For 60 years, the Milwaukee Nut Company, 4227 W. Vliet St., has emitted the delicious smell of roasting nuts. Cashews, peanuts, Brazil nuts, hazelnuts, macadamias -- they roast 'em all. The company also offers seeds, dried fruit and candy.
Karen Taback has owned the company for 20 years. She and her husband got into the nut business because it was a good compromise for them, she says.
"My husband was raised on a farm, and I was raised in the city," says Taback. "Nuts are raised on farms and the roasting and distributing is done in the city."
Despite the fact so many folks want low-fat and low-carb snacks, Taback says nuts are as popular as ever because they are cholesterol free and a good source of protein.
"We roast our nuts in a very small amount of corn oil," says Taback.
All of the roasting is done in the building and sold at the in-house retail store as well as at specialty shops in the city. Christmas, of course, is their biggest time of year and they offer special nut mixes in honor of the holiday.
Taback says she tries to intertwine her business and religious views year 'round, but particularly at Christmas.
"My ads this year quoted the Bible," she says. "(The Christian) religion is an important part of my life and combining it with my advertising really shows who I am."
Holiday hours for the Milwaukee Nut Company are Monday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. For more information, call (414) 342-7492.
Molly Snyder started writing and publishing her work at the age 10, when her community newspaper printed her poem, "The Unicorn.” Since then, she's expanded beyond the subject of mythical creatures and written in many different mediums but, nearest and dearest to her heart, thousands of articles for OnMilwaukee.
Molly is a regular contributor to FOX6 News and numerous radio stations as well as the co-host of "Dandelions: A Podcast For Women.” She's received five Milwaukee Press Club Awards, served as the Pfister Narrator and is the Wisconsin State Fair’s Celebrity Cream Puff Eating Champion of 2019.
