decided to put them to good use. He made relish — three different kinds — and it was good. Really good.

“It was like all distinct different flavors, and I just kind of said ‘If we can this stuff, we can get a cottage food license and you guys can go sell it at farmers markets,” said Sam Fischer.

It was December 2023, and older brother Sev was hunting for his first job. As the family bounced around the relish idea, it morphed into a way to give the Roseville teens their first job and a crash course in entrepreneurship along the way. They would open a hot dog cart and, in a nod to how their story unfolded, call themselves the Relish Brothers.

First, they needed a food-handling license. Most hot dog carts on the market couldn’t meet Minnesota’s strict requirements, like having hot water and four different sinks — three for dishes, one for handwashing. So they had one custom-built.

“We went to Michigan with a couple of buddies and picked it up, and then had a 13-hour car ride home with a hot dog cart behind us,” Sev said.

Next step: Find the right hot dog. Over the course of a month, they tried 30 different hot dogs from across the country.

“We wanted the hot dog to be a perfect hot dog that sticks out the end of the bun, and it’s, like, crispy and then juicy, so it crunches when you take a bite,” Sev said.

By the end, they may have been sick of eating hot dogs, but they found The One. It met all the criteria, and came from a butcher an hour south of the Twin Cities that the Fischer family is keeping secret. All summer, dad and sons would make a day out of their supply runs, bringing along friends and getting in a little fishing on the side.

Once they had their hot dogs and cart, the boys and their parents put together a menu in time for a test run. In May 2024, they invited friends and neighbors for free hot dogs after the last day of school. Before they got home, there was already a line stretching halfway down the block.

“I rushed home. We had no prep. We hadn’t even set it up the day before,” Sam said. “We just busted it all out, turned it on and figured it out.”

“It was fun, but it was also kind of chaotic,” Viggo said.

Their first real gig came the next day at a Touch-a-Truck event in Arden Hills. Sev took the orders while Viggo cooked up hot dogs, and they’ve been serving them ever since.

Both brothers enjoy their gig and say they work hard to create a positive experience for every customer. For Viggo, it’s the customer service. He tries to converse with every customer as they wait for their order. For Sev, it’s all about presentation.

“To make it look really good ... don’t overload the hot dog, keep everything neat and like organized and then do perfect little squiggles of the mustard,” Viggo said. “No rushing through the presentation.”

This summer, they are serving five different combinations with names like the Dawg (ketchup, mustard, relish), the Elote Dog (corn salsa, chili powder, cotija, lime mayo, jalapeño) and the Sassy St. Paul (brown mustard, onions, hot and sweet pickles and banana peppers). They also have a gluten-free option that ditches the bun for a serving boat. You won’t see Viggo’s relish recipe on the menu yet, but they recently got their cottage food license and hope to sell jars of it soon.

The brothers choose to support local businesses whenever possible. In addition to the butcher making the hot dogs, the bakery providing the buns is from the metro area, and the chips and drinks come from Minnesota’s Old Dutch and Northern Soda Co. Meanwhile, 5% of their earnings are given to the St. Paul-based Sanneh Foundation.

The nonprofit organization gives kids the opportunity to attend sports camps at no cost. Viggo and Sev, who have played sports most of their lives, have volunteered at Sanneh for many years and Sam currently works there. Last summer, their $500 donation put 10 kids through a week of camp.

“We have the privilege of being able to play club sports ... and we know that some kids can’t do that, so we want the kids to have an experience kind of like that, and be able to play soccer and have fun and learn,” Sev said.

While neither is old enough to drive, Sev is taking driver’s education, and they are already mapping out their future. The brothers are developing a workbook to help other teens start their own businesses, have thought about buying more carts and are considering studying business in college. But for this summer, the brothers — now 14 and 15 — have one goal.

“Just have a summer like a normal teenager, do whatever you want all day, and then have some hot dog cart jobs. So it’ll be fun,” Viggo said.

To find their upcoming events, visit relishbrothers.com or follow @relishbrothers on Instagram.