Azalea

The aroma of boiling crawfish and shrimp and the sound of "A Pirate Looks at Forty"

filled the air on Monterey Street on the temperate May 2001 evening as block party

guests mingled and sampled the libations provided by their hosts. Jimmy Buffett songs

were frequently heard during such events in Mobile, Alabama, since the famous musician

lived there until his graduation from McGill-Toolen High School in the late

1960s. The Monterey Street Spring Fling block party was one of Mobile's great traditions.

Mardi Gras balls had concluded more than two months earlier, and weekend

trips to the cottages and antebellum homes along Mobile Bay's Eastern Shore were still

a few weeks off. For many, the third Saturday evening in May was best spent socializing

with old friends and new acquaintances amid the residential street's 100-year-old

live oaks and mix of Craftsman, Victorian, and Georgian homes that dated to the early

1900s.

Mike Rathle and John Addison had tended the boiling 25-gallon pots of crawfish

and shrimp since late afternoon. As they cooked pot after pot of shellfish, they had

chances to catch up with old friends--some of whom asked about their business. Azalea

Seafood Gumbo Shoppe catered special events like the Monterey Street block

party, but, more important, it was among the largest producers of ready-to-eat gumbo,

with annual revenues in 2000 of more than $1 million. In 2001 Azalea's products could

be found in approximately 1,000 supermarkets and were served in about 300 restaurants

in the southeastern United States. Mike Rathle commented on why he and