Baked & Loaded and ready to serve Sandy

By Liam Givens, The Sandy Standard

Six months ago, Nick Haddox was in Michigan working at Toshiba copiers as a service technician. Now, he and his wife, Brooke Haddox, are fulfilling his decade-long dream of opening a food cart, as Baked & Loaded has opened in Sandlandia.

“My wife and I wanted a different change of pace from what we had,” Haddox said, recalling how Michigan felt less and less like home. Everything changed when he received a phone call from his father-in-law, putting Haddox in contact with a food cart manufacturer. 

“After a lot of discussion we decided that moving to Oregon and starting over was just what we needed,” he said. Thus, the genesis of Baked & Loaded, but Haddox ran into a problem; learning how to operate and own a business. “I was never in business or had any interest in the ‘corporate side’ of things so it was all brand new to me.”

Haddox had a lot on his plate, as a new business owner and father of 3 boys.

“At night, when I probably should have been sleeping, I was researching what the next steps were to get our food cart up and running,” he explained. 

Haddox took it “step-by-step” and dedicated himself to learning how to operate a business, citing “time management” as his biggest learning moment.

Baked N Loaded opened in Sandliandia on June 29., selling out on their first day. They took to Facebook writing “The gratitude and support we are feeling from the community is amazing. We were blessed with such a wonderful crowd this afternoon where we sold out of multiple items.”

Since opening day, Haddox has learned a lot about the Sandy community and how “they love themselves some good food.” Oftentimes, the cart will close early due to selling out.

“We are so grateful to be in such an active thriving amazing community of good people,” he said.

Baked & Loaded experienced their first Sandy Mountain Festival this summer, cementing their place in the community. 

“We loved watching everyone come set up their chairs and blankets,” Haddox recalled. “We have never seen anything like that before.”

The “Deja Moo,” garnished with sirloin steak, bacon and cheddar, is the best seller at Baked & Loaded, followed by the “OG,” which keeps things simple with just butter, sour cream, cheddar and more. The “Deja Moo” is a favorite in the Haddox family, as well as the “Clucker,” chicken, ranch and bacon, and “Cheeseburger in Paradise,” which is adorned with ground beef, tomato, pickle and more.

“We look forward to being around for years to come and supporting the community and small businesses just like all of you have done for us,” Haddox said.