Lisa Archer, 35 / Editor/Publisher, Edible Blue Ridge
As Editor/Publisher of Edible Blue Ridge (EBR), Lisa Archer weaves engaging narratives spotlighting the region’s food and beverage scene. EBR amplifies movers and shakers in the industry and champions underrepresented community organizations, offering behind-the-scenes looks at local food services. She and her husband are joint owners of Fermented Fire Hot Sauce, and are often found at local vendor markets. Archer dedicates time to community initiatives, volunteering with Star City Reads and HOLLINSUMMER; she co-founded the Small Biz Meetup, and actively supports RARR and the Roanoke Foodshed Network, striving for a fairer local food system. She serves as a Board Member for the Virginia Farmers Market Association (VAFMA) and sponsors conferences like the Common Grain Alliance and the Virginia Association for Biological Farming (VABF) summit. “Nothing brings folks together like a good story or a good meal,” she says. “Stories and food forge communities and I believe every community is stronger when it is invested in and connected to its local food systems.”
Career Background:
- EBR sponsors several area conferences, including the Common Grain Alliance Conference, Women Impact Virginia Summit and the Virginia Association for Biological Farming (VABF) summit.
- Joint owner of Fermented Fire Hot Sauce with her husband, producing and selling small-batch spontaneously fermented hot sauce, emphasizing true pepper flavor and fermentation without fillers; responsible for sales.
- Food and dining experiences includes Bloom Restaurant & Wine Bar, managing the restaurant for 2 years during the pandemic and coordinating events for the restaurant; bartender at Big Lick Brewing; worked at various establishments in New York City, including The Green Grape Grocery, Green Grape Annex, Ovenly, Crown Finish Caves, Speedy Romeo, and Eleven Madison Park.
Education:
- MFA in Creative Writing from Hollins University, 2019
- BS in Natural Resources from Cornell University, 2010
- Holds various certifications, including Level 2 Wine Certification from the Wine and Spirit Education Trust, Court of Sommeliers Level 1 Certification, and Cicerone Certified Beer Server.
Volunteer Work:
- Active member of RARR, organizing fundraisers to protect birthing peoples' rights.
- Member of the Roanoke Foodshed Network, aiming to create a more equitable and resilient food and farm system.
- Volunteered on Luke Priddy's campaign for the state senate seat nomination.
- VAFMA (Virginia Farmers Market Association) Board Member
From the Nomination: “Kitchens are communities. In any house, any home you will always find people in the kitchen. It’s the heart of a family, a community, a culture. It’s where the stories of a lifetime are lived and told. For Lisa Archer, her driving force is sharing those stories with the community at large and building bridges through the story of food.
Archer's love of the culture and history that surrounds food started early. From a young age she was learning about farming and horticultural practices which culminated in a bachelor's degree in Natural Resources from Cornell University. Archer took this degree which teaches how to improve environmental sustainability, and promote the well-being of communities, and applied to food service: learning the backstory to the food she loved.
She moved to New York City, and started small. Learning all the different aspect of the food scene, She interned with a Sommelier, worked in a bakery, a cheese cave, a specialty food store, a restaurant, and even became the General Manager to a local Brooklyn cafe. She was learning about the people and the products. Following food and the stories it told from creation to consumption.
Archer eventually realized that these were stories she wanted to tell, not just witness, to give them a voice and bring them to a larger audience. To accomplish this she moved to Roanoke, and earned a Masters in creative writing from Hollins University.
With her relocation came the search for a new community. One Archer has absolutely delved into. While at Hollins she started working at Big Lick Brewery. Then moved on to became a manager at Bloom Restaurant and Wine Bar: finding the heart and hub of the Blue Ridge food and beverage industry. While her knowledge of the local story was growing, so was Archer's own story. She met her partner through their shared love of food, began volunteering throughout the community, and decided this was the place to build a life make the food stories she loved heard.
So Archer (and her husband) bought the magazine Edible Blue Ridge and for the past two years she’s, as the Editor, has been sharing the food and beverage stories of the Blue Ridge region. Her magazine champions the stories of the underrepresented. It teaches you the stories of how food gets to your table, how it can build a community, and how it represents a culture.
She’s done what she set out to do and is sharing the story of food with the world. … Archer is one of the best people you could ever ask for: as a friend, a co-worked, a family member. She is there for a word of support or a self made care package. She will get on the phone with you at midnight if you need to talk, send you a tin full of homemade cookies for Christmas, or offer you flowers on an off day. She lives to share joy.
And I think that’s something she brings to all aspects of her life. Whether it’s teaching writing to youngsters, by using a box of brownie mix, or supporting her friend’s flower farm by just being delighted to share a picture of her latest bouquet. Archer can find the joy and beauty in anything. And it is both her absolute delight to be able to share that joy, and what makes her a wonderful and delightful person to be around.”
What do you love about Roanoke?
“So many things. I get to start my morning walking out the back door with my dogs and the Roanoke River and Greenway are right there, or I can head out the front door and Mill Mountain greets me with its multi-use trails. After my walk I grab a coffee at RND or Sweet Donkey and I’ll invariably run into someone I know or will later see the barista performing at an open mic night or with a band at a brewery.
When I meet someone who has just moved here, I tell them that what I love about Roanoke is how supportive the community is. There’s an overwhelming feeling of possibility: if you want to start something, if there’s something you are passionate about, you can do it here and you’ll find people to support you. Everyone in Roanoke is invested in this city, this community.”
How does your passion impact our community?
“Nothing brings folks together like a good story or a good meal. Stories and food forge communities and I believe every community is stronger when it is invested in and connected to its local food systems. With Edible Blue Ridge, we use those building blocks — stories and good food, to try to strengthen the community both here in Roanoke and the region at large.
After we released the second issue as the new publishers, I was working a shift at bloom and met a couple who had just moved to the area. I handed them a copy of the magazine and recommended some favorite local spots. They then came back to the restaurant a few weeks later and told me how they had spent a weekend checking out the businesses mentioned in the issue and had even followed up a hike I recommended with sandwiches from Cafe X-press. It’s incredibly rewarding when someone has read an article in the publication and then is inspired to go frequent the farm/brewery/winery/business that it features. That fosters a bond that extends beyond a single moment.”