We had the good fortune of connecting with Peter Chehadeh and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Peter, how did you come up with the idea for your business?
I get asked this a lot. You may not know it from looking at me, but my father is first generation Lebanese. Immigrating to MN in 1970. My mom is a native Minnesotan with Norwegian roots. Needless to say, I grew up in a family that appreciated food and culture and how these two feed off each other. Watching my mother make Lebanese garlic sauce (spread) was a treat to see. She would peel a feel bulbs of fresh garlic and place them in an old Hamilton Beach blender. Combing oil and lemon juice in an effort to create a thick and creamy garlicky mixture. All of our family and friends would ask my mom for garlic sauce to take home, and she would happily comply. In Lebanese culture, sharing food is a way you express love or someone. So, when I started Grlk in 2014, I wanted to share my family memories around food and culture to everyone. In short, creating Grlk is a way for me to give the general public a taste of what its like to be Lebanese
Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
So unlike most in the food industry, I do not have any food background. No restaurant, no bartending, no serving experience. Nothing. Just retail sales experience for 17 years. Ive been a store manager to part-time holiday help and everything in between. I feel like my work history has provided a more rounded background to start a business. I have done everything that a small business needs to do to succeed.
While having a background in retail sales is great, it still doesn’t limit the struggles or hurdles you experience when starting/running a small business. When you are the boss, you have no one else to blame or look too for things, so when Covid was causing supply chain issues, you have to think quickly and pivot. Or hold on to your undies cause its gonna be a bumpy ride. Those types of struggles will define a business and an owner. You have to be scrappy and out in the work. Their is a reason why entrepreneurs will gladly work 70hrs a week just so they don’t have to work 40 for someone else.
In the end, Grlk, LLC is a small family business that brings our traditional Lebanese food culture to the greater public.
Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Well, for me, the Twin Cities are my home and rank high on my list. Visitors can expect lots of food and family time when they visit me. Dinners would be had at Maria in the Four Seasons, Pizzeria Lola, Centro and a couple home cooked Lebanese meals. Breakfast would be at Hope Breakfast Bar, Colossal Cafe, or grabbing a dozen bagels from St. Paul Bagelry. Depending on the time of year, fish tacos at Sea Salt at Minnehaha Falls, grabbing some fresh pasta from Broaders Pasta Bar or Italian Eatery. Go for a walk around one of our many lakes, get ice cream from Sebastian Joes or Pumphouse Creamery. Maybe take an afternoon trip to Faribault visit the Faribault Woolen Mill for a tour and grab some lunch local.
Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I really couldn’t have started Grlk, LLC without the support of my family. My mom is the one that came up with the name Grlk. I was kicking around ideas for names, like Toum (arabic word for garlic) or other more traditional Lebanese names. Mom pipes in “how about you call it garlic but spell is GRLK?” The rest is history. My dad has helped with flavor profiles and it is his mother’s recipe, so there is that haha. As I continue to expand, he has been someone I can turn to for his experience in business and contracts. My sister is my biggest cheerleader. She also helps with social media.
Once I got started, my small group of local MN food entrepreneurs have been amazing. Such a great community in MN around food and helping each other succeed.
Website: www.grlksauce.com
Instagram: #grlksauce
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grlkllc/
Facebook: facebook.com/grlksauce