Lapeyrouse Grocery serving Chauvin 99 years later
March 26, 2013
Alton Lawrence Broussard Sr.
March 27, 2013
On a bend of La. Highway 307, a twisty highway that runs between Raceland and Chackbay, they’re still selling meat out of the little yellow clap-board house that for 100 years has been a northern Lafourche landmark.
Mahler’s Meat Market has suffered bumps and bruises over a century of operation. But the family members who still run the business opened by farmer Addis Mahler say the drawing card when horses were the only mode of local transportation remains the same today.
“The freshness, fresh meat always,” said Shelton Mahler, a member of the third generation to run the business.
The development of Mahler’s, according to the stories family members tell, has been as unique as the high ground upon which the little shop stands, related in many ways to the area’s unique culture.
Like nearby Des Allemands, Kraemer was known for a heavy German influence, separate from the dominant Acadian flavor of the region. Addis Mahler, of German extraction, used his knowledge of livestock and vegetables to grow his small business, meeting the needs of nearby families who didn’t have their own cows and pigs. He also gave himself a competitive edge, delivering the goods to nearby Choctaw in straw baskets, traveling by pirogue.
Until recently other members of the family kept up the tradition, with deliveries by station wagon.
Asked what has kept the family business going for a century, Shelton Mahler said the absence of big-box stores in the remote area allowed them to function without making huge sacrifices, although change has slowly come.
One of the biggest selling points Mahler’s had, the raising of their own cattle for beef, recently ended. Slaughterhouse restrictions proved too costly and burdensome. The company still receives meat from other local outlets, however, and still custom butchers it.
Hog-head cheese, a German delicacy, is still lovingly prepared on premises, as are the family’s homemade sausages and boudain.
Addis’ son, 91-year-old David Mahler, still comes to the store and supervises operations, which nearly shut down last year.
“We had shut down in September and re-opened for specialty items,” Shelton Mahler said. “We were going to close the week after Christmas but my father didn’t want to.”
Many in the Mahler family now make their livings in other professions, but still pitch in to keep the store alive, to the delight of local patrons and the occasional road-travelers who stop to visit what they say is an old-timey gem in the middle of Kraemer’s moss-draped forests.
“We’re keeping it going for now,” said Shelton Mahler. “And we will for as long as we can.”
Mahler’s Meat Market on La. 307 last week. Despite struggles the family still maintains the operation, founded 100 years ago.
