The Soul Snacks Cookie Company, a Black-owned cookie empire founded in the Bronx, can definitely serve up a sweet mouthful of soul. The company’s founder and CEO, Ralph Rolle, 65, is a lifelong musician and a proud entrepreneur.
Soul Snacks offers 19 varieties of cookies, including vegan and gluten-free. Flavors go from familiar favorites, like Down Home Double Chocolate Chip, to new creations, like Sweet Potato Cookies. The company serves big-name clients such as Walmart, Kroger, and Great Performances Catering. Rolle said they easily bake upward of 10,000 cookies a week.
Rolle was born and raised in the Bronx. His family lived in Bronx River Houses. He grew up emulating his big brother—playing the drums and landing his first real job as a musician at 19. “I was a smart kid, kind of a nerd who got skipped [ahead a grade] in school, so I got teased a lot. I couldn’t meet girls,” he laughed. “So I’d bake cookies to get girls.”
It was at his grandmother’s house that Rolle first encountered the art of baking. “The oatmeal raisin and the chocolate chip are original recipes. They date back to the 1900s from my grandmother, who was born in Ocilla, Georgia,” he said.
Rolle excelled at school but opted to skip college, much to his mother’s dismay, for a chance to continue playing music. He has since played with big names in the entertainment industry, like Nile Rodgers and Chic, Sting, Bono, Aretha Franklin, Biggie Smalls, Queen Latifah, Chris Botti, Erykah Badu, D’Angelo, and India Arie. He was also a member of the band for NBC’s “It’s Showtime at the Apollo” for more than 15 seasons. It was during his regular gig at the Apollo that he would bring his cookie kit with him to sessions. During his lunch break, he’d give out samples to deli shops around Harlem. It wasn’t long before he was embraced as a cookie supplier for local markets.
“If you have a passion, there’s no expiration date. You can just start at any age,” said Rolle.
He founded Soul Snacks in 1996. The very first client he had was Melba’s restaurant, he said. His cookie factory has been located on East 134th Street in the Bronx since 2012. He’s slated to move his operation to a new facility at the Peninsula in Hunts Point soon. Rolle hopes to expand his cookie brand to incorporate other tasty products in the future.
Cookie orders and gift boxes can be purchased at eatsoulsnacks.com.
Ariama C. Long is a Report for America corps member who writes about politics for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://bit.ly/amnews1.