Our History

Continental Gourmet Sausage owes its success to Eugen Goetz, the German Wurstmacher who in 1986 purchased a run-down meat processing plant and crafted it into the Southern California staple that it is today. After many years with the Merchant Marines, Eugen landed in Cleveland, Ohio, and was quickly California bound. In the twenty or so years before he acquired Continental Gourmet Sausage, he worked in film labs, as a cook, a chef, and eventually the Maitre D’ of the MGM in Las Vegas.

Shortly after returning to his sausage-making roots in 1986, Eugen won first place for his German Wiener at the California Association of Meat Processors (CAMP). Eugen competed until the mid-90s and won 25 Grand Champion awards that cover deli walls to this day. In 2010, Eugen won his most prized award - the Golden “A” from the Los Angeles County Health Department - for the facility’s consistent excellence in cleanliness and hygiene.

Eugen retired in 2011 after selling Continental Gourmet Sausage to the owners of The Red Lion Tavern in Silverlake, California. Since 2011, Continental Gourmet Sausage has continued the tradition set by Eugen Goetz and his old-world techniques and recipes. Stop by today to experience over 30 years of sausage-making excellence.