Writer / Janelle Morrison . Photographer / JJ Kaplan
Nestled between its neighboring turn-of-the century buildings, Rosie’s Place bustles with local residents and visitors gathered inside enjoying the fare that is freshly prepared for them. The walls of the restaurant are adorned with family photos, one in particular that pays tribute to the inspiration behind the name, Rosie herself.
I met with the owners, Michael and Debbi Bourgerie, who gave me a tour of the original Rosie’s Place in downtown Noblesville while discussing the impending grand opening of their second location in the historic downtown of Zionsville.
Rosie’s Place was named after Debbi’s grandmother and is a tribute to her father who owned restaurants where Debbi developed her passion for the industry. She continued to work for her family in St. Louis until her husband, Michael, would move their three daughters and her to Boston. Michael would eventually change companies and move them to Indiana where he worked at Thomson Consumer Electronics before joining his wife and her team and making Rosie’s Place, truly a family affair.
Rosie’s Place in Noblesville officially opened October 1, 2010 and soon after earned the adoration of their patrons through giving back to local causes and of course, through their stomachs.
While discussing the process of opening a second location, the Bourgeries spoke about their goals for Rosie’s in Zionsville and what residents there can expect in the way of their menu, food preparation and service.
“We want our guests to recognize that they are at a Rosie’s Place,” Debbi explained. “We also want this location to have it’s own character and reflection of the community that it will serve. We’ve always spent a lot of time listening to what the people of Noblesville want and we’ve adjusted our menu based upon their feedback and we will do the same in Zionsville. The foundation will be the same but it will grow to the needs of Zionsville. We will be open Monday through Sunday as we are in Noblesville.”
The Bourgerie’s and their staff’s work is very labor intensive. Everything is made from scratch. “If we can make it then we make it,” Debbi stated. “There are very few canned goods in this place. We buy from local markets and farmers, as much as we can. Everything will be made on site, as we do it in Noblesville and the Zionsville location will have it’s own bakery. We take special orders for our baked goods, especially during the holidays. We also ship cookie tins all over the country. Customers can visit our locations or website for a list of our baked goods.”
Celebrating 25 years of marriage, Michael said that one of their personal goals is to spend more time together. While his previous vocations had him traveling extensively and often, he is glad to be working along side his wife and their dedicated staff.
“We’re very much about bringing people together and we like to make friends among our customers,” Michael said. “We’re very much about community and we are setting up so that we can do that in both locations. With my previous job, I was away a lot so part of our goal, personally, is to spend more time together. Regarding the Zionsville community, we’d like very much to get more involved and also provide a place for people to gather, even on Sundays after church, as they do here in Noblesville. Our customers are like family and even our staff has become family. They are all a blessing.”
Long-time customers, Linda Sidener and Jeff Rickard shared their thoughts with me while I was visiting in Noblesville.
Noblesville resident, Linda Sidener and her granddaughter, Kenleigh, were having breakfast at Rosie’s that morning. Sidener has been bringing her grandchildren there since they opened. “I have several grandchildren under seven and all of them love to come here,” Sidener confessed. “Most of the staff all know us here. I’ve offered to take the grand kids to other places but they always want to come here.”
