When Cortez resident Anthony Miezell, 46, saw that no one sold hot dogs at a high school baseball game he attended over a year ago, he took matters into his own hands. He opened up Handy Hot Dogs.
Originally from Louisiana, Miezell moved to Cortez eight years ago with his wife, who got a job in Shiprock, New Mexico. They met online and decided to begin their life together in the region.
Before the move, he owned a construction company in his Deep South state for 20 years and retired because he wanted to try something different. This different “something” has worked out for him because working construction for years wore his body down. He constantly felt pain, and now he’s found relief working the food cart.
Still, Miezell’s construction history remains in the name “Handy Hot Dogs,” where “Handy” refers to “handyman.”
Since he opened up in May 2022, business grew from challenging growing pains to obtaining a busy schedule during Montezuma County’s busy months.
Miezell is swamped with events. Depending on his schedule, he also sets up shop at concerts, fairs, Cortez’s Colorado Welcome Center, Durango Organics and sports games.
“There’s just been so many events lately that it’s hard to schedule,” he said. “You know, just going out and setting up, clean the cart, you have to get everything. Prep work is a lot of work (which usually takes about two hours).”
Connecting with people is one of the best parts about his job.
“People love hot dogs and come up to chat,” he said. “I’ve met a lot of great people in this town.”
One of the most memorable interactions he’s had as a hot dog entrepreneur is that he had an axle break and one of his customers, who is a welder, welded it back together. On top of the generous act of kindness, his customer didn’t charge him. Instead, he gets free hot dogs for as long as he wants them.
On top of his patrons’ support, he also found community with other food vendors in the area. If one vendor needs help, it seems that other vendors will unsparingly share what they can.
“We’re not competition,” he said. “We all want to make it great. We want each other to make it.”
