This is a good one! Okay, so, even if you aren't local, you know these people's products. If you are local, you may not know the history. I'm sure all of you think of Minneapolis as the natural source of all your frozen Italian foods options.This is the original location for Totino's, which started in the 1950s as a local take out pizza place. Eventually it grew into a restaurant, and then a frozen food empire. It's amusing to me that here, on the original Nordeast location, which closed some time ago (maybe 15 years?? or not quite that long), relocated to my neck of the woods, not far from where I grew up, in Mounds View.
I'm sure we went there once or twice when I was growing up, but I can't stress enough how extraordinary it is for tomato, onion and garlic based food (YUM!!) to have had so much success in the heart of meat-and-potato land (although had they still featured fried shrimp, my dad woulda been a regular). It's inspiring enough that I might have to pick up some pizza rolls and watch some hockey! Go North Stars!
Um. Okay. Well. Lest we all leave with all warm feelings, I have to mention that the founders of Totino's also are name-sponsors of Totino-Grace. I'm sure it's a fine institution, but for half of my high school sports career, and the lead up to it, it was a cross-conference rival (darn you Iker Iturbe!). I will eat my frozen snack foods with a bitter aftertaste of thwarted teenage competition.
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