MEET ERIC
Eric's love for food started back when he was a teenager. His folks would take extended holidays in the winter, and would leave him with a freezer full of food, some cash for fresh groceries, and a number of cookbooks. He very quickly learned what went with what, and always enjoyed creating new combinations, some worked, many didn’t at first, but he ate them anyways!
He stole his wife Naomi’s heart with Italian chicken breasts with mushrooms and mozzarella cheese with Caesar salad, and the rest is history! His family’s idea of a holiday generally centered around where we could go to enjoy new cultures and exciting food experiences.
MEET NAOMI
Naomi was fortunate enough to be raised in a household where food meant comfort and love. She learned to cook with her mother and, later, she and her husband, Eric, passed that love of good food prepared well onto their daughters. Over the years, she and Eric started to develop their own recipes and find great joy in sharing their love of food with friends and family. On a more personal level, Naomi spends a lot of her time thinking about what and when she is going to eat next.
We often throw an annual “To hell with winter” party in February and did so in February of 2019. We usually have 30 to 36 folks over and have a great evening with 4 or 5 small plates of barbequed, grilled, and slow cooked proteins along with interesting sides, a large selection of wines and spirits. For this particular party, we invited Wayne and Rhonda Hanson, our neighbors from Your Local Ranch along. They have a fantastic grass-fed beef operation with free range cattle that get the best of care. They run an on-ranch store with their free range beef along with free range pork and chicken from other local producers.
While sampling some of our signature chicken wings that were prepared with what is now our Township 27 Pork and Poultry rub, smoked in our vertical smoker, Rhonda asked “Tell me about these wings?” Of course I responded with “Well Rhonda, these wings are yours from your store.” To which she replied, “I know that, (along with a sidelong glance ) but….. What is on these wings?” I just replied “Well, it’s one of my spice blend recipes” Rhonda’s response was “That’s it – you have to produce this and sell it out of our store.” And…. Naomi just happened to be standing behind her with “I told you so” written all over her face and… that’s how the whole thing started!”
We have had quite a year getting things up and running, obtaining certifications, establishing our supply chains and getting our social media pages up.
Our journey is just beginning! Join us.