Joe?s Snack Shack Opens in West Fork

Owner: Joe and Paula Wingate

Address: 415 N. Centennial, U.S.

Highway 71, West Fork 72774

Phone/Fax: (479) 839-8268

Hours: 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-

Saturday

Startup date: Oct. 24

Joe Wingate came back to his hometown to take care of his grandfather five years ago. His grandfather has since passed away, but Wingate stayed in West Fork and hopes his new business will keep him there.

Wingate bought his 8-by-16-foot food service trailer when he was living in Texas. He sold corn dogs and funnel cakes at community events and various weekend festivals there, but he hadn’t done much with it since returning to West Fork, until October. That’s when Wingate said he “got fed up” with his work as a truck driver and decided to open the snack trailer full time.

Joe’s Snack Shack is open 12 hours a day, six days a week. Wingate is the only employee.

“I know I started in the middle of winter, but sometimes you just have to go with it,” Wingate said. “I’ve been driving a truck the last 14 years and I want to do something different.”

Amazingly, he said on a recent 36-degree day, he’s sold more snow cones than anything since opening and stopped serving coffee because of the lack of interest.

Wingate doesn’t have any plans to move the business to a permanent location or expand in any way. He just hopes to gain customers.

It’s a nice drive along the scenic U.S. Highway 71, and customers may be willing to travel a little to get his funnel cakes or hand-dipped corn dogs, Wingate said.

He’s not sure what his costs were to launch the business and declined to say how much he’s invested in the food trailer.

Wingate is a 1984 graduate of West Fork High School.