Perry Rea never thought his olive-oil business would gain nationwide recognition when he started it 12 years ago.
“It’s a big surprise,” said the owner of Queen Creek Olive Mill at Combs and Rittenhouse roads. “It’s really taken off for us, and we’re really happy about it.”
The Olive Mill will be on national TV. Again. The Food Network series “The Best Thing I Ever Ate” will feature a sandwich called the Kalamata. The mill was featured last year on “Dirty Jobs,” the Discovery Channel show that showcases some of the most difficult occupations in the country.
This time, Beau MacMillan, executive chef at Elements restaurant at Sanctuary Camelback Mountain Resort & Spa in Paradise Valley will host the segment, which airs at 9 p.m. Monday on Channel 46 for Cox cable subscribers.
“The show’s about all these celebrity chefs that describe one of the best things they’ve ever eaten,” Rea said. “The theme of this show happens to be ‘hidden treasures’ and the one that he (MacMillan) brings to the table is the Kalamata.”
Rea, who runs the business with his wife, Brenda, said the Kalamata is made with three smoked meats from the Pork Shop at Schnepf and Combs roads in an unincorporated area outside Queen Creek.
Rea puts the kalamata salami, capicola and Italian salami onto a grilled baguette with herb-roasted tomatoes, leafy greens, Provolone cheese, and red onion and his own white-balsamic and herb cream.
“I know Beau a little bit, and he just called me up and said, ‘You know, I love that sandwich. That’s the one I want to bring to the table,’ ” he said.
MacMillan, a Boston native, said the sandwich immediately reminded him of home.
“The Kalamata sandwich is something that is right up my alley,” he said. “It’s like salty, sweet. It’s got incredible textures.”
MacMillan said he discovered Perry’s olive oil more than 10 years ago.
He later became acquainted with Rea and said he’s impressed by his work.
“Perry’s Italian. He cooks and eats with his hands and he’s about fresh ingredients and he’s really, really passionate about food,” MacMillian said.
Rea said getting on national television
is “a good shot in the arm” for his business, which is a combination of a 100-acre farm, café and a store where he sells his products.
The “Dirty Jobs” episode featured the show’s host, Mike Rowe, enduring a dusty day of picking olives and cleaning up the leftover sludge after pressing operations.
“After ‘Dirty Jobs,’ I think our business kicked up about 15 to 20 percent,” he added.
He thinks the Food Network show will have the same effect.
“I imagine we’re probably going to get a lot of folks coming in to try the sandwich,” he said.
Marnie Schubert, a Queen Creek spokeswoman, said the town benefits from the exposure as well.
“It definitely increases the community’s visibility as a destination point,” she said. “We do see a lot of folks coming here for agritourism experiences, so having Olive Mill and Schnepf Farms as well-known destinations I think really helps the town.”
Megan Wahl, a publicist for Queen Creek Olive Mill, said the business probably will get about three minutes of air time on the show.
“I think they feature maybe like five sandwiches,” she said. “So you might have a chef from New York talking about some favorite sandwich that (he) found at some little New York deli.”
Wahl said the show producers may then flash to Beau sitting inside the Queen Creek Olive Mill and then to another restaurant.
“So it’s not area specific,” she said.