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Children's idea to bottle mother's sauce leads to business success
Daniel Wallace
D&C Staff writer
November 7, 2007
Cooking was a task that Geulah von Perlstein originally left up to her husband, Detlef, a renowned executive chef. But in 1983, just three years after opening his restaurant, the Cafe International in Brighton, Detlef died. Von Perlstein, a former schoolteacher, didn't have a culinary arts background.
What she did have was a recipe for a spicy tomato spread that she learned from her mother back in Jerusalem that was guaranteed to add pizzazz to any dish. She opened her own kosher-style restaurant, called Geulah's, in 1997 in the Jewish Community Center.
Little by little, she started gaining a reputation for the tasty sauce.
Last year, her three children got the idea to bottle the sauce for their mother as a Mother's Day present.
"It was the nicest thing they could have ever done for me," she said.
Bottling the sauce sounded fairly simple, but the kids didn't take into account that their mother measured ingredients by the pinch and not by the spoon.
It took von Perlstein a few weeks and a few dozen tastings before they could get a good consistent spread that they could mass-produce.
They set up shop at a Rochester Institute Technology incubator, where students helped design the logo and labels.
The sauce, which is called Geulah's Spicy Tomato Spread, can be used in a variety of ways: as a condiment for fish, meat and poultry, a dip for crackers, chips and veggies, a spread for sandwiches or flavoring for sauces.
The kosher spread is an all-natural product that contains no preservatives, MSG (monosodium glutamate), trans fat or gluten.
Ron von Perlstein, one of von Perlstein's children who is heavily involved in the marketing of the product, said Weight Watchers and Whole Foods Market have expressed interest in carrying the product.
It is considered a healthful condiment because of its ingredients that include tomatoes, garlic, cumin and red peppers.
"People think if you eat healthy, it's got to be expensive, but it doesn't," said Ron von Perlstein.
Last year, the spread was featured in the "What's New and What's Hot" feature in the Fancy Food Show Magazine after being taste-tested at the annual gourmet food line exhibition in New York City.
Naz Runfola, grocery manager for Rochester-based Abundance Cooperative Market, said the product sells quickly once people taste it.
"It's like a spicy ketchup," said Runfola. "Every time they do a tasting, it just flies out of here."
The von Perlsteins declined to share revenue figures, but said they've sold 12,000 jars to date. The spread retails for between $5 and $7, and is currently in 30 small groceries in New York, North Carolina and Florida.
It's in a condiment market all to itself in some markets, said Mary Racinowski, the buyer at Henrietta-based Lori's Natural Foods Center. She sells about four cases a month.
"The rebuy is really strong," said Racinowski. "I've had great experience; I wish I could sell all my products like that."
Geulah's has three other products that it plans to launch: an all-natural fudge sauce, a signature veggie burger and Jerusalem sesame cookies.
The target is to release a product every six months.
The fudge sauce will be launched Nov. 15.
James Anderson, gourmet foods department store manager at Rochester-based Parkleigh, said they've already put in a corporate order for the fudge sauce.
DJWALLAC@DemocratandChronicle.com