Larry’s Market: Surviving and Thriving on the Power of Lunch
By Lorrie Baumann
Photo by Uriah Carpenter
When Larry Ehlers started working at his local grocery store in Brown Deer, Wisconsin after his return from World War II, it was the kind of neighborhood grocery that sold everything that the neighborhood families really needed from day to day in about 3,000 square feet of selling space. Then times changed, local roads gave way to superhighways, the small village of Brown Deer became a suburb of Milwaukee, and big box stores entered into the grocery marketplace.
Larry’s Market changed with the times by evolving into a specialty grocer. Its produce and meat departments have been eliminated in favor of prepared foods that cater to the lunchtime needs of the workers employed in the nearby office buildings, a highly regarded specialty cheese market makes the store a destination for tourists looking for the best of Wisconsin cheeses, and a busy catering department now provides more than half the store’s revenue.
“It’s an old, old grocery store, but it’s a charming building,” said Patty Peterson, the Manager of Larry’s Market and the daughter of Larry himself. “We’re not on the highway. We’re on the byway…. We don’t have a thousand people walking in front of our store each day.”
After his return from the war, Larry Ehlers worked for the store for years before he finally bought it in 1970. His son, Steve Ehlers, bought the store from him in the late 1980s, and Steve’s wife became the owner upon Steve’s death in 2016.
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Steve carried on that romance with French cheeses as he traveled in Europe in the 1970s for his own version of the Grand Tour once made by Victorian gentlemen to broaden their horizons as they started out on their lives as independent adults. “He loved France,” Peterson said.
Steve and his father decided to start carrying artisanal American cheeses in the store after Mike Gingrich of Uplands Cheese won the American Cheese Society’s Best of Show Award for Pleasant Ridge Reserve, and today, the cheese counter with its 200 to 300 cheeses in it is a destination for travelers who come to Larry’s Market just to buy their cheese.
Most of the business rung up by the store’s 15 full and regular part-time employees, though, comes either at lunchtime or through the store’s catering business. The regular Friday grill-out events are also huge draws that bring 250 to 300 people into the store over the course of a couple of hours.
All told, the deli and catering departments represent about 60 to 70 percent of the business today. “We do a lot of corporate catering, so on any given day, we’ll have five people out delivering, and we can do 400 to 500 people for lunch, just catering,” Peterson said.
The typical lunchtime purchase for the 100 to 150 people who usually come in then is about $12 to $15, although customers will frequently spend $40 to $50 at a time if they’re also buying groceries and cheese. Among the most popular offerings are killer brownies, Wisconsin artisan cheeses and fresh soups, including the turkey chili that’s a particular favorite among Larry’s regulars. “We sell a ton of soup, summer and winter,” Peterson said. “Our local health inspector comes in for lunch quite often.”
Kroger and Murray’s Cheese Announce Merger
The Kroger Co. has purchased the equity of Murray’s Cheese, as well as its flagship location on Bleecker Street in New York City, to form a merger of the two companies.
“For cheese lovers and connoisseurs, it doesn’t get more authentic than Murray’s,” said Rodney McMullen, Kroger’s Chairman and CEO. “Our customers are excited to buy the unique offerings of Murray’s Cheese right in our stores, and we’re excited to ensure this iconic cheese shop will remain a part of the Kroger family for many years to come.”
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New York’s most iconic cheese shop, opened in 1940, Murray’s has been delivering the finest selection of cheese, meat and specialty food items to New Yorkers, chefs and cheese lovers nationwide through a robust online business. Since the two companies formed a unique partnership in 2008, Murray’s has offered the same fine foods and cheese expertise to the Kroger family of stores.
“When the Kroger and Murray’s relationship started in 2008, we wanted to figure out how to bring the finest cheese and charcuterie to more people,” said Daniel Hammer, Kroger’s Vice President of Culinary Development and Deli/Bakery Merchandising. “Today, we have more than 350 Murray’s Cheese shops in Kroger locations from coast to coast – and that is thanks to the incredible passion and commitment of the team at Murray’s to empower associates to share their love of cheese with customers. We look forward to learning from the very talented team at Murray’s and working together to grow the business and build the iconic Murray’s brand.”
Murray’s former Owner and President, Rob Kaufelt, will remain affiliated with the business as a strategic adviser. Nick Tranchina will continue to lead the Murray’s Cheese team in New York and will report to Daniel Hammer at Kroger.
“Rob’s dedication to his craft has placed Murray’s on the map among the culinary elite while also making specialty cheese more accessible to mainstream consumers,” said McMullen. “We look forward to Rob’s continued influence on the business, helping to tell the Murray’s Cheese story and building its brand.”
“It has been my honor and privilege to work with so many tremendous, talented people over the course of my 45-year career in food retail, especially the last 25 years at Murray’s here in New York City,” said Kaufelt. “When I set out on this journey, my goal was simply to run the best cheese shop in Greenwich Village. I’m proud that we’ve been able to maintain the spirit and service of a mom-and-pop neighborhood shop amidst our growth into the national market. I am pleased to pass the torch to our able staff, who will carry Murray’s into the future.”
Murray’s Cheese shops in Kroger stores replicate the same experience customers enjoy at its Greenwich Village flagship store. Each shop carries hundreds of cheeses, charcuterie, olives, crackers and specialty food items from all over the world. Murray’s is deeply involved with product selection, staff training and development, merchandising and promotions.
Other highlights of the special partnership between Murray’s Cheese and Kroger include:
- In December 2016, Kroger and Murray’s Cheese opened their 350th store location in Bloomington, Indiana. At the time, Kaufelt said, “This is an exciting milestone for Murray’s and the specialty cheese industry. In 2008, we pioneered a store-within-a-store concept at a handful of Kroger stores. Between 2008 and 2012, we opened 38 stores, and in 2016 we opened nearly 100. This partnership has exceeded our wildest expectations.”
- Murray’s staff has trained thousands of Cheese Mongers and Certified Cheese Professionals through its relationship with Kroger. Between the two companies, the American Cheese Society named as Certified Cheese Professionals 29 team members in 2016, 20 in 2015, and 13 in 2014.
Financial terms of the merger were not disclosed.
13th Annual Oregon Cheese Festival March 18 -19 2017 @ Rogue Creamery
Oregon-inspired culinary events, including a farmer’s market-style artisan food, beer, cider and wine festival, will kick off with the Meet the Cheesemakers and Winemakers Dinner. The Oregon Cheese Festival will be open to the public Saturday, March 18 and Sunday March 19 from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Rogue Creamery, 311 North Front St. (Hwy. 99), Central Point, Oregon. Held under two large heated tents, (15,000 square feet of space!), at Rogue Creamery’s Central Point facility, the thirteenth annual festival invites guests to shake hands with cheesemakers and other artisans. There will be baby cows on site to showcase the beginnings of great milk producers! Activities will also be provided for children, including games, activity sheets, coloring, face painting and more.
“The farmer’s market format will present an interactive experience between makers and visitors, giving everyone an opportunity to talk about the product, the process and learn each individual cheesemaker’s story,” says David Gremmels, President of Rogue Creamery. “It’s a way to truly be connected with the source of the cheese being presented.”
At the festival thousands of visitors will sample cow, goat and sheep cheese from Oregon creameries, including: Pholia Farm, Ancient Heritage Dairy, Oregon State University, Ochoa’s Queseria, Tillamook County Creamery, Willamette Valley Cheese Co., Oak Leaf Creamery, Briar Rose Creamery, La Mariposa, Fraga Farmstead Creamery, Goldin Artisan Goat Cheese, Crushpad Creamery, By George Farm, Face Rock Creamery, Portland Creamery, Rogue Creamery, and many others.
Southern Oregon and other local culinary artisans and beverage providers who are expected to participate include: Lillie Belle Farms, Gary West Meats, Applegate Valley Artisan Breads, Ledger David Cellars, Jaxon Vineyards, South Stage Cellars, Serra Vineyards, Caprice Vineyards, EdenVale Winery, RoxyAnn Winery, La Brasseur Vineyard, 30 Brix Winery, Willamette Valley Vineyards, Wandering Aengus Ciders, Hot Lips Soda, Clear Creek Distillery, Bend Distillery, Wild River Brewing, Sierra Nevada Brewing and Rogue Ales.
A $15 entry fee includes tastings and demonstrations; tickets purchased at the door will be $20. Entry tickets can be purchased in advance at http://oregoncheesefestival.com. In addition, a $10 wine, cider, beer and spirit tasting fee is available and includes a commemorative glass with the Oregon Cheese Guild logo.
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To commence the festival, a sumptuous meal introducing guests to participating guild cheesemakers will be held Friday night at the Inn at the Commons in Medford, Oregon on March 17 from 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. The dinner is held for the benefit of the non-profit 501(c)(6) Oregon Cheesemakers Guild. Each course will spotlight a cheese made by one of the festival’s artisans, paired with a local wine, beer or cider. Tickets available for purchase at http://oregoncheesefestival.com.
Special Guest for the dinner and festival will be Brian Keyser, Founder of Casellula Cheese & Wine Café, a tiny restaurant with a huge cheese selection. He opened the restaurant in New York City in 2007 and Casellula at Alphabet City in Pittsburgh in 2016. Together with Chef Leigh Friend he is the co-author of “Composing the Cheese Plate,” a book of easy recipes and creative ideas for fun and inventive cheese plates (Running Press, 2016). Keyser is a co-Chair of the 2017 (ACS) American Cheese Society Annual Conference and Competition in Denver, Chair of the ACS Scholarship Committee, and a board member of the American Cheese Education Foundation.
The festival would not be possible without the generous support of the City of Central Point, the Oregon Dairy and Nutrition Council, Wandering Aengus Ciderworks, Rogue Ales, Oregon Department of Agriculture, Face Rock Creamery, Oregon Economic & Community Development Department, Culture Magazine, Travel Medford, Cheese Connoisseur Magazine, Umpqua Bank, Rogue Credit Union, and the members of the Oregon Cheese Guild.
For more information, visit www.oregoncheeseguild.org or www.roguecreamery.com
