Stuart's Spices adds zip to South Wedge
Tom Finnefrock was looking to add a little zip to his homemade sausages when he came across a place called Stuart's Spices. He added a few of Stuart's ingredients to the mix and was hooked.
"One day you have sausage that tastes OK," Finnefrock said. "The next day, you have phenomenal sausage and all of your friends are wolfing it down."
Finnefrock and his wife, Vicki, bought the business four years ago. The timing was right: Finnefrock had just gotten laid off and was considering his options, and Stuart Shultz, who founded Stuart's Spices, was thinking of retirement.
The shop was on Lyell Avenue in Gates from its founding in 1992 until 18 months ago, when the Finnefrocks moved it to Rochester's South Wedge neighborhood. Stuart's Spices sells more than 200 products. "Everything from A to Z, every herb or spice you can imagine," said Vicki Finnefrock.
The "seasonings, blends & rubs" category runs from adobo, which is used in many Latin-American dishes, to Zaatar, a traditional Middle Eastern blend. The "spices" group ranges from allspice to turmeric. Under the "peppers" section, you'll find ancho pepper through white peppercorns.
Stuart's does carry such well-known items as parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme. But it has a lot more unusual offerings, such as 3 Alarm Fire Salt, Road Kill seasoning (which the Finnefrocks say has a "very loyal fan club") and Volcanic Seasoning peppers.
"All of our blends are our own recipes," said Vicki Finnefrock, who also works in health care while her husband minds the shop. "We've added an amazing line of barbecue rubs."
Stuart's Spices grinds its spices in-house and in small batches to provide customers with the freshest-tasting products. The Finnefrocks take time to educate curious customers about their products and they've organized tasting classes around small groups.
Tom Finnefrock also came up with "do-it-yourself" kits for customers who want to get creative and, say, make their own brand of mustard.
Stuart's sells products at the Rochester Public Market from April to December and at small grocers like Hart's year-round. It sells a variety of no-salt and low-salt seasonings, which customers use not only on meat and fish but also on foods such as Brussels sprouts, butternut squash and corn on the cob. Stuart's also works with local restaurants.
"When we talk to restaurants, we ask them what is their menu, who are their customers," Tom Finnefrock said. "I always say, I have to make their cash registers ring. If their register rings, my telephone rings."
Stuart Shultz had started the business around 15 years after he retired from Eastman Kodak Co. and originally sold only other people's products, said Tom Finnefrock. Shultz later brought in a retired food chemist, and they started making their own blends. ("He had a phenomenal black pepper with a unique flavor," Finnefrock said.)
Shultz, an amateur sausage-maker, was intrigued, and when his employment status changed, the rest was history.
"It was serendipitous," said Finnefrock, who added that he and his wife kept the name Stuart's because "the brand has been established." They moved the business to South Clinton Avenue because it outgrew the space at the Gates location. Last year the Finnefrocks commissioned two mural artists to adorn the outside of their shop with images of herbs and spices.
"When you add high-quality spices, your food goes from good to amazing," said Vicki Finnefrock.
Alan Morrell is a Rochester-based freelance writer.
Stuart's Spices
It is at 754 S. Clinton Ave. in Rochester's South Wedge neighborhood. The company website, stuartsspices.com, is filled with photos and descriptions of the store's products.
