The Commissary has helped food entrepreneurs start and grow their businesses since 2014.
Located at 1400 Dublin Rd., the Commissary provides chefs with kitchen space, hot lines, prep lines, food storage, business lessons and opportunities to showcase their food.
Its goal is to be “Where Food Connects Community,” and it’s clear that the food professionals who use the facility are working toward that end, but they are also using food to connect family – to which a father-son team, a mother and her two sons and a pair of sisters can attest.
Let’s take a look at these family affairs and the impact their time at the Commissary has had on their businesses.
Photo courtesy of Brier Hill Sausage Co.
Brier Hill Sausage Co.
The Brier Hill Sausage Co. was founded by the father-son team of Jerry Pallante II and Jerry Pallante III, making good on a family sausage tradition that goes back four generations. They even use the same family recipe and hand-cranked sausage stuffer that has been part of their family tradition since the 1800s.
“Starting Brier Hill Sausage Co. was never about how much money we can make, but rather a way for us to work together in keeping alive and sharing with others a tradition worthy of being preserved,” says Pallante III.
Brier Hill Sausage Co. utilizes nearly all the Commissary has to offer, and it is even in the process of planning and taking part in a dinner that features a tasting menu of Commissary-produced foods.
“The versatility of the Commissary is one of the things that make it so appealing to us,” says Pallante III.
The Pallantes also chose the Commissary because it doesn’t make sense for a small-scale business with intentions such as theirs to rent, buy or build a commercial kitchen facility. They also see using the Commissary as a way to make an impact in Columbus that goes beyond simply selling their sausages.
“We are able to support our local growers and, in the end, have a positive impact on the quality of the local food supply,” says Pallante III.
Retro Dinner Diva
Stephanie Eakins has been using the Commissary since it opened its doors. Eakins’ business, Retro Dinner Diva, creates oven-ready meals and casseroles to be delivered to your door, and she says that if it weren’t for the Commissary, she probably wouldn’t be in business.
“The Commissary allows me to keep a positive cash flow, as I only rent the kitchen space as my business dictates,” Eakins says. “If it’s a busy week, I book more hours in the kitchen.”
This positive cash flow allowed Eakins to hire her sister, Jennie Hempfling, last year. Hempfling, in addition to her regular job, works with Eakins part-time every weekend doing food preparation and deliveries.
Eakins loves having the help, but there’s something she finds even more valuable about having her sister join her business.
“There’s something comforting about Jennie being family, because I feel like she’s definitely committed to our success,” says Eakins.
The sisters have seen Retro Dinner Diva increase its sales more than 60 percent from 2014 to 2015, and Eakins is determined not to let it stop there.
“My brain never stops, and I’m always thinking of different ways to expand or provide better service,” she says.
Eakins also appreciates the camaraderie among the Commissary’s businesses, noting, “You see it in little meaningful ways.”
Whether it is sampling one another’s food and giving feedback, sharing ideas, or simply jamming to music together while they work, the sense of family at the Commissary includes and goes beyond the actual bloodlines.
Photo courtesy of North Country Charcuterie
North Country Charcuterie
The North Country Charcuterie consists of chef James Forbes; his brother, Duncan Forbes, who works in sales and taste testing; and their mother, Jane Forbes, who deals with business and aesthetics. The Forbes began using the Commissary this past November to create their cured meats and to smoke their coffee bacon.
While the food prep and storage areas are vital to North Country Charcuterie’s business, Duncan explains that there was something else the Commissary provided that their business couldn’t.
“We started working there because it is an Ohio Department of Agriculture inspected facility,” Duncan says. “Without the ODA approval, North Country Charcuterie wouldn’t be able to produce meat products without building its own cost-prohibitive facility.”
Like many of the businesses that use the Commissary, North Country Charcuterie take pride in sourcing 95 percent of its ingredients from Ohio businesses, including meat, cheese, herbs and spices, craft beer, and wine.
The Forbes family intends to use its time at the Commissary as a launching pad to one day have its own brick-and-mortar salumeria. Until then though, members will enjoy their time at the Commissary.
“We love working here,” says Duncan. “It’s an amazing resource for central Ohio.”
Bob Valasek is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at hbealer@cityscenecolumbus.com.
