Schnuck Family Rediscovers the Handwritten Recipe That Started It All
Schnuck Family Rediscovers the Handwritten Recipe That Started It All In celebration, company founder’s potato salad now available at all Schnucks locations, for the first time in decades
ST. LOUIS, April 22, 2026 - As the Great Depression was winding down, Schnucks founder Anna Donovan “Mom” Schnuck was looking for a way to share her beloved potato salad - a special favorite that accompanied many family meals and was frequently requested by friends and neighbors. Also wanting to support her north St. Louis neighborhood, she had a dream of opening her very own small store to sell that potato salad and other fresh dishes prepared with care and quality ingredients in her kitchen. In 1939, Anna would open a 1,000-square-foot corner confectionery at 3968 Labadie in north St. Louis - never dreaming that over the next 87 years Schnucks would grow to more than 100 stores throughout the Midwest.
Anna’s original handwritten recipe was lost for decades, but recently, Lori Willibrand, the daughter of Anna’s daughter Annette Hanhardt, found the recipe in a stack of her mother’s old papers. She gave the recipe to her seven cousins at a holiday gathering as a gift. They were all astounded at the find. What once was lost was now found, and in honor of the find, Schnucks is returning to its roots and once again offering Anna Schnuck’s Original Potato Salad to customers, for the first time in decades.
“Holding my grandmother’s recipe in my hands felt like reconnecting with the very heart of this company. It’s a powerful reminder that before we were a regional grocer, we were just a family in a kitchen, driven by a passion for good food and a desire to serve our neighbors,” said Schnucks Chairman and CEO Todd Schnuck. “For our family, this isn’t just about a side dish; it’s a tribute to my grandmother’s courage to start something new during a period of such economic uncertainty. This recipe represents the very foundation of our commitment to quality and to nourishing people’s lives. Bringing Anna’s Original Potato Salad back to our stores is our way of sharing our family’s history and a seat at our table with every customer who walks through our doors.”
Still handmade, Anna Schnuck’s Original Potato Salad is now available in the Deli/Prepared Foods Department of all Schnucks stores just in time for spring and summer cookouts. Her famed gourmet creation features red-skin potatoes and double-smoked bacon lardons folded together with onions caramelized to a golden brown. This sweet-and-savory dish is balanced with a touch of sugar and black pepper, then topped with hand-sliced hard-boiled eggs – exactly as Anna served it in 1939.
On sale now through April 28 for $6.99 per pound, Anna Schnuck’s Original Potato Salad will regularly sell for $7.99 per pound.
About Schnucks
Founded in St. Louis in 1939, Schnuck Markets, Inc. is a third and fourth generation, family-owned grocery retailer committed to nourishing people’s lives. Schnucks operates 113 stores, serving customers in Missouri, Illinois and Indiana and employs more than 11,000 teammates. According to Forbes’ 2025 rankings, Schnucks is the 185th largest privately-owned company in the United States and the 13th largest privately-owned grocer. Schnucks is committed to helping communities thrive, and as a champion for reducing hunger, the company annually donates more than $15 million in food to pantries that help those in need.
Schnucks is part of 1939 Group, Inc., which is owned by the family that founded Schnuck Markets, Inc., and named after the year they opened the first Schnucks store. Other members of the family of companies include Festival Foods and Hometown Grocers, Inc.
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