BOULDER, CO – SEPTEMBER 27: Butcher Kelly Kawachi, butchers a 120 lbs half-carcass of a hog at Blackbelly on September 27, 2023 in Boulder, Colorado. Kawachi, the head butcher at the popular restaurant, received the only Michelin Guide Young Professional Award from the 2023 Colorado Michelin ceremony becoming the only one in the state to receive this award.
It was fitting then that Kawachi was serving wagyu beef tartare and salami at the Mission Ballroom when she heard her name called during the Michelin ceremony there on Sept. 12. Five years in, as sous chef, she added a new skill: sawing down the rib section of a lamb. And the experience stuck with her. At the same time, one of the lead cooks at the restaurant introduced her to the salumi-making process. From there, she was sold on butchery and moved back to Colorado to explore her interest, taking a job at Blackbelly Market.
“It wasn’t the workload that scared me,” Kawachi said. “I didn’t know if I was ready enough to move up. I didn’t want the quality of Blackbelly to die down on my watch, but I wanted to give it a go for one year, which went really well obviously. We have a standard here, working with a lot of expensive items, like the dry-aged locker, which has around $10,000 worth of meat.”
Kawachi and her team typically butcher two whole pigs and one lamb per week, along with a cow once a month. She tries to wrap up by 3:30 p.m., but is often there for 12 hours. “She’s got a great sense of humor,” he said. “You don’t have to be afraid to fart or crack a joke in front of her.”