Written by Erica Clark, CVB Interim Administrative Assistant
Rosemary’s Kitchen, along with the
mother-daughter duo Rosemary Thomas and Sara Corley, are celebrating their
second year of business at the end of September. Rosemary’s Kitchen is a
restaurant unlike any other. Using old family recipes and new world flavors
combined with the freshest ingredients, they serve some of the best homemade
food around. I was asked to write a
little something and was overwhelmed with excitement because Rosemary’s is one
of my favorite places to have lunch
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| Rosemary Thomas and Sara Corley |
To help
me learn more about what goes on at Rosemary’s Kitchen, I met with long-time
employee and Wait-Staff Manager, Ansley Judd. Ansley has been with owner, Sara
Corley since just after the grand opening in September of 2012. When asked what
she thought has made Rosemary’s so successful, Ansley responded,
"When you eat at Rosemary’s, it feels like you are coming home for Sunday dinner."
"That is what people expect and that is what we give them. We really get to know the people we serve and it creates an overall ‘homey’ and safe atmosphere. People really like that.” She followed up with this statement: “But I can honestly say that the community and the customers make the business for us. Without you guys, we wouldn’t have the extreme success we have had.” I would like to elaborate a bit of here. I agree with Ansley “Sunday Dinner” comment. I am a college student at Louisiana Tech and for many of us, it is nice to have a place where we can feel at home – especially when we cannot be at home for extended periods of time. Personally, I love seeing familiar faces and being treated with a bit of southern charm and warming hospitality.
"When you eat at Rosemary’s, it feels like you are coming home for Sunday dinner."
"That is what people expect and that is what we give them. We really get to know the people we serve and it creates an overall ‘homey’ and safe atmosphere. People really like that.” She followed up with this statement: “But I can honestly say that the community and the customers make the business for us. Without you guys, we wouldn’t have the extreme success we have had.” I would like to elaborate a bit of here. I agree with Ansley “Sunday Dinner” comment. I am a college student at Louisiana Tech and for many of us, it is nice to have a place where we can feel at home – especially when we cannot be at home for extended periods of time. Personally, I love seeing familiar faces and being treated with a bit of southern charm and warming hospitality.
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| Homemade bread is available for purchase. |
Moving
forward on the topic of success, I asked Ansley since Rosemary’s has grown a
great deal over the years since their opening whether she foresees them needing
to relocate to accommodate more people.
Ansley said, “We actually just added
seating, we can now serve a little over seventy people. But to address your
question more directly, would we like to expand? Eventually yes, who wouldn’t
want to expand…? I don’t think any of us (the staff or even Sara) expected
Rosemary’s to grow so popular so quickly. Right now, we are taking things as
they come. We are all very excited, I am happy for Sara and Mrs. Rosemary.”
"So you enjoy working at Rosemary's?"Judd surprised me again with her response. She said, “I love
working there, I love the people I work for and the people I work with. Sara is
not just our boss. If we are short-handed, she will be out there waiting tables
with us.”
I then asked her to walk me through the daily routine at
Rosemary’s. She told me the day can start as early as 5am. All of the food is
fresh daily, so there is a lot of prep that goes into lunch. Everything served
to customers is locally grown; they use local vendors - when we don’t get
things from Rosemary’s own garden, of course. Even their beef is local. “We
strive the have the most natural products for our customers, ones without
additives. Some of our goods come from the Ruston Farmer’s Market too.”
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| Only the freshest ingredient are used daily! |
"Would you believe that the Farmers Market is actually where Rosemary's originated? Most people don't know that Sara and Rosemary sold goods there."As if any of that wasn’t surprising enough, Ansley told me that Rosemary’s Kitchen is actually the first restaurant that the two have owned. When asked about the recipes, Ansley said, “Their recipes are original and their own, if they share them with you it’s a big deal… Most of our staff doesn’t know anything about the recipes. Sara has given me one of my favorite recipes - the Carmel Latte Cake, but even when I try to make it on my own it just doesn’t turn out like hers.” I couldn’t get her to spill anymore about their recipes; however, she did tell me some interesting facts about the most popular dishes. One of which, is a personal favorite of mine - the Chicken Salad. I was shocked to learn that Rosemary’s goes through 70-90lbs of chicken a week! Can you imagine? She also mentioned that they have various knickknacks to purchase around the restaurant including dish clothes, aprons, and bags. Much emphasis is placed on everything being made by hand and by locals.
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| Goodies on the go! |
On behalf of Rosemary’s Kitchen, she would like to invite you to attend their upcoming event – Utterly Sweet Tasting. This unique taste testing will be held on site Friday, October 3rd beginning at 5:30pm. There will be a live music, along with a chance to tasting some of the local products they sell and use in the store. If you are not able to attend this event, do not fret. They host events every few months and they are always serving lunch from 11am - 1:30pm (and open until 5:30pm) Monday through Friday.
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| Beef and Bean Chili |
Tell us about your adventures in #RustonLA
and remember to #EatLocal!
and remember to #EatLocal!
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