Suburban
November 29th 2001
Pictures from article
1
Local man's got milk - and an old
fashioned way to sell it.
by Laurie Elkins-Solomon
Does it seem like only yesterday
that the milkman delivered fresh bottles of milk to your doorstep?
Maybe that’s because he
really did.
The vision of glistening glass
milk bottles at your front door is a reality in the 21st century, thanks to people like
Jeff Milling, owner of Udderly Delicious in Old Bridge.
"It’s very
nostalgic," Milling said while making a delivery Tuesday. "To this day, people
still stop me and say they can’t believe that someone is actually making home
deliveries of milk."
When Milling started his business
seven years ago, Udderly Delicious was solely a dairy delivery service. Over the years, he
said, the success of the business warranted expanding it to include a wide variety of
grocery items, including juice, bread, appetizers, pastry, gourmet meat and seafood.
However, the most popular item is
still the old favorite - milk. The only difference is that nowadays most customers opt for
the low-fat varieties rather than whole milk.
"Everyone still likes to buy
chocolate milk as a treat, though," Milling said with a smile.
Milling typically starts his
morning delivery run at 4 a.m. During the course of each week, his refrigerated van brings
milk to 400 customers in New Jersey and to Staten Island, N.Y. One-fourth of
Milling’s customers live in Old Bridge, his hometown.
"Customers like that I’m
dependable," Milling said. "Even in the blizzard last year I didn’t miss a
day."
Milling’s customers include
young families, working and retired people, those who have physical disabilities, and many
people who simply have no time to shop at a supermarket. Milling also services several
businesses, including office buildings, day-care centers and senior-citizen residences.
One customer is Brenda Gianchetti
of Old Bridge, a stay-at-home mother of two young children. Gianchetti said she started
ordering from Udderly Delicious when she realized she could not keep up with her
family’s milk consumption.
"I was finding that early in
the morning there was no milk," she recalled.
Instead of having to repeatedly
pack her kids into the car for a trip to the grocery store, Gianchetti decided to call the
milkman.
"It’s just a
convenience," Gianchetti said. "And because the milk is in glass containers, it
stays cold longer."
Gianchetti said she also likes the
fact that Milling is quick to fulfill last minute requests.
"If I run out of meat, I can
call him the day before my delivery, and he’ll add it to my order," Gianchetti
said. "It’s like a ‘honey-do’ list."
For more information about Udderly
Delicious, call (732) 360-9991. |
