Chesapeake Style Online

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Spring 2013
Style Spotlight~A Family Tradition with a Fresh Flair
By Mary Jean Terrell
The Denson family
began their grocery
business in Colonial
Beach in 1912, serving
the residents and
vacationers of this small town on
the Potomac River for many years.
ree generations later, Rocky and
his wife Blaire, realizing their dream
and following in the family foot steps,
opened Denson’s Grocery Staples
& Specialties in May 2011. Rocky’s
mother, Anne Denson, cut the ribbon
at the store’s grand opening, ocially
establishing a new beginning for
the Denson family tradition!
She often came to the store and
would sit near the
front door and
enjoyed being the
Denson’s “Greeter”.
On other occasions
she would call and
request that Rocky
bring oysters home
for her dinner. Sadly,
Anne Denson passed
away February 2nd
of this year. She is
remembered for her
love of family, friends
and… fresh oysters!
Rocky and Blaire
are a team, but they
are quick to add that they could
not do it all by themselves, and
their employees are like “family”.
Keeping this grocery-deli-restaurantcatering
operation going takes
some help! Keli Pearson is general
manager. Shirley Setli has been
with them since day one! Bobby
Harrison handles deliveries. Also,
helping out when needed is David
Taylor and college students Lauren
Wilson and Zachary Peltola.
Rocky’s vision and concept was,
in his words, “Do something the
big grocery chains don’t.” Denson’s
sells and serves only fresh foods and
oers high quality specialty items
that can’t be found
in typical grocery
stores. Rocky and
Blaire like to attend
food shows to learn
about specialty
foods and when
traveling always
look for boutique
and gourmet food
shops to get ideas.
at is, when
they can get away
Rocky researches
to nd the freshest
products for his
customers. He
related a story about one such
product. He said, “Knowing that
boaters like Bloody Marys, I dug
deep and found a brand of Bloody
Mary mix called Freshies. How
appropriate! He found it was made
in Colorado, and unfortunately,
not distributed in Virginia. So he
called the phone number and left
a message. Now Denson’s is one
of only a few shops in Virginia to
carry Freshies Bloody Mary mix.
When asked what is the one thing
you want people to know about your
business, Rocky proclaimed; “We
specialize in Fresh!” Rocky says,
“Denson’s does not sell farm raised
seafood. If it’s not fresh, we won’t
sell it.” As an example, he told me,
“When crabs are not in season you
won’t see crab cakes on the menu”.
e dairy products they sell come
from Trickling Springs Creamery
located in Chambersburg, Pa. eir
fresh quality ice cream and milk is
delivered once a week. “We serve the
ice cream in homemade wae cones”,
Blaire told me. en Blaire added,
“And on the days when the cones are
made they make the store smell so
good.” I had to pause at that comment
to wish I had been there on a day
they were making wae cones. Can’t
you just smell the aroma? Mmm….
Rocky and Blaire are constantly on
the lookout for innovative and fun
ways to showcase
their fresh foods.
ey oer daily lunch
specials featuring top
quality Boar’s Head
meats and cheeses
and Dinners For
One that are home
made entrees and
sides. Blaire knows
her wines, too. She
has researched and
hand picked each
brand and variety
of wine carried in
the store. On Friday
nights she has wine
tasting in the store to introduce
dierent wines to customers.
Rocky is fond of themed meals
and enjoys educating people. For
instance, as I learned, on the 4th
Wednesday in January, the General
Assembly has Brunswick Stew Day, so
Denson’s special that day was Rocky’s
own recipe of Brunswick stew.
More recently, the special of the
day was gumbo and crawsh on Fat
Tuesday. Rocky’s dream has always
been to have an outdoor oyster
bar and serve oysters year-round.
e R & B Oyster Bar debuted at
Denson’s the middle of November
2012, every Saturday from noon
“until the oysters run out”, as Rocky
stated. And they usually do.
What is in Denson’s future? A
patio is planned for outdoor dining
and coming soon, they will be able
to oer their selection of wines and
craft beers for consumption at the
store. Rocky & Blaire want their
patrons to be able to pair dierent
wines and beers with their food. As
Rocky says, “It’s all about the food!”
Rocky then added, “We haven’t
reached our potential yet.” So stay
tuned folks. Denson’s Grocery is at
117 Washington Avenue, Colonial
Beach. Call them at 804-224-4121,
or nd them on Facebook or at
www.densonsgrocery.com.