ROUSES_JanFeb2019_Magazine

JANUARY IS

HELPING THE GULF COAST GROW Our local produce roots run more than 90 years deep. J.P. Rouse founded the City Produce Company in 1923, bringing fruits and vegetables from local, indepen- dent farms to the rest of the state and eventually to stores around the country. When his son, Anthony J. Rouse, Sr., opened his first grocery store in 1960, he made supporting his farmer neighbors a priority. He bought all of the produce from the farmers in the area, whether he needed it or not, because he said it was important for the commu- nity. Generations later we are more committed than ever to our local farmers and to bringing you the very best this region has to offer. RESPONSIBLY SOURCED SEAFOOD Fishing has been a unique way of life for people here on the Gulf Coast for generations. As the Gulf Coast’s grocer, and avid fish- ers ourselves, we feel a particu- lar commitment to preserve and protect our seafood industry, which plays such an important role in our culture and economy. Most of our seafood comes from local fisher- men with whom we have close personal and professional relation- ships. But our commitment doesn’t end at our coast. We’re mindful of how all of our seafood is caught and farmed. AN OLD-FASHIONED BUTCHER SHOP Leland Rodrigue was the butcher at our first store, which was known for having the very best meat selec- tion in Houma. We still have full- service butcher shops in our stores, and trusted butchers available to answer your questions about cuts, grades and cooking techniques. Every steak is still cut by hand, the way Leland did things. Choose from steakhouse quality USDA Prime beef and USDA Choice beef, or more affordable options. Most of our stores also have a dry- aged beef locker, in which the beef is aged at least 25 days.

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ONE CHILLY SUNDAY AFTERNOON, I WALKED INTO MY PARENTS’ HOUSE to find not only my mom in the kitchen making bacon-lettuce-tomato soup, but also my dad in his outdoor kitchen setup making a beef and vegetable soup. Two soups with one stone! Jackpot. My mom is not a big vegetable person — well, let’s be honest: She hates veggies. (Please don’t tell her grandkids, because we’re trying to keep the fact that vegeta- bles are optional eating a secret from them for as long as possible.) So of course she was making a cream-based soup with thick slabs of bacon that would mask the flavor of the tomatoes and lettuce in the pot. My dad, on the other hand, is a really big vegetable eater, as well as a meat-and- potatoes kind of guy. What he calls “vege- table soup” is really about half beef and half huge chunks of potatoes floating around. It makes complete sense to me that they were making these two very different soups on the same day; what did not make a lot of sense was how big each of their pots were! — Ali Rouse Royster, 3rd Generation Get even more soup recipes online, including those for my mom’s BLT soup and my dad’s vegetable soup, at www.rouses.com .

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