All Over Albany

A look around the new Slidin' Dirty in Schenectady

The popular restaurant Slidin' Dirty opened a new location in the Foster Building on State Street in downtown Schenectady Thursday. It's the second location for owners Brooke and Tim Taney, who started out with a food truck in 2012, and then opened a permanent location in downtown Troy in 2014.

The new spot in Schenectady is much bigger than the Troy location, occupying two floors behind a large arch window that looks out onto the street.

Here's a look around the new space, along a few quick bits from the Taneys about why the picked Schenectady and the path from a food truck to multiple locations.

Photos

Look up, they're above in large format -- click or scroll all the way up.

Two quick questions

This is your second location -- why pick Schenectady for it?

Tim: I think the biggest reason is that [Sequence Development's] Jeff Buell -- our current landlord in Troy -- said, hey, I've got this great block in Schenectady that I've bought some property on, think you'd be a good fit. In fact, the first place he contacted us about was the terra cotta hotel, which is now Capocia Wine Lounge.

Brooke: But that was like three months after we opened [in Troy], so we were not anywhere ready for it.

Tim: So, he was like, that's OK, I might have something else for you. Some time went on and he said I've got this space on State Street I want you to check out. We were a little more ready at the time and we came checked it out -- it was a beat-up, old hair salon.

Brooke: Pink carpet, a lobby, and then just hallways with little rooms off of it. So we really had to look beyond it and envision it all open. And then talking with him about going up, because we wanted the same heigh that we have in Troy.

Tim: Jeff had asked us about how we felt about going to a second floor because the design was for this huge arch window. There was some hesitation, but we said, yeah, let's go for it. We miscalculated how much it was going to cost...

Brooke: But that being said, a lot of times in Troy we get questions, hey, can we rent out your space so we can office party or a bridal shower or whatever private event they want to do. And [the Troy location] is just not conducive because it's too small. So this allows us to host private events up there, or maybe do a paint-and-sip event up there, and not obstruct other diners who just want to eat or have a drink.

Brooke and Tim Taney

You guys have an interesting story in that you've built your way up from a food truck to a successful place in Troy, a now another location here. Do you think this is a path that's open for other food businesses to follow?

Tim: I certainly think the model of starting small with something like a food cart or a food truck is something that I would recommend for entrepreneurs. It allows you to not have to get this huge loan that could completely bury you for the rest of your life. And it allows you to learn the business and grow. And I think we're a perfect example of that -- going from a truck, to relatively small space in Troy, to a relatively big space now in Schenectady. If this was our first one, there probably would be no Slidin' Dirty because we would never have been ready for that five years ago. It also allows you to build a brand and learn what you're doing.

Brooke: Maybe you start out with a food truck and think you have a really good concept and then maybe you realize that's not something people are drawn to, and you can re-think it. As Tim said, you have a smaller investment in the food truck to figure that out rather than go all in on a restaurant.

This interview has been edited and condensed.