Cugino’s Gourmet Foods got its start in a very unconventional way. After being inspired by a newspaper article on a Sunday afternoon, Dan Hochstatter started dreaming what it might be like to bottle the Italian Dressing he and his wife had always made from scratch. He ordered a few dozen sample bottles and mixed up a batch of dressing in the family kitchen. With the wife, three kids in a wagon, and Max the dog in tow, he passed out samples and surveys to the folks in the neighborhood. After overwhelming positive feedback, Cugino’s was born.