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Rouses Means Local Flavor by David W. Brown

With that in mind, if you’re making a jambalaya with local sausage, you might as well use a local jambalaya mix as well. Jambalaya Girl, a New Orleans company founded by Kristen Preau, puts out a rice mix based on her father’s recipe. “She came on the scene in the last 10 years,” says Tim. “We were in my office when she came in to talk to us, and we thought she had an interesting story. We gave her a shot.” And Preau hustles, says Ali. “She will cook that jambalaya anywhere and everywhere. Almost anytime we had an event for a few years, I would see her there. She started in 2010, and every weekend for the first few years she was in Rouses demonstrating her product.” When local entrepreneurs arrive at Rouses in hope of success, they are reminded that passion is at the core of everything. No one needs to be told that outright, of course. If you work with grocers who are passionate about the business, it becomes infectious, and you’ll give it your all, too.

Few foods attract as strong a following as local meats. One such local meat that Rouses proudly carries is Chisesi Pride, which in New Orleans is synonymous with ham. Rouses has been selling the beloved local product since its very first store. The two companies, both founded by first- and second- generation immigrants from Italy, have found success and grown concurrently. Meanwhile, Rouses goes out of its way to get to know local palates and to carry more sausage than you even knew existed. It’s just how the Gulf Coast works. We know sausage, we have our favorites, and we want them on local shelves at good prices. Rouses even makes its own local sausages for purchase. “Our sausage is made fresh at all of our stores with all of our recipes — that’s three generations of recipes!” says Nick Acosta, the meat director of Rouses Markets. “We’ve got green onion, Italian, Cajun — a lot of bigger retailers outsource their fresh sausage, but we make it all in-house in every store. We know every area and region has its own local flavors and favorite local brands, and we make sure we carry them. And when somebody comes up with something new, we always meet with them. We always want to give everybody a chance.That’s families helping families.”

We know every area and region has its own local flavors and favorite local brands, and we make sure we carry them. And when somebody comes up with something new, we always meet with them. We always want to give everybody a chance. That’s families helping families.

— Nick Acosta, Rouses Markets’ Meat Director, third generation

38 MARCH•APRIL 2020

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