2019Q1SpiritedVA - 60

BEHIND THE BAR

Martha Lawrence, The Depot Grille, Staunton

M

artha Lawrence never really planned
on being a bartender. "I started working
at The Depot when I was 16," she explains,
"as a hostess and a busser." During college,
she continued working there part-time. One
evening, she was asked to fill in as bartender.
"I'm still doing it," she says.
The Depot Grille makes its home in a
renovated 1902 C&O train station in Staunton,
with a classic, historic 40-foot bar, where
Lawrence plies her trade.
What appeals to you about bartending?
I really like having my own space. I can
control the environment more at the bar. The
connection that you can make with customers
is a lot different than waiting tables.
Has the job differed from your initial
expectations?
I never expected the relationships that I would
form with customers. I have customers that
came to my wedding-I came to know them first
as customers. Now, they want to see pictures of
my kids, and they ask about my family.
Tell me about The Depot Grille.
It's kind of a Staunton staple. It opened in
1990 and has had the same owners since it
opened. We have a big menu, so it's whatever

64 VIRGINIA ABC | ABC.VIRGINIA.GOV

you want it to be - quick to eat and casual,
to celebrating a big occasion.
Describe the bar program at The Depot.
We serve all kinds of things, from Manhattans
to Martinis to fruity rum drinks-whatever
people ask for, which is a wide range.
We make our own cocktail list each season.
We usually include some popular drinks and
then some new things to see how they go.
One customer favorite is the Mochatini, which
uses espresso vodka, a Godiva liqueur and cream,
and we drizzle the chocolate around the glass.
Mules are really popular right now-there's so
much variety: the classic Moscow Mule [with
vodka], the Kentucky Mule with bourbon, the
London with gin or Mexican with tequila. We
also do a Pear Mule with Absolut Pear.
Have you seen changes in the bar program
at The Depot?
There's a big trend back towards classic
cocktails: Manhattan, Martini, Old Fashioned.
What's your favorite liquor?
My favorite is bourbon, specifically Maker's Mark.
As a bartender, do you explore trends in the
cocktail world?
A bartender looks at the cocktail menu at any

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place they go out to eat, and my coworkers talk
about things they saw on a menu somewhere.
If a lot of people start asking for something,
you ask yourself, what's up with that?
What do you find most challenging about
bartending?
The hours are challenging as I've gotten older
because I have a family, but it is what it is.
Having to be "on" in front of your customers all
the time is challenging-never being flustered,
having to make small talk, dealing with all the
different personalities. But I've gotten used to
it-the longer you do it, the less challenging
it becomes.
What do you find most rewarding about
bartending?
Definitely the relationships with the customers-
the people you get to meet, even if just once,
or the ones you see multiple times a week.
What do you enjoy about working at The
Depot Grille?
Since I've worked at The Depot now for half
my life, it's definitely like a second home to
me and the people I've known the whole
time are practically like family. It's a great
place to work.

-Annie Tobey
http://ABC.VIRGINIA.GOV
2019Q1SpiritedVA

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