Spencer Neuman: Co-Founder of Minzo’s Kitchen and Proud UWGB Alumnus | Green Bay Press Gazette
Minzo’s Kitchen is a growing barbecue and catering business serving the Green Bay area.
Take a softball team and three guys who enjoy hanging out together. Add the detail that one of those guys grew up in the restaurant business, and the result is Minzo’s Kitchen, a popular barbecue and catering business.
Spencer Neuman, who defines his role as “the grunt of the business,” has a hard time believing how far the owners have come.
“It was the brainchild of Bob Stahl, the creative force behind the company,” Neuman explained. “Bob loves food and loves cooking food and he saw that barbecue was gaining popularity in the world. When we started this, we were ahead of the curve in terms of getting our name out there and it went crazy.”
Stahl was no newbie in the restaurant business. He grew up in the business as a member of the family that owns the Lorelei Inn in Allouez, a German-American supper club and the longest running restaurant in the area. He is also an experienced chef and serves that role for Minzo’s. That wasn’t, however, the original intention.
“It was about 10 or 12 years ago when we were having a few beers and Bob threw out the idea that we start this business,” Neuman said. “So, we went ahead and started it as a side hustle. We were just a few guys who bought some big grills and the business took off.”
They named the business Minzo’s Kitchen by combining the letters of their children’s names, and started selling at farmer’s markets and other events. Neuman, a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay with a degree in marketing and 15 years of ad agency experience, said that everything came together.
“I had a job as a welder to work my way through college, and then with the marketing, I’ve been able to use every facet of those skills. I do the marketing, and when something is broke, I take out the welder,” Neuman said.
He hadn’t anticipated that Minzo’s would grow as rapidly as it did. It wasn’t long before their “side gig” became a full-time job for Neuman and Stahl. The third partner, Matt Havrilko, serves as CFO, but also has a full-time accounting career.
“Very rarely do people get an opportunity to work for themselves. You take your chances and decide if it doesn’t work out, what’s the worst that can happen. You go back to what you were doing and take another job,” Neuman said.
But it doesn’t look like that will be happening. Growth has meant the purchase of more grills, one is 24-feet, and other equipment. And, while they participate in some events like the Chriskindlmarket, now in its third year in the downtown Green Bay Broadway District, about 90% of the business is catering.
They do weddings, corporate events, parties, and reunions. Barbecue remains the most popular menu choice, but they are willing to make almost anything a customer requests. Just some of the menus include a fajita bar, On Wisconsin, and American Barbecue. The barbecue has a style of its own.
Neuman stated, “We try to distinguish ourselves in the world of barbecue. We are pioneers of the art form of Wisconsin barbecue. We do a lot of things with smoked beer cheese. We do a ‘wisc-nachos,’ nachos with smoked pork, smoked beer cheese, and coleslaw.”
Along with the unique food items, the standard barbecue classics continue to draw the crowds. That list includes pig roasts; pulled pork, slow smoked for 12 hours and shredded on the spot, and brisket.
“At an event, we’ll roll in with a 14- to 16-pound brisket and Chef Bob will be standing at the table with a giant knife in his hand carving it, and people will be lining up with anticipation. There’s nothing like it,” Neuman said. “That’s a good aspect of this job. It is never boring and every job is a new challenge. There is a different menu for every venue.”
With more than 100 events a year, that presents its own challenges. They are fortunate to have use of the commercial kitchen at Lorelei Inn, but the ordering each week keeps Neuman on his toes. Events are contracted months and months in advance and there can be unexpected price increases.
Neuman explained, “As barbecue guys, we can get chopped out at the knees by the price of meat. Prices have gone up, but fluctuation is the hardest. When the Asian bird flu was a concern, chicken went way up in price and we had to take the loss.”
A good part of his week is spent shopping prices among the half dozen vendors he uses to keep costs in line. As CFO, Havrilko does the financial reports and tracks income and expenses so that prices will be where they need to be in terms of income. Otherwise, most of the business is run on instinct.
“Our business plan – our mission – is to be the kind of business that doesn’t have mission statements,” Neuman joked. “We are ‘loosey goosey’ and try to have fun with what we’re doing. We don’t want to have paralysis by analysis where you spend all of your time looking at numbers. Just get out and work.”
Working is something they are good at. Even though this is considered the slower part of the year, they didn’t hesitate to decide, three years ago, to be part of the inaugural Christkindlmarket on Broadway. The market is open 4 to 9 p.m. Fridays and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays, through Dec. 21 – that’s where you’ll find them manning a grill.
Neuman says that the market is a natural fit. He commented, “It’s a funny story. The truth is that our roots lie in the Lorelei, and with that being a German restaurant and this being a German market, there aren’t many food trucks in Green Bay that are equipped to sell German food. One advantage for us is that we can be very versatile. When On Broadway came to us, we said, ‘Absolutely!’”
Since that first market, Neuman has seen it get bigger and bigger. Minzo’s is likely a big part of the draw. Their menu includes German-style pulled pork, German potato salad, bratwurst Booyah, brats with sauerkraut, and spaetzle. He describes it as being white vinegar based and smothered and cooked in a German Dusseldorf mustard.
GRB: Minzo’s Kitchen is a growing barbecue and catering business serving the Green Bay area
