Out-of-Town Revamp

Pasture fires up the barbecue in Charlottesville.

Tom Sietsema of The Washington Post came to review Charlottesville’s outpost of Pasture, located at the Shops at Stonefield, but that spot now has an expiration date. It isn’t closing, but according to owners Michele Jones and Jason Alley, it’s going to be re-branded and re-imagined as a barbecue joint.


“Barbecue has always been a part of Pasture,” Jones says. “And for this market I think it may be a better [concept]. We wanted to do something [and make a change] across the board.”


Pasture Q will open its doors in about four to six weeks. Or “as soon as we get our smoker,” she says. The menu will bear a family resemblance to that of Comfort, Alley’s other restaurant. There will be 12 similar sides — including such standards as coleslaw, potato salad and mac ’n’ cheese — to go along with the barbecue.


Pasture, whose Richmond location is on East Grace Street, has no plans to bring its barbecue concept here, noting a market full of such options.


Alley describes what they’ll be offering in Charlottesville as “Southern regional barbecue.”


“We’re using hickory and oak to smoke the meats,” he says, “and will use our own rubs and injections to season the meat and present them with four choices of regional sauces: Virginia [tomato-based], North Carolina [cider vinegar/red pepper-based], South Carolina [mustard-based] and Alabama [mayonnaise/vinegar-based].”


The interior will get an update as well — Jones didn’t think the current vibe was quite right for barbecue. They also plan to expand the patio and provide an outdoor game or two to make it more kid-friendly.


“We’ll still have the same blues and greens,” Jones says, “but it’ll be a little funkier. … I grew up working at the Texas-Wisconsin Border Café, so honestly, I’m more comfortable with funky rather than sleek.”

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