A Ham Slam:

Easter hasn’t been this early in 95 years, but when March 23 arrives, thousands of families around the country, and here in Destin, will sit down to a traditional Easter dinner — with a ham as the centerpiece.

And one business in Destin will have spent several days preparing the main course for customers to pick up.
“Easter is our third busiest time because we also have the spring break people in town,” Kathy Browe, co-owner of the HoneyBaked Ham Co. and Café in Destin, told The Log.

Hams arrive at the store already smoked and spiral sliced. Then it is the job of the team to glaze each ham with the company’s signature honey spice glaze.

“We will start glazing hams on Wednesday afternoon for the Thursday pickups and continue glazing until Saturday afternoon since hams are constantly being sold these three days,” Browe said.

“Since we glaze so many hams we always have them available, either for the people who ordered or any customers that walk in.”

About 15 years ago, Browe’s husband, Bob Attkisson, wanted to open a Heavenly Ham in Destin, but the one in Fort Walton Beach already owned the rights.

“In 2000, Bob happened to be reading the paper and saw that Heavenly Ham was for sale and we bought it,” Browe said. “In 2001, we opened the Heavenly Ham here in Destin. When the HoneyBaked Ham Company bought the Heavenly Ham Company we had the opportunity to re-flag and join their family. It is a much more recognized name for the visitors to the area. In 2005, we closed the Fort Walton store and became HoneyBaked Ham.”

One problem faced by HoneyBaked Ham stores around the country has always been the long lines, sometimes a two hour wait or more, to pick up a pre-ordered ham the day before major holidays.

“Many customers who have lived in other areas come to us and tell stories of waiting for a long time in a long line to pick up their hams at the holidays,” Browe said. “I guess this is a good thing because people know a quality product and are willing to put up with some inconvenience. But the other good thing for our customers is that we are not Atlanta or Memphis so we don’t have such long lines. And, because this is Destin, our customers are really nice and patient. They can see that we are busy at the holidays and doing our best to help everyone.”

Destin’s store has started a system for pick up that seems to move the lines along. Customers are met at the door and, if they have pre-ordered, they can go directly to the counter — and enjoy samples along the way.

“If people haven’t ordered yet, our greeters help them determine what size ham would work best for the number they are feeding,” Browe said. “They offer samples of some of our products. When our staff has helped them fill out an order sheet they head straight to the counter to pick up their dinner. We have received many compliments from our customers on how efficiently things worked.”

Christmas is by far the busiest holiday, Browe said.

“Also, many companies buy hams for their clients and employees, and other people give hams as gifts.”

The HoneyBaked Ham Company was founded by Harry J. Hoenselaar in 1957 in Detroit. His family still owns the company, carrying on its tradition of providing the original spiral-sliced gourmet ham. Today, each fresh ham is prepared with Hoenselaar’s 20-step method using only the highest quality ingredients. The HoneyBaked Ham Company currently has more than 400 locations nationwide.

The Destin HoneyBaked Ham is at 34904 Emerald Coast Parkway, next to Barnes and Noble. They are open from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.