The first thing you notice about Amy Gjerde is her undeniable beauty: her long, thin limbs and gazelle-like grace, the perfect symmetry of her face, her bouncy brunette hair that seems straight from the pages of an Aveda shampoo commercial, her watery blue eyes that deepen when she wells up, which happens fairly often. Gjerde herself is reserved, and maybe that’s because when you look the way she does, all eyes are on you—whether the attention is invited or not. “I’m not the most comfortable in social situations,” she says. “When I was growing up, I always felt awkward and disheveled. I didn’t have a sense of style, and the fact that I like clothes and makeup didn’t come from inside the house—I grew into myself.” Like most of us, Gjerde is still a work in progress, shedding her shyness and finding her voice at age 46. For the co-owner of Woodberry Kitchen, Artifact Coffee, Sandlot, Bird in Hand, A Rake’s Progress in Washington, D.C., and partner at Foodshed, the restaurant group’s umbrella organization, the past few years have been challenging, to say the least.

In 2015, after discovering that her husband, the James Beard Award-winning chef Spike Gjerde, arguably Maryland’s most famous culinary figure, was having an affair, her idyllic life—a successful career, two kids, pedigree pets, an American Institute of Architects award-winning Roland Park home—imploded.

Making matters worse was the fact that her employees knew about the affair before she did. “One person in all of those months could have said something to me,” she says, still sounding mystified. “One person could have told me—and that person could have been him,” she says, referring to her ex. “It makes it seem like it wasn’t that big of a deal.”

And while the details of the relationship—a younger woman who was an employee Gjerde had worked closely with at the time—eventually came to light, she says that once the initial shock wore off, she was left with a different, deeper agony. “What I go back to with Spike is the fact that the affair was painful at first, but what becomes the most painful is the stuff between the two of you while the affair is happening—the memories of Thanksgiving that year or a wedding anniversary. It’s imagining all the stuff they did together. It’s what happened between you while that lie is being perpetrated that’s most painful.” And then there was the irony of the timing. At the time that Gjerde learned about the affair, the trailblazing chef was at the pinnacle of his career, winning the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic. Gjerde contemplated not going to the award ceremony held in Chicago that year, but she decided to stand by his side. “I don’t know how I did it,” she says. “I didn’t want to do anything to hurt Woodberry, and I was excited for the staff and for Opie [Crooks, the restaurant’s then head chef]. I thought that the award was larger than Spike—I believed that. I wanted to see it as a healing thing. In the end, it wasn’t.” Instead, emboldened by the #MeToo movement, Gjerde’s healing process has entailed speaking her truth—including the painful parts—and living her life out loud. Raw and reeling in the aftermath of the wreckage, she posted her feelings on social media. It raised a few eyebrows at the time, but she continued to put it all out there. “People view talking about it as wrong,” says Gjerde. “I don’t believe that to be true. Just because his acts were private and hidden and secret doesn’t mean that I have to mirror that and suffer in private and not share if I think that it either helps me or helps someone else.”

The sharing—and airing—has brought some relief, she says. “There were women messaging me who were in the same situation, strangers and then some women that I knew well who had said, ‘I was treated the same way,’” she says. “It was cathartic. I’d never spoken up before. I was never like that—and I don’t regret it.”

For his part, Spike, who has never spoken publicly about the affair, says he does have regrets. “In spite of the fact that we created and were running this amazing thing that we loved and both of us put our hearts and souls into, I had become unhappy in our marriage—but I didn’t know it—that was the worst part,” he says. “I was a deeply unhappy person—I didn’t allow myself to have that realization. I made the worst mistake that someone in that position can make, and I still feel remorse every day about her pain and suffering and this long road that Amy has been traveling.”

To say that Amy Gjerde has a green thumb is a bit of an understatement. Gjerde, co-owner of Woodberry Kitchen, Artifact, Parts & Labor, Sandlot, and Bird in Hand, grows hundreds of plants and herbs not only for decorative purposes, but also for use in the kitchens of her farm-to-fork spots. “Plants can take an ordinary, unassuming space and make it colorful and interesting,” says Gjerde, “and they make the air around them fresher and lighter.”

Gjerde says she loves the endless diversity of plants that are out there. “Adding plants to a space brings with it a mysterious, ‘I wonder what that is’ feeling,” she says. “When I walk into my greenhouse, especially in the winter, I instantly feel happier, calmer, and more connected.” In the doldrums of winter, we caught up with the constant gardener to discuss the art of growing. 

What kinds of plants do you grow for your restaurants?   
At Woodberry, I grow a mix of herbs (chives, basil, thai basil, sage, rosemary, lavender, scented geranium, lemongrass), and mostly perennials like false indigo, St. John’s wort, and grasses. Over the years, I’ve gotten away from annuals with the exception of coleus, which this year I grew from seed. I also love to incorporate shrubs and trees like Crepe Myrtle, Beautyberry, and hydrangea. At Artifact, the sun is very intense so I’ve moved to plants which need a less water and can withstand the heat. A couple of years ago, I planted roses. Amazingly enough they have thrived and are stunning! My favorite herb to grow at Artifact is bronze fennel. The fronds are adored by our chefs, and then in the fall we winnow the seed. 

Where do you do the actual growing?
I grow most of my herbs for the restaurant at my home in Roland Park. About a year ago, I had a greenhouse built. It’s only 11’ x 12’ but it allows me to start seed, grow tropicals, and propagate. In addition to herbs, citrus is the big crop I enjoy growing for our places. Two to three years we stopped using citrus in all of our restaurants. I’ve been able to grow Meyer lemons, limes, calamondin, and I’m starting with some oranges and one grapefruit tree. This past summer, I sold herbs I grew from seed at P&L, as well as tomatoes from seed. 

I know you grow a lot of basil. I had no idea there was more than a few types.
At home, I grow 9 to 10 varieties of basil—Holy, Thai, Mrs. Burn’s lemon, Persian, Mammoth, Eritrean, Cardinal, cinnamon, and Blue Spice. I have so many basil plants in my greenhouse, there will probably be casualties to make room for the citrus as it gets colder. I planted a front yard garden this year with lots of nasturtiums, variegated sage, apple mint, amaranth, tomatoes, strawberries, blackberries, onions, wild oregano, thyme, orange mint, Goldenrod, and shishito peppers. I was nervous about the amount of shade I get, but the garden did well. I’m probably going to skip tomatoes this year, though. I added shiso to the mix this year. Spike has always loved shiso, from the mint family, so I gave it a try. I’m growing Shiso Britton and Shiso Asia. Woodberry Kitchen has been using the green shiso the past couple of months by wrapping trout and chanterelles in the big leaves. 

Are they mostly herbs used in cooking/for drinks or are they decorative, as well? 
What I grow for the restaurant’s ends up either with the chefs, Rachel our pastry chef, or our bar. Herbs end up being used, and sometimes fought over, by all three, especially sweet mint. My Meyer lemons, calamondin and limes typically go to the bar and made into tinctures. Last year, I filled jars with local honey and Meyer lemons, as well as calamondin. Our baristas snapped it up and made this delicious hot tea drink. When you don’t have availability to an ingredient widely used as citrus, the excitement over having five lemons or 15 calamondin is enjoyable and satisfying to watch. 

Do you maintain the plants yourself?
Mostly, I have an awesome assistant, Fred Struever. Fred helps me take plants back and forth to my home (I often pot the plants at home and then arrange them at the restaurants), helps with compost, from Ben at Blue Moon, and he’s especially great at helping keep my greenhouse going. The staff at the restaurants help by watering. José at Artifact is my sympatico gardener. 

What do you like about gardening? 
The physicality, being outdoors, and the satisfaction of watching a plant grow and thrive. I’m still amazed at how something goes from a seed to an herb or citrus fruit or vegetable we use in our kitchens.  

What’s the secret to being a good gardener? Do you talk to your plants?
When people tell me I have a green thumb, I look at them and say, ‘Really?’ I think it’s like everything in life, when you are doing something you truly love, the people—or plants—around you benefit. I definitely don’t talk to my plants, but I’m always thinking good thoughts around them.

“We should try one more restaurant or maybe get out of town,” Spike Gjerde recalls telling his wife Amy 11 years ago after they had just closed Joy America Cafe inside the American Visionary Art Museum.

They decided to press their luck, and partnered with local developer Bill Struever to take over an old machine manufacturing shop in Clipper Mill—a North Baltimore borough that wasn’t much to write home about at the time.

“A lot of people thought we were crazy to come here,” Spike says with a laugh. “There were barely roads, and a lot of construction. No one lived here. And it was kind of hard to find. But the building was this spectacular space. The cool industrial spaces we have in Baltimore need to have life—they don’t build them like this anymore.”

After a year of working with Struever—as well as other Clipper Mill designers including lighting specialist Anthony Corradetti and late architecture guru John Gutierrez—Spike and Amy unveiled Woodberry Kitchen to the public on October 27, 2007. Amy was the visionary behind the restaurant’s rustic aesthetic, which boasts dark woods, an abundance of Mason jars, and servers sporting plaid shirts.

“When we opened, I had a vision of how I wanted people to feel when they were in the space,” Amy says. “And it centered around them being comfortable. I didn’t want anyone to come in here and feel like they had to act a certain way.” 

Now celebrating its 10-year anniversary, the dining destination still maintains its homey atmosphere and focus on sustainability—a motto that Spike says many chefs hadn’t yet adopted when Woodberry opened.

“For me, there was always a clear idea that we were going to be buying from local farms,” he says. “I didn’t want any concept—in the sense that we were going to be just like this kind of restaurant, or that kind of restaurant—to stand in the way of that.”

Amy says that the opening menu—which included favorite dishes like Woodberry’s deviled eggs and chicken and biscuits—was inspired by the family dinners that she and Spike had in the year prior to opening the restaurant.

“We ate a lot of meals together at home with the kids,” she says. “We were making large plates with salad, potatoes, and local meat. That informed our pathway forward for Woodberry.” Adds Spike: “It sure as heck did.”

Further bolstering Woodberry’s appeal was a solid opening staff. Among the employees was Corey Polyoka, an aspiring restaurateur who was finishing college when he was offered the bar manager position by Spike’s late business partner Nelson Carey.

“When I was hired, I hadn’t met the Gjerdes yet,” recalls Polyoka, now managing partner for their restaurant group, Foodshed. “The first time I actually met them was at the liquor board hearing.”

In the early days, the trio was an integral part of the restaurant’s roster—with Spike in the kitchen, Amy expediting, and Polyoka manning the bar. Throughout the years, Polyoka helped to evolve the bar program alongside the sustainable kitchen, getting rid of big-name options like Grand Marnier in favor of locally distilled spirits and farm beers.

In keeping with the restaurant’s commitment to regional sourcing, the bar program noticeably lacks certain citrus, juices, and refined sugars. Although the team admits that this has presented its challenges throughout the years, they are sticklers for the cause.

“We think about this business as an engine to return value to our local agricultural economy,” Spike says, estimating that the restaurant returned more than $2 million to local farms in 2016 alone. “Our relationship with growers is what the restaurant is built on, and we’ve deepened those ties over time.”

Looking back, the partners have many fond memories of their first decade. They reminisce about weekend service, New Year’s Eve celebrations, and memorable employees like celebrated painter Amy Sherald—a former server who was recently commissioned by the National Portrait Gallery to paint a portrait of Michelle Obama. 

The former First Lady, in fact has played a special role in Woodberry’s story, as she herself has visited the restaurant twice throughout its decade in business.

“She gives the best hugs,” Amy remembers of Michelle Obama’s first visit prior to Beyonce’s concert at M&T Bank Stadium in June 2016. “She walked in and I was thinking she would shake my hand, but she hugged me and the kids. My son is not very emotive, and even he was grinning from ear to ear.”

For Polyoka, the restaurant has provided him with much more than a career. It’s also where he met his wife, Jackie, with whom he now has four children. “She was a server,” he says. “One day she stole a blueberry pie and I had to talk to her about it.”

Spike notes winning the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Mid Atlantic in 2015 as being one of his favorite memories. (The restaurant has also been nominated for its bar program, and most recently for Outstanding Service in 2017.) But, above all, he is happy to see that their sustainable approach has been maintained and inspired others to follow a similar mantra.

“I’m proud of being here for 10 years,” Spike says. “We chose a different path, and probably the hardest path, for a restaurant to take. But we’re still here.”

Shoo-Fly Diner is not your typical Double T. There are no club sandwiches, no over-easy eggs, no buttered white-bread toast. Instead, owners Spike and Amy Gjerde—they’re practically household names these days because of their other power places, including Woodberry Kitchen—follow their social consciences to serve made-from-scratch, farm-fresh, locally sustained comfort food in a cute setting with possibly the sweetest servers in town. And what’s not to like about a restaurant that has a playroom for the kids? It’s as family-friendly as your own house except that someone else cleans up.

But not everything works at the eatery. The food is very brown, a lot of it fried, but when it scores, you’re happy to be there. The fried-chicken supper, a signature dish, is an example. The crisp, succulent pieces are tucked into a cast-iron skillet and accompanied by a rich gravy on the side. We could have skipped the cornbread, though, with its dense, hockey-puck-like consistency.

We started with Arkansas truffles—don’t be afraid to ask what they are. Who would know they are fried-pickle slices? They were crunchy and yummy, especially dipped into a fish-pepper ranch dressing in a baby-doll-size Mason jar.

The hush doggies—deep-fried, savory-sausage oblongs—were flavorful, too, with honey-mustard sauce. Of course, you can always douse your food with Spike Gjerde’s signature snake-oil sauce (a fish-pepper condiment) if you really need to spice it up.

Sandwiches include an oyster po’boy, grilled cheddar, and a scrappledelphia with scrapple as a key ingredient. Large plates feature meatloaf, spaghetti Bolognese, and a terrific pan-roasted catfish with baked grits and assorted pickled veggies.

Kids get a nod with offerings like mac ’n’ cheese, griddled PB&J, a garden salad, and a chocolate-chip waffle.

Shoo-Fly’s namesake pie is so-so. We’d much rather indulge in the Mast Brothers chocolate pudding. It’s a bowl of velvety-smooth goodness with a creamy topping.

The restaurant may not have the “wow” factor of its Woodberry Kitchen sibling, but it suits a neighborhood need for a chummy place to gather with family and friends.

›› Shoo-Fly Diner, 510 E. Belvedere Ave., 410-464-9222. Hours: 4 p.m.-1 a.m. daily; breakfast, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Sat.-Sun; snacks: $4-10; sandwiches: $7-16; large plates: $13-19; desserts: $4-10.