From our Studio on Martha's Vineyard... Fine Butcher Block
About our Butcher Blocks
We use non-marking rubber feet attached with stainless steel screws. This gives the block exceptional stability, and allows air to circulate underneath the block, preventing warping.
The end-grain of wood has been recognized for centuries by chefs and butchers as the optimal surface for cutting and chopping. On an end-grain butcher block, the knife’s blade passes between the wood’s grain, significantly extending the life of the knife’s blade, and the block will show much less wear and age more gracefully. The processes involved in creating an end-grain block are considerably more complex when compared to the making of an edge-grain board, resulting in a sturdier and more durable block. On common edge-grain boards, the knife is sawing across the grain, dulling it with every pass, and permanently scarring the board as it tears the grain. On an end-grain block, the knife is merely separating the grains, and the block will self-heal as the oil allows the grains to come back together.
All materials used in the making of our blocks meet or exceed FDA standards.
Each of our blocks is hand-crafted from a solid piece of lumber, ensuring that our blocks have a uniform density, and will not split or separate with atmospheric changes. This is also why our blocks have uniform coloring and grain patterns. We know of no other craftsman or manufacturer making this claim.
We use non-marking rubber feet attached with stainless steel screws. This gives the block exceptional stability, and allows air to circulate underneath the block, preventing warping.
It takes hours of hand-sanding to produce the distinctive look of our blocks. For our finish we use the highest quality, kosher-conforming mineral oil and antibacterial pure white beeswax. This is the traditional finish, and after lots of experimenting, the one we consider the very best.
Plastic vs. Wood
The Food Research Institute at the University of Wisconsin conducted a test comparing multiple types of wood and plastic boards intentionally contaminated with E-coli, listeria, and salmonella bacteria. Repeated testing showed that without any cleaning, the natural bacteria neutralizing properties of the wood boards killed off all bacteria within three minutes. On the plastic boards the bacteria multiplied. Salmonella bacterium can survive through a dishwasher cycle inside of a knife’s groove on a plastic board. Follow this link to a New York Times article summarizing this study.