"We made this for ourselves and our friends and relatives for years and they always said we should sell it," says George Kapahee who's also known as Mr. G. "So now we are."
And he's making a living at it.
George Kapahee was born in Maui and raised with the fabulous cooking of his mother and his grandmother. After getting out of the service, he settled in Reno.
"I missed the tastes of home and just started making my own sauces with fresh local ingredients," he says. He has eight varieties now that he bottles and sells. From traditional spicy garlic to pineapple plum to blueberry, he is seeing a lot of success.
"We started by taking it to farmer's markets in the area three and half years ago. Now we are selling it in local stores, in Whole Foods and even into California, he says. "And now we just want to continue to grow."
His recent win at the National Barbeque Association's Awards should help. Mr. G's took the first place for his Spicy Garlic Teriyaki Sauce, even beating out Famous Dave's. And his Blueberry Teriyaki Sauce took fourth place nationwide.
He uses local garlic from Hungry Mothers in Gardnerville and local honey too. He and his wife work with a handful of friends and family to cook up the sauces in a commercial kitchen in Reno. This past year they sold 200 cases of it.
"I used to work at a telephone company and a bank and I even had my own lawn business for awhile. But this is the best job I've ever had. It's a lot of work but boy it is worth it!"
You can find Mr. G's at local farmer's markets including weekends at the Garden Shop in Reno, at Whole Foods and at Mr. G's Hawaii-style Teriyaki on Facebook.
You can also go to http://www.mrgsteriyaki.com/Teriyaki_and_More.html
Written by Erin Breen
