Upon entering 1890 Marketplace, a wave of spices washes over the senses, reminiscent of a Mediterranean market. Although such a market has not magically transported itself to St. Louis, the stateside equivalent has opened in a nondescript strip mall in Brentwood.
One of the many spices and spice blends available at 1890.
1890 Marketplace, which opened May 31, specializes in high-quality flavored olive oils, vinegars, and spices from over 100 countries. The expansive spice collection fills a whole wall of shelving, and tables filled with vats of olive oil resembling mini beer vats at a craft brewery fill in the rest of the space (below). Each vat has its own label of a specific flavor of olive oil, which is made by infusing the crushed olives with various herbs and spices. Employees offer samplings of the product both on its own, and in combination with other foods, such as popcorn.
Co-owner Trinh Thai helps customers navigate the plethora of olive oil options.
“If a customer comes in looking for an olive oil, I usually ask them if they’re looking for one for flavor purposes or health benefit purposes, or what type of foods they’re looking to make, like a salad dressing or a marinade,” Thai says. “A good option for those looking to ease into flavored olive oils is a garlic olive oil, which makes the food taste like there’s already garlic cooked into it. If they like spicy, we have a green chili olive oil that fuses the chili into the olives.”
The original inspiration for the marketplace stems from a signature spice rub (above) concocted in Texas over twenty-five years ago by the father of 1890 Marketplace co-owner Jason Emerson. He and his team used the spice blend in cook-offs around Texas, and their cooking won award after award, thanks to the special rub.
The spice blend stayed in the family until Jason Emerson saw the potential to introduce it to the restaurant scene. He opened a steakhouse — also called 1890 Marketplace — in Granbury, Texas in May 2012, and customers would ask where they could purchase the blend. Although originally hesitant to sell it, Emerson eventually opened a small spice shop in conjunction with the Granbury restaurant, with the house blend as the cornerstone.
The spice shop then made the jump to St. Louis thanks to Thai’s family, who offered up commercial space in Brentwood next to their family business, Beautiful Nails.
Now one week into the opening of their second spice shop and the third location under construction in Dallas, Emerson sees the spice blend’s universality as the reason for its success across so many platforms.
“It’s an all purpose type seasoning, with a little saltiness a beginning, spice in middle and heat at the end,” Emerson says. “It has the perfect amount of salt to it for a meat product, it’s very universal. We have customers come in and tell us what they put it on and how that dish was such a hit because of the all around flavor profile.”
1890 Marketplace
8711 Manchester
Mon – Thurs: 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Fri – Sat: 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Closed Sun
