Butcher Block Table

This work table features a "real" butcher block top--one with the grain running top to bottom. Old butcher blocks were made that way because the harder end grain is more resistant to knife strikes. The butcher would use his table all day, then at work's end, he'd pour scalding water on it and scrub it with a stiff wire brush. That's why all the old tables one sees in antique stores are so wallowed out in the center. The table's base is painted and shellacked poplar constructed with pegged tenons.