Blackstone Grill Newsletter

Blackstone Grill Newsletter

Table of Contents Where your food is coming from pg. 3 - Bartender’s Corner pg. 4 - Wine as an educational tool pg. 5 - Cheers to good health! pg. 7 - Speakeasy event celebrates the Repeal of Prohibition pg. 8 - Reap benefits of buying local

Let’s Talk GM: Ashish Malothra Phone: 540-381-0303 www.blackstonegrillva.com 420 Peppers Ferry Rd NW Christiansburg, VA 24073

Pear Tree Hill Farm supplies local business and the community By: Alex North According to the 2012 Census of Agriculture, 2.1 million farms are located in the United States.

This figure may seem large to the human eye. In reality, these 2.1 million farms make up less than 1 percent of the United States population.

Pear Tree Hill Farm is located in Pulaski County. The farm is owned and operated by Amy Tanner and her husband Jordan Margason.

As members of the less than 1 percent, their farm is their home.

The property is roughly eight acres where they grow a variety of crops. Pear Tree Hill Farm grows their own crop and sells at farmer’s markets and food businesses.

“We purchased the property in December of 2011,” said Tanner.

“We really had no plans to be farmers.”

Tanner moved to the area when her husband, an educator with a Dairy Science degree, got a job at the Virginia Tech Dairy. Once Tanner and Margason moved to their Pulaski County home, they began their journey as farmers in April, 2012. Before they could start their farm, they needed to learn how to become farmers.

“Someone referred us to a class called the Growers’ Academy,” said Tanner. “It is a six-week course that basically tells you how to be a farmer, and how to make it a business.”

The Growers’ Academy is administered by Virginia Tech’s Catawba Sustainability Center.

A fee of $175 is required to participate in the six-week course located in Roanoke and Wytheville, Virginia.

Continued on pg. 2

Hours Lunch Monday - Friday 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.

Dinner Monday - Thursday 4 p.m. - 9 p.m.

Friday - Saturday 4 p.m. - 10 p.m.

Pear Tree Hill Farm

Pear Tree Hill Farm, located in Pulaski County, provides restaurant staples such as fresh garlic and onions.

Food

cnt. from front page According to the Growers’ Academy website, “The learning series is focused on low-input crop production techniques and identifying ways to launch your own agribusiness.”

“The bulk of our sales are at farmer’s markets,” said Tanner.

“We’ve joined the South Main market in Blacksburg, and we also participate in the Pulaski farmer’s market.”

The Community Market of Blacksburg is located on South Main Street at the Gables Shopping Center parking lot in Blacksburg. Pear Tree Hill Farm is also a member of The Marketplace, Pulaski’s farmer’s market, located at Pulaski’s historic Train Station.

Pear Tree Hill Farm supplies local grocery stores according to Tanner. Annie Kay’s Main Street Market and Hethwood Market are their vendors.

All dishes from Blackstone Grill are made with fresh ingredients from six local farms.

“We take food safety seriously as well as the quality of the product.

Our produce is picked the morning we sell or deliver it,” said Tanner.

Ashish Malothra, Blackstone Grill’s general manager, followed Tanner and Margason’s progress as they began their farming journey. Malothra reached out to the couple about supplying Blackstone Grill with fresh, local crops. According to Tanner, they have supplied the restaurant’s chefs with restaurant staples, with garlic and onions being the main supply.

The process starts early in the morning according to Tanner. They pick their crops from the ground.

Once the products are picked, they are cleaned and packaged for sale at local farmer’s markets.

If their products are headed to local grocery stores, for example Hethwood Market, Tanner and Margason pack and deliver the product. As for the farmer’s market process, they store the crops in coolers during their trip to maintain freshness.

Pear Tree Hill Farm is a local supplier for the Blackstone Grill in Christiansburg.

“We have been long time patrons of Blackstone Grill. Our relationship with Ashish began as customers before we bought the farm,” said Tanner.

“The most important aspect is ensuring quality of our material.

I don’t want to sell something I would not want to eat.”

Tanner and Margason are both excited to see what their crop

Blackstone Grill

brings them in the upcoming spring and summer season. “We trying to get into an established market and are still trying to introduce people to our farm,” said Tanner.

As Tanner and Margason enter their third market season, Tanner does not forget the people from Blacksburg Farmer’s Market who sparked their farming journey.

“This community of small farmers are very giving, encouraging, and they’re great mentors,” said Tanner.

“If they had not recommended us to the Grower’s Academy in Roanoke, we wouldn’t have known about it.”

“We have been long time patrons of Blackstone Grill. Our relationship with Ashish began as customers before we bought the farm.”

Amy Tanner 2

Bartender’s Corner: Pick your poison with Nick Leeman By: Stephanie Trager

Nick Leeman adds a fresh face to the world of bartending by mastering the pair of a perfect cocktail and the right personality at the Blackstone Grill in Christiansburg, Virginia.

Blackstone Grill serves a variety of alcoholic beverages from imported wines and Yuengling beers, to raspberry Limoncello martinis with sweet, tangy tastes that linger on your tongue for just the right amount of time. Since January 2014, Nick has done more than serve beverages to longing customers; he creates and builds relationships with his Blackstone Grill patrons.

Blackstone Grill

Raspberry Limoncello martini created by Leeman.

Q: Why bartend?

A: “Bartending involves partnerships with customers as you join them on their search for the

perfect beverage. There is nothing better than to show a customer who has been drinking the same bourbon for thirty years, new bourbon that becomes his or her favorite for the next thirty years to come.”

Q: Where did you learn your skills?

A: “I already had a small knowledge of making drinks from my own experimentation at home, but I really wanted to learn a lot more from the previous bartender, Kelsey, and our general manager, Ashish. I shadowed Kelsey and learned our signature drinks from her. I also read several books on different complicated cocktails, as well as Googled some of the more simple ones so that I would not look silly when someone ordered something as basic as a Cosmopolitan.”

Q: How do you cater towards a patron’s taste buds?

A: “Blackstone Grill features a long list of specialty martinis in which we are known for. However it is not uncommon for myself or the customer to shake things up with something new. The other day, I made a Tiramisu martini upon request.”

Q: What are some of your favorite moments working with Blackstone Grill?

A: “I have had some of the best interactions with the customers; many of whom are very

successful professionally. Several of them have personally inspired me to return to college and further my education. That is something I could not have gotten anywhere else at this point in my life.”

Q: What is one drink that the Blackstone Grill sells that you think describes your personality perfectly?

A: “I guess I associate with an Old Fashioned because although I make a lot of complicated and over-the-top martinis, I myself like to stick to the basics.”

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Wine as an educational tool From grape to glass, students learn the dynamics of wine By: Courtney Duke Students at Virginia Tech have the opportunity to take a class called “Geography of Wine.”

And yes, it’s a class that actually tells college students (if they’re of age) to go out and drink.

Is there a problem with this?

Is there a problem with college students learning how to talk about and describe wine as well as the server in a fancy restaurant? Is there a problem with them studying the intricacies of one of the most ancient drinks in human culture?

College students are often labeled by a few individual cases. The sad thing is people see the rowdy, drunk crowds out on the street, while the mature, reserved students are quietly sipping on wine and watching a movie at home, out of the public eye.

This “Geography of Wine” class is a very valuable

Blackstone Grill

Dr. Kelly McBride takes her class to the Blackstone Grill wine dinner in April.

experience for students.

In this class, they learn many things, from how to sniff and swirl wine, to various wine-making and bottling processes, to flavor and aroma profiles of grapes, to the most important aspect of wine: terroir.

Terroir (pronounced ter-wahr) is the ability of grapes to take the unique climate, soil, and foliage around them, combined with that specific year’s weather conditions, and express that into the

wine. Because of this, two bottles of Chardonnay from the same vineyard but different years will never taste exactly the same. Because of this, an experienced wine drinker can tell if a wine was produced in a vineyard in an area with a lot of tobacco nearby, in soil that contained high levels of minerals.

In the class, students are challenged to go out and taste as many types of wine as possible, and see how the wine

is affected by various food pairings. Blackstone Grill of Christiansburg offers an educational experience of a lifetime with their famous “wine dinners.” During these bimonthly events, diners have the opportunity to try five different wines with five different courses to expand their palate. Attending even just once already puts people - college kids and older adults alike - into a distinguished class of wine drinkers.

Each individual wine bottle is essentially a time capsule to another place and time. Once they learn what to look for, students can drink wine and learn so much about a foreign culture at a different time. Wine is the most transcendent drink in existence. Jesus didn’t spend his first miracle making grape juice, after all.

Blackstone Grill Wine Dinners: Experience it yourself

6 times a year 5 courses of wine and food 75 dollars per person 60 person limit

Source Noun Project

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Cheers

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lt a e h d to goo mell

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By: Reil

As the leading cause of death in the United States today, heart disease risks can be reduced by 30 to 50 percent through the moderate consumption of red wine. Wine contains a high level of antioxidants, or flavonoids, which help decrease the levels of bad cholesterol and increase the levels of good cholesterol.

In addition, intake of a chemical called resveratrol, which is found in grapes, results in an extended life expectancy because of its benefits toward the cardiovascular system.

How does this affect the choices a consumer makes when deciding what to drink and eat in a restaurant? Unfortunately, for those who love white wine, it is known to have a significantly smaller level of flavonoids than red wine. Many other types of alcohol, such as beer and liquor, do not contain the chemical agents to fight the risks of high blood pressure, high cholesterol and unhealthy triglycerides. In France, the average life expectancy is greater than many countries partly because of its prevalent tradition of drinking red wine with meals. By consuming about two to three glasses per day, the French are counteracting the unhealthy effects of foods such as cheese, bread and desserts, which are high in cholesterol.

Of course, red wine is not a cure-all when it comes to health. It is important to keep the principles of moderation in mind. Those who binge drink on an occasional or frequent basis have higher mortality rates than moderate drinkers. In excessive amounts, alcohol can permanently harm the liver, pancreas and nerve cells. Therefore, to reap the healthy benefits of wine consumers should only drink one to two servings—onefour ounce glass—of wine per day.

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Blackstone Grill is one of only a few restaurants in the Blacksburg area that has an extensive wine list.

It experiences seasonal changes to the list, under the discretion of the owner, Ashish Malothra. Next time you are at Blackstone Grill, think twice about setting aside the wine list. An occasional glass or two will go a long way in keeping your heart healthy and your life long.

Source Stephanie Trager

Speakeasy event celebrates the Repeal of Prohibition At the stroke of midnight, all will cheer “Prohibition is over, good days are here!”

By: Sara Lepley

What period in U.S. history held more irony than Prohibition?

During a time of supposed sobriety, alcohol consumption shot up by about 70 percent.

Prohibition did more than start the American pastime of drinking to get drunk, however.

It marked the beginning of the Jazz Age as well as new dance moves, such as the Charleston.

Young ladies exchanged corsets for flapper garb and young men worked up the courage to talk to them.

What better way to commemorate this stage of American history than with a

Tap Folsom

speakeasy party at Blackstone Grill?

Tickets cost $25 and the event lasts from 10 p.m. to 12:30 a.m.

The restaurant will open door at 10:00--but only to those who have a password, of course.

Guests will sip on classics such as Mary Pickfords and gin rickeys while listening to the sweet sound of the sax, played by our musical guests the Jazz Des Tropiques.

Around the time the wait staff brings out the second round of hors d’oeuvres, the trivia games will commence. At midnight, guests will toast the anniversary of the 18th amendment repeal with complimentary champagne.

The night will finish up with awards for best costumes. For more information about the event, be sure to check out our website and Facebook page.

For costume inspiration and whimsical 1920s slang, peep our Pinterest page.

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Reap benefits of buying local Dining at Blackstone Grill means supporting small business Those who live in Blacksburg, Virginia and the New River Valley are familiar with the “Buy, Eat, Live local.” campaign. It is seen on bumper stickers, t-shirts and Blacksburg Transit buses by local citizens, Virginia Tech students and faculty.

In the United States, big businesses and companies tend to dominate industry. These major corporations are seen as titans within their respected fields. Local businesses are often overlooked in major cities and small towns by Americans.

“Buy Local” campaigns have sprouted up in recent time by individuals who are ready to stand up to support local business.

When it comes to the restaurant industry, local has its advantages over chain restaurant competitors.

Local restaurants tend to be started by members within a community. This creates both a personal and emotional connection for the business to succeed.

Blackstone Grill is a perfect example. Not only is the restaurant owned by community member Ashish Malothra, but it also receives produce and meat from local farmers.

Dining at local restaurants like Blackstone Grill has an abundance of benefits.

Members in the community tend to love local restaurants and shops.

The employees have a reputation for being friendly and relatable.

The staff in a local restaurant is normally made up of local individuals who have ties to the area. This gives the customer a sense of loyalty to the restaurant.

Revenue, notoriety and image awareness will increase once a business has the loyalty of its customers.

Support for local business is important not only for the business

Facts courtesy of Poirier

By: Alex North

itself, but for the individuals in the community as well. According to Sustainable Connections, “Nonprofit organizations receive an average 250% more support from smaller business owners than they do from large business.”

Non-profit groups including recreational sports programs, student organizations and campus events can continue to help the “Buy, Eat, Live local.” campaign through sponsorship.

A local business can receive free advertising with their name printed on a shirt supporting a local rec sports team or student organization. If a student sees the logo of a local business on campus or printed on a friend’s shirt, they are more inclined to visit the business, therefore, supporting the “Buy, Eat, Live local.” cause.

Sara Lepley

National events such as Small Business Saturday encourage individuals to support and shop at local businesses. Small Business Saturday was founded in 2010 by American Express and occurs on the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

According to American Express, in 2013, over 1,450 neighborhoods in the U.S. signed up to support their communities.

This event is a great opportunity for locals to support their business, but it should not be nationally recognized on only one day.

American citizens must take ownership to support local business 365 days of the year.

In order for local business to prosper over their national competitors, the Blacksburg and New River Valley community must, “Buy, Eat, Live local.”

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