The LunchBox Express Full Story

Owners Joey Young and Dan Heilberg

I sat down with Joey Young and Dan Heilberg (owners of the LunchBox Express) to get a proper perspective of one of the newest, coolest restaurants in Charlottesville. I wanted a full description of the food, atmosphere, menu, vision & future, and the reason behind their decision to go bricks and mortar.

Their menu includes wraps, burgers, wings, sandwiches, a deli, beer, bratwursts, cheesesteak, occasionally barbecue, and a few surprises…along with a to-go breakfast.

Their excitement and enthusiasm made for a fun interview. Check out their facebook page.

“You can get a bite to eat, drink a beer, chill, and watch some sports…bring your family…or go out with your co-workers after work. It’s a laid back homey atmosphere.” They also sell convenience items such as cigarettes, drinks, lottery tickets, candy, local jams, Mad Hatter, and even City trash stickers. “We’re a one-stop shop.”

“We’re not fast food, but we’re food fast. You can be in and out in 10, maybe 15 minutes, and you don’t have to sit down and be served.”

What’s their standard? ”Our food isn’t crazy fancy or expensive but it’s really high quality. We serve a really good burger and Philly cheesesteak.”

“We’re looking to get as much local stuff here as possible: food, bands, stand-up comedians, artists-we’re all about being local.”

David & Catherine Glover first enjoyed the LunchBox Express at Floyd Fest and have been impressed ever since. David had the Philly cheesesteak and Catherine ordered the Lisa Leslie Veggie Wrap.

David & Catherine Glover

“Really good and delicious. They are a vegetarian-friendly restaurant. The No Bull veggie burger and cheese burger are great choices, too.”

I asked them what makes The LunchBox unique and they agreed the location and food are difference makers.

“Great up-and-coming location, fresh food, simple, and enough variety. It’s just good.”

Skylar Stoddart is the most loyal customer by a mile. ”I’ve been here about ten times, it’s a good place to watch tv and relax. I ordered the Christi’s Bottom Bunzz Burger.”

Skylar Stoddart (left) and Dan Reilberg (right)

Recommendation: the deli.

Favorite beer: gotta love the local stuff but I like the Loose Cannon the most.

“A unique feature of The LunchBox is the community of friends and cool customers. I can’t wait for the outside backyard to open. You can get your grub and go, or stay as long as you like.”

I sat down with a group of four friends who were clearly having a good time and had just finished their meal. Here are some key phrases from our conversation:

Ryan Hill- BBQ: lots of flavor. “One-stop shop.”

Scott Keller-appetizers: chicken fingers, fries, and southwest egg roll. “Good food, good beer.”

Ryan Hill, Scott Keller, Brendan Regan, David Breen

Brendan Regan- The G.O.A.T. “Big city food and entertainment with a small town feel.”

David Breen- speechless

“The LunchBox is less expensive than most restaurants in Belmont with the same great atmosphere.”

The most exciting thing for these two guys is the backyard that will open as soon as Mother Nature warms up. “It’ll have a canopy, patio and chairs, VIP section, live bands, outside seating, music…it’s going to be a really great place to hang out and eat.”

Looking for an alternative to coffee shops? They have Wi-Fi, serve Shenandoah Joe, and get their donuts from Charlottesville’s favorite: Carpe Donut.

Weekly specials:
Meatless Monday
Taco Tuesday
Wings Wednesday
Two for Thursday
Philly Friday

In addition to good food and atmosphere, Dan and Joey have good staff as well.
Amity Madison and Jenna Fields are enthusiastic waitresses and add plenty of pizazz to the restaurant.
If you eat on Wednesday you might get lucky enough to see Amity wear the chicken costume.

Amity in the chicken suit

Jenna & Joey

Family time

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dan and Joey are keenly aware of the impact their relationships have had on starting their business.

“Our friends and family helped us so much that now we want to give back to them. We’re so thankful for them.”

When asked yes/no if they thought The LunchBox Express would be a local favorite within two years, 10 out of 10 customers said yes.

Dan and Joey

Joey and Dan

Amity in the chicken suit

David & Catherine Glover

Ryan Hill, Scott Keller, Brendan Regan, David Breen

Jenna & Joey

Skylar Stoddart and Dan Heilberg

Family time

Joey & Dan

Thanks to joyeuse photography and CvilleSaver

Real giving isn’t easy

Giving requires sacrifice. If it doesn’t then it’s just convenience.

“Thanks for giving me your last Starburst!”

“No problem, I don’t like that flavor anyway.”

That’s not special, that’s hurtful.

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Journaling is worth it

It took me a year and a half but I recently finished my journal and started a new one. A lot has changed since July 2010…

Instead of getting emotionally reminiscent I’ll simply say this:

Please keep a journal for yourself. Ask your parents if they have one. If they don’t, ask if they wish they do. If they do, ask if it’s been worth it.

Life is like a rubber band. Every time you stretch it, it goes back to its original size but it’s always stretched just a little bit more than before. Journals help you see the stretch marks.

-A

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If I owned a restuarant

Each table would have a log (could be notebook paper) that records every customer’s order. And I would never edit it.

When the customer asked me for my recommendation, I would point to the log and say, “check what the person before you ordered.”

After every meal, each person would fill out their name, the date, what they ordered, drink…etc. If they so desire, I’d let them get creative and supply pens, crayons, and colored pencils.

The log would grow to several sheets of paper- I’d keep every page.

And the few customers who resist the log? That’s fine, I’m ok if they don’t want to come back.

-A

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Fire

Warmest place on a cold night when you’re camping? Next to the fire.

As soon as you walk away you can immediately feel the cold. Return to the fire and you’re warm again.

Best friends are fires. So are books, conferences, church, instruments, your journal, and mentors.

You gotta stay close to stay warm.

-A

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Another average carsalesman who needs training

I went car shopping over the weekend (not for myself, don’t worry Hyundai lovers) so I took some mental notes about the two salesmen….

The 1st never asked

why?

what are you using it for?

what’s your budget?

what features do you want?

what matters to you?

He stood with us the whole time. To quote Dick, “tell an emotional story, then leave the table.” It gives buyers time to make a decision without pressure. He didn’t do either.

The 2nd guy at CarMax was much better because they train their agents. Surprised?

No typo in title. Unfortunately, it seems like the negative connotation of a carsalesman has caused it to become a new, commonly miss-pronounced new word.

-A

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“Too Long!” (Bo’sun gets impatient in Pirates of the Caribbean)

I often use too many words when I speak. I’m affected by the same evil love as everyone else: my own voice.

But a well-chosen word can say more than 20 empty ones.

That guy talked the whole conversation but never said anything.

I bet the best communicator you know uses the least amount of words possible.

instead of

Something I’ve learned about myself and just about everyone else is that I love my own voice. It’s not good. I use way too many words when I describe something, give an explanation, or just carry on a normal conversation.

But choosing your words carefully and thoughtfully can replace the twenty words you don’t think through but just say off the top of your head.

That guy talked the whole conversation but never said anything.

If you know someone who is really good at explaining a topic, can communicate extremely well, or you enjoy hearing him/her speak, then they probably don’t use a lot of words when they talk.

-A

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Red-Nosed Sylvester the Cat

In the past two days I’ve received three full audiobooks and twenty three songs at no cost from eMusic.com and audible.com.

How? Start a free trial, get all the free stuff, and then cancel before it expires and they’ve charged your card.

It’s not dishonest. The companies expect me to do that. They also know they can’t beat the numbers.

In other words, they know some people will do what I did, others will forget to cancel their subscription and get charged without knowing, and some will actually like the service and become a customer.

Don’t get hung up on the free stuff, though.

-A

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Stop Running

Recently I was running and my shin (yes, shin) started to cramp. Very strange.

Anyway, I was tempted (and I even tried) to run faster, longer…which made it worse. But the cramp remained.

It caused me to think: Why do we stick with something for too long and add to the pain by doing more of the wrong thing?

The only way to make my shin better was to stop running and start over.

-A

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Eye on the red dot

In archery, while shooting an arrow, it’s hard to know how accurate you’re going to be until the arrow actually reaches the target- because before you release the arrow it’s only a hair off. Only an expert could feel the slightest error.

Being a hair off might not be a significant problem at five yards away but at fifty yards it could mean you miss the target completely.

The habits you choose each day make you. In the immediate future bad habits might not seem like a big deal but over time the distance gets greater, the slight error becomes magnified, and they’ll eventually cause you to miss your target completely.

The good news is that good habits enable you to hit the bullseye.

-A

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