Making the Cut

Over the last three decades, the all-American butcher shop nearly disappeared. Along the way, few shoppers noticed that the less mainstream cuts of meat and personal service all but vanished along with the specialty trade. Most consumers seem to be satisfied finding what they need in the supermarket: portioned, wrapped, and ready to-go.

But over the last five years, after repeated salmonella scares and product recalls, there has been a major uptick in the number of people who are concerned about health, food safety, and supporting small farms. On came author Michael Pollan with his groundbreaking The Omnivore’s Dilemma in 2006, and this year filmmaker Robert Kenner released the documentary Food, Inc. The horrors of industrial food hit the page, the screen, and the public’s confidence. Humane treatment went buzzword.

A handful of issue- and quality-conscious entrepreneurs have stepped into the void and brought the specialty butcher shop back—in Richmond, McLean, Charlottesville, and most recently, Alexandria. Daily, they source the best products available, truss naturally raised beef roasts, make European-style pâtés, offer serving suggestions, and more. That’s their business.

Walter Nicholls is a former staff reporter for The Washington Post. A native Washingtonian, he has tracked down and written about the best food markets, restaurants, and farms for 21 years.

Belmont Butchery

Just inside the door of Tanya Cauthen’s petite Belmont Butchery, located in Richmond’s Museum District, there is a “Me” wall of framed magazine and newspaper clips, devoted to her rising fame. National and local food writers have focused on her 20-year career as a noted area chef, caterer, cooking consultant, and, since late 2006, butcher. All around, the black and white tile décor sings with mellow, retro notes.

“I’ve been lucky,” says Cauthen, sporting a knowing smile that comes with confidence. “We never sent out press releases saying: ‘Come look at us.’ People noticed on their own that we are doing something unique and different. We break full carcasses and make our own sausages and charcuterie. It takes a lot of effort to do this stuff.” Just past the framed magazine clips are the saws and cleavers, her tools of the trade.

At Belmont, every chop and steak is cut-to-order. Her shoppers appreciate that, in addition to restaurant-quality beef, she stocks the more muscled, grass-finished beef, which cooks faster and, some believe, is healthier. “Animals that walk around have a different muscle texture,” explains Cauthen. “Factory animals are couch potatoes. Like an athlete, farm animals walk.” The pork in her display case is from pastured, heritage breeds. Customers eat it up.

“I met the man here who raised the pig that Tanya used to make the bacon. These people are my quality control,” said shopper and health-care consultant Hollister Lindley, who this day bought house-made hickory-smoked bacon that she planned to wrap around a lean pork roast.

Cauthen credits a trip Down Under and a cable television show for the inspiration for her butcher shop vision. “In Australia, there are butcher shops everywhere. You can buy small portions and the off cuts, like flatiron steak. I knew I could cut meat and work hard.” But it was Food Network personality Alton Brown who drove the idea home. “He likes to say: ‘Ask your local butcher,’ she says. “But at the time, I didn’t know who that would be.”

Belmont Butchery
15 N. Belmont Ave., Richmond, VA
(804) 422-8519
www.belmontbutchery.com

The Organic Butcher

In late 2005, Don Roden and his brother-in-law, Ryan Ford, opened The Organic Butcher stores in McLean and Charlottesville with the specific goal of helping small farmers sell every part of their animals, not just the high-end cuts. At the time, both had sales and marketing experience but little formal training in butchery.

“Opening a butcher shop appealed to us on a personal level,” says Roden, who, like Ford, is a Vienna native. “We enjoy eating good food and making it available.” They recognized the existence of a farm-to-table, supply-and-demand problem.

Ford explains that beef farmers, for example, can sell the steaks to restaurants but wind up with a freezer full of ground beef, chuck roasts, bottom rounds, and bones. Farmers find some success selling frozen meat at the farm or at farmers markets. “But we can put fresh product in front of the customers every day, just like a European-style butcher shop,” he says.

All of the beef, and most of the heritage-breed pork, is organically raised, antibiotic- and hormone-free, and humanely slaughtered. Customers regularly ask if the animals had a good life and were treated well. Only a few shoot questions about organic certification. “People put more emphasis on locally raised,” says Ford, adding that he sees fewer farmers entering the organic production program because of the fees, costly feed, and the paperwork. “In the end, it’s very difficult for them to get the premium price they need,” says Ford.

At the gleaming McLean store and the far smaller outpost in Charlottesville’s Main Street Market, one of the biggest sellers is hanger steak—the flavorful boneless beef cut that hangs between the rib and the short loin. “It’s a great price point, easy to prepare, and tender,” says Roden.

The men have had less luck selling grass-finished beef, which they say, “doesn’t move.”

“People are getting on board. But we’ve found that as butchers, we are not here to promote ideologies,” says Ford. “We stock what sells.” And despite the recession, the meat is moving. Sales have grown 20 percent over last year.

The Organic Butcher
6712 Old Dominion Dr., McLean, VA
(703) 790-8300

416 W. Main St., Charlottesville, VA
(434) 244-7400
www.theorganicbutcher.com

The Butcher’s Block

In March, Washington powerhouse chef Robert Wiedmaier fulfilled a lifelong dream, opening The Butcher’s Block in Old Town Alexandria. Next door are two of his restaurants: the more formal Brabo and casual Brabo Tasting Room. Across the Potomac in Washington, his fans know his Belgian-inspired Marcel’s and Brasserie Beck.

“My drive has always been to be a full-service chef, sourcing whole products from local farms and utilizing everything. Like in Germany, where I grew up, nothing goes to waste,” says Wiedmaier, who is known for his attention to every detail.

He takes “full service” one step further than his competitors. With three chefs on the shop’s staff, everything in the display case—the bison flatiron steaks, lamb tenderloin, and veal cheeks—can be cooked to order. Having a party? This crew creates event-worthy bites, such as foie gras parfait topped with Madeira gelée.

Chris Watson, the chef in charge of The Butcher’s Block, calls the shop “an on-going project.” “We just added books on butchering. We keep adding more farmers,” says Watson, who enjoys the teaching aspect of the job. “I like to explain to people things like what to do with bones [make stock] and fat [lard roasts] and how to prepare the meats properly.”

To that end, in the front section of the modern shop, there are meat-complementing ingredients, used in the Wiedmaier restaurants, such as finishing salts, verjus for sauces, and olive oil marinades. Wash it down with a selection from the wall of wine.

Once a month Watson gives free, one-hour butchering demos at the store for up to 40 people. “We open some wine and answer questions, like why we support local farmers,” says Watson. “Then, we put a whole chicken, for example, in front of the group. We show how to truss it three or four different ways, which helps it to cook evenly and hold a shape. We stuff herbs under the skin. We break the birds apart five or six different ways. It’s super fun.”

The Butcher’s Block
1600 King St., Alexandria, VA
(703) 894-5253
www.braborestaurant.com

Unlike employees of chain grocery stores, independent butchers can often tell you about the farm where their meat was raised and about the people who raised it. Butcher shops are few and far between, so please patronize the ones near you when you can.

Here are some other butchers in the Capital foodshed you can support.

Bedford Avenue Meat Shop
2302 Bedford Ave.
Lynchburg, VA
(434) 845-6328
www.bedfordavemeats.com

Blue Ridge Meats
2391 Guard Hill Rd.
Middletown, VA
(540) 636-6050
www.blueridgemeats.com

Home Farm Store
1 Washington St.
Middleburg, VA
(540) 687-8882
www.homefarmstore.com

Let’s Meat on the Avenue
2403 Mt. Vernon Ave.
Alexandria, VA
(703) 836-6328
www.letsmeatontheavenue.com

Olde Towne Butcher
405 Williams St.
Fredericksburg, VA
www.oldetownebutcher.com

T&E Meats
256 Charles St.
Harrisonburg, VA
(540) 434-4415
www.temeat.com

Two Fat Butchers
239 South St.
Front Royal, VA
(540) 635-6900
www.twofatbutchers.com

Wagshal’s Market
4845 Massachusetts Ave. NW
Washington, DC
(202) 363-0777
www.wagshals.com