Bartenders get each drink started at the butcher block bar area, then do the rest at guests' tables for an up-close experience.

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President Obama and the Democrats have placed a number of their sacred cows on the butcher block (the negotiating table?).

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Centered in the room is a butcher-block tasting table, where you can order small shots of top-shelf wheat, rice, potato, corn and even grape vodka.

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With origins in the 14th century, it is thought to refer to the "off-fall" from the butcher's block, meaning the less desirable parts.

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