The Roanoker - March/April 2021 - 89

DINING

Facing Page:
Expertly crafted
comfort foods pair
splendidly with CSG's
upscale, cafeteria-style
setting.
Above (Clockwise):
Meatball sub, Pimento
Cheese, Seasonal
Greens Salad, B.L.
Squash

TheRoanoker.com

" [The Ellermans] were always big fans of Matt, " says Steiner. " He does
these unusual things with vegetables ... but they're always so delicious. "
Lintz, former executive chef at Local Roots Restaurant in Grandin
Village, credits Bloom Restaurant owner, Nathanial Sloan, for opening his
eyes to the many ways vegetables can play a lead role in any fine dining
experience. For several years the chefs worked together - along with
Alex Tyree, Crystal Spring Grocery's kitchen manager - at Local Roots,
tending the restaurant's garden and creating delicious meals from the
humble vegetable.
This is the inter-woven web of relationships that brought Crystal
Spring Grocery to life. In 2019, when
Tinnell's Finer Foods was ready to close
their doors after 82 years serving its South
Roanoke community, the Ellermans bought
the space with Steiner and Lintz specifically
in mind. " They let us have this space to do
something with it we've always wanted to
do, " says Steiner, gratitude filling her every
word.
Crystal Spring Grocery offers something
new to the area, while honoring the spirit
of that which came before it. This is most
evident in their grab-and-go case. Here
you will find a direct head nod to Tinnell's:
ham biscuit sandwiches, pimento cheese,
deviled eggs and cheese slaw. Lintz took
these Tinnell's staples and gave them his
" Chef Lintz " twist, bringing his fine dining
experience to bear in every item.
But, this is only the beginning of Crystal
Spring Grocery's grab-and-go offerings. In
their effort to meet a multitude of dining
needs, Lintz has created individual serving
meal options, and family-sized offerings
as well. A busy parent can stop by Crystal
Spring Grocery on his or her way home
from work and grab a main course with
any number of sides. Or, one can choose
a family meal kit option like the fully inhouse made barbeque kit complete with fixings, sides and sauce. The kits
(like all their family meals) are sized with a family of four in mind and
priced under $40, rivaling similar grab-and-go options found in chain
grocery stores. Better than all this, is the greater reward of knowing you
are serving your family a truly homemade, healthy, seasonal meal, utilizing
local and regional resources and prepared with culinary excellence.
Crystal Spring Grocery's grab-and-go case is an important feature of
its food offerings. However, the café is where customers experience the
full weight of Lintz and his team's culinary expertise. The café is a lunch
counter offering soups, salads, sandwiches and some well-crafted sides.
Lintz says while developing the menu, he, Tyree and the CSG team spent
long hours talking and eating their way through their favorite sandwiches.

MARCH/APRIL 2021 89

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The Roanoker - March/April 2021

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