Mama Antonetta’s Gravy, found on store shelves around town, was named after George Kawell’s mama.
“My mother’s maiden name was Antonetta Marie Iuliano,” says Kawell, 66. “People used to call her Toni.”
“Being from an Italian background” meant his mother often served her made-from-scratch gravy. She used it for whatever dish that called for gravy, whether pasta or chicken.
“True Italians call it gravy. Most Memphians call it spaghetti sauce,” he says.
Born in Chicago, Kawell “didn’t go out to eat. Going out to eat was a real treat. We ate at home. All our meals. So my mom was a very resourceful cook. She could make anything taste great.”
Her gravy was one of the things Kawell learned to make. “I’m a visual learner.” He also asked questions. “When I was 18, I left the nest, and so I needed to watch my mom so I could be able to cook for myself.”
Kawell, who began playing polo when he was around 14 years old, moved to Memphis in the late ’70s. The late W. L. Taylor, who owned Wildwood Farms in Germantown, and his son, Lee Taylor, invited him to come to Memphis “and help ride and train polo ponies raised on the farm.”
So Kawell learned how to cook. “I didn’t get married until I was 35. If I didn’t know how to cook I was going to go hungry. Pretty much self-taught other than watching my mom. I do things by feel and taste. I’m not that great at following recipes. I like to create things just from scratch or an idea.”
Kawell made his mother’s gravy, but he tweaked the recipe. “It’s a nice savory blend. It has some sweetness to it, but it also has a little bit of a kick because of the pepper in it.”
He originally gave away his gravy. “At Christmastime, I would make a big batch of gravy and we started giving it to our close friends. I bottled it. No label.”
After his mother died in 2013, Kawell decided to sell the gravy commercially. “This was always a part-time thing. At that point I was in the sporting goods industry.”
In addition to selling, Kawell had experience marketing a product. He and his business partner at the time came up with a “custom do-it-yourself kit where you can make your own custom-molded ear plugs. They were in 2,600 Walmart stores,” he says.
Kawell was a natural-born salesman. “I think God blessed me to be able to create good relationships. In sales, you can have the best whatever, but if people don’t like you, they tend not to do business with you.”
He brought samples of his gravy to stores for owners to try. “Then you have to follow up. You can’t just sashay right in and say, ‘OK. I’ve got this.’ It’s a process. It’s a relationship-building process.”
It took about two months for Kawell to get into his first store. “I think we sold six cases the first go round.”
His gravy is available in 16- and 32-ounce jars. It’s now on shelves at Hog Wild East BBQ & Market, Charlie’s Meat Market, Thomas Meat & Seafood Market & Catering in Collierville, Millstone Market & Nursery in Germantown, and The Baker’s Corner in Hernando, Mississippi.
Now retired from the sporting goods business, Kawell is considering future products. These might include his stuffed pasta shells with ricotta cheese and Italian sausage. He also makes lasagna and chicken Parmesan.
In addition to taking care of the gravy business, Kawell is working at Thomas Meat Market. “I’m just trying to learn the business. I love it. We do prepared meals to go and desserts. We do an array of things.”
Kawell won’t reveal everything that goes into Mama Antonetta’s Gravy, but, he says, “On the label it says one of the ingredients is ‘a lot of love.’ That is the key ingredient. I put hours into cooking it. It’s slow cooking. And that’s what makes the flavor better and better.”
