Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Sweet Mama Janisse Products

Sharing a moment with famous blues man Taj Mahal

Marie and Taj talk about the business of making good sauce.


It proved to be a skill that served her well in her earlier catering days when she catered in Southern California for such celebrities as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Magic Johnson, Jerry Seinfeld, Bill Cosby, the Seattle Supersonics, Los Angeles Clippers, Keith Richards and Little Richard — to name a few; but she adds “not every movie star I wanted to meet.”

Her sauces are famous and purchased from people all over the world, and, as was previously reported in this paper, her Sticky Love Sauce occupies a spot at the National Mustard Museum in Mount Horeb, Wis. after winning a bronze medal at the Worldwide Mustard Competition in Napa years ago.

With gold-medal sauces and beloved Southern-inspired entrees like fried catfish, creole pork, jambalaya and jerk-fried chicken, as well as an entire vegetarian and catering menu, an inflated ego would be forgivable in such a successful soul — but that isn’t the case with Sweet Mama Janisse.

She said she does it all for the smile on her customer’s face who come to enjoy her good cooking in person- at her Bless My Soul Cafe. “My pleasure is seeing them enjoy the food,” she said of her customers of all ages who frequent her cafe. “That’s the beauty. When you’ve made someone that happy.”

Hours are 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. on weekends. Take-out and catering services are available by phoning 707-445-1090. A full menu and a view of Sweet Mama’s biography is available on the Web site, as well.