PENSACOLA MAGAZINE
GORGEOUS GRAZING Three Pensacola Spots to Snag an Un-brie-lievable Board By Natalie Frazier
From rehearsal dinners and bachelorette parties to the reception on the big day, the charcuterie and grazing board trend is spreading fast– and many couples are choosing to incorporate these colorful spreads of assorted delicacies into their weddings festivities. The charcuterie trend has greatly evolved in the last few years, making it easy to lump both charcuterie and grazing boards into the same category. The art of charcuterie came about when delicatessen owners would use every bit of meat by putting it through the curing process to reduce waste and to safely prepare the pork they weren’t allowed to serve raw. “Instead of tossing out meat, they salt-cured it to last for a really long time,” Sue Shattuck, owner of On Board Charcuterie Delivery Service, said. “Then they had the milk from their goats and cows, so they added cheese and made their own jams and chutneys–and always a nice crusty bread.” Today, charcuterie has evolved to include everything from dessert tables and fruit boxes to brunch boards. As the boards deviate from the regular meat and cheese, they begin to lean more towards what is known as a grazing board rather than a traditional French-style charcuterie board.
Grazing boards typically contain a wider variety of food types such as cheeses, meats, nuts, fruits, crackers and other light bites. This more plentiful variety provides wedding guests with more options than the traditional meats and cheeses you typically find with the French-style charcuterie. A grazing board’s focus is more on the selections of foods collectively put together, whereas a charcuterie board is assembled to curate many different flavor profiles that perfectly contrast each other with every bite. From large-scale charcuterie spreads featuring perfectlylayered assortments of gourmet fares to hearty grazing boards with all of the fixings, charcuterie and grazing boards provide an elegant twist to traditional wedding catering. No matter what kind of charcuterie or grazing board a bride and groom are looking for, the Pensacola area has a business that can fulfill their vision, aesthetic and culinary needs.
TRUE CHARCUTERIE WITH A SIGNATURE TOUCH Sue Shattuck wanted to take her culinary career in a new direction… by creating charcuterie boards. “I have been a personal chef and culinary instructor for 20 years. As much as I love that, at some point I had to parlay my passion into something that is a little less physically taxing, and charcuterie boards were the perfect solution,” Shattuck explained. Even throughout the pandemic, Shattuck was able to continue to build her business. “When the pandemic hit, and people were sequestered to their homes, I wondered if charcuterie delivery to their houses would work, or if there would be a market for that.” Shattuck said. To Shattuck’s surprise, there was quite the demand—so
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much so that her orders became overwhelming. Shattuck soon realized that her business had the opportunity to grow and that she needed to find a storefront to continue with her venture. Shattuck has since settled into her own kiosk at The Garden at Palafox + Main in downtown Pensacola and is excited to share her Frenchinspired charcuterie boards with the community from her new storefront. As for her charcuterie services, Shattuck continues to stay true to the French history of charcuterie while incorporating some of her own personal touches for parties and weddings along the way. “I am old school. I really believe in true authentic charcuterie—charcuterie literally means ‘meats.’ I try to keep our boards very 1400s French authentic, but it’s not about the meat and cheese anymore. There are a lot of fruits, vegetables and
