Lynchburg Living

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By Johanna Calfee

Over the past three decades, Charley’s restaurant in Lynchburg has become a place where many long-time regulars and new faces combine daily to take in popular dishes like One Great Chicken sandwich. Now in its 30^th year, it only seems appropriate to tell the story of the restaurant—and the husband and wife team behind it—that has not only stood the test of time, but retained many of its original staff along the way. Because while “Charley” may be the name that gets all the glory, Rob and M.J. Pearson are the ones to thank for making it a Hill City establishment.

The story of Charley’s begins in 1979, when M.J. (short for Martha Jo) was working her way through grad school at the University of Virginia through a job at a restaurant in Charlottesville. It was there that she met Charlie Sands, a native of Newport News, Virginia, and former Major League Baseball catcher/designated hitter, best known for helping the Pittsburgh Pirates win the 1971 World Series. Sands had just opened his first Charley’s restaurant in Charlottesville and had his eye on opening a second one in Lynchburg. He and M.J. struck up a friendship and shortly thereafter, he recruited her to be his new assistant manager. On September 24, 1980, the new Charley’s at River Ridge Mall in Lynchburg opened up to much fanfare.

“There was nothing like it in Lynchburg at the time,” M.J. said. “The first year, we were so well-received. The mall was such a great way to introduce us to Lynchburg.”

With the overwhelming response came the need for more staff, and a month after its opening, Rob joined the team at Charley’s.

“M.J. hired me,” Rob said. “And that’s how I met my wife.”

At first, romance was the last thing on Rob and M.J.’s mind. With a booming business to oversee, it was nothing but work, work, work … until a staff party on the 4^th of July at Rob’s log cabin in Elon.

“That’s where things started to click,” M.J. recalled with a smile.

Rob and M.J.’s first date was a motorcycle ride on the Blue Ridge Parkway during the summer of 1981, complete with wine spritzers at Panther Falls. The couple dated happily for two years, but with no diamond ring on the horizon, M.J. decided to take matters into her own hands in February of 1983.

“It was Valentine’s weekend and I said to Rob, “Why don’t we go see the Bob Seger concert that’s playing at the Civic Center [in Roanoke] and call it our engagement weekend,’” she said.

“And I said, ‘That sounds good to me,’” Rob chimed in.

An engagement ring soon followed, as well as a date, and the couple officially tied the knot in October of 1983. By that time, M.J. was the General Manager at Charley’s and Rob was the kitchen manager. Surprisingly, they say their relationship both on and off the job ran like clockwork.

“One of the highest compliments we ever had was when one of the wait staff worked here for six months before he realized we were married,” Rob said, adding that one of the keys to working with his wife has to do with kindness. “You’ve got to be as nice to her as your best friend.”

The Pearson’s personal and professional chemistry changed when Rob moved to managing the front of the house alongside M.J. and they had to quickly decipher who was in charge.

“We figured out not too far into marriage that she’s the boss at home and I’m the boss at work,” Rob said with a laugh. “I don’t want her job and she doesn’t want mine.”

With their relationship kinks smoothed out, the couple was presented with a unique opportunity in 1985—the chance to purchase Charley’s. They took the leap of faith.

In the four years that followed, M.J. became the boss at home even moreso with the arrival of their two sons, Bobby and Dylan, now 24 and 22 years old. At the time of Dylan’s birth, both Rob and M.J. were still working seven days a week, and knew they had to make a change.

“When child number two came along, I thought, ‘I don’t need to be G.M. anymore,’” M.J. said.

From that point on, Rob took over her role, though M.J. remained very active at Charley’s, with her hand in every aspect of the family business. For eight more years, sales were steady at their  mall location. In 1995, however, their 10-year lease came to an end and the Pearsons knew it was time for a change.

“When the lease came up, the remodeling cost and rent over another 10-year lease [at the mall] would have cost $250,000,” Rob said. “So that’s when we started looking elsewhere.”

With the help of local commercial realtor, Gary Case, the couple found their perfect piece of land to build on just off 501 North on Graves Mill Road.

“At the time, there was nothing there besides Skate Land, Nationwide and the car dealership,” Rob said. “People didn’t get it because the land was covered in forest, but when the bulldozer knocked the trees down, they said, ‘Ah, I get it now.’”

The couple’s next challenge was securing financing. The Pearsons went from bank to bank, trying to find one to lend the $1.8 million needed for the project. Finally, Mike Thomas with First Community Bank (now Select Bank) gave them the go-ahead.

With construction underway in 1995, the Pearsons had the taxing task of overseeing their current location at the mall and the construction at the new Graves Mill location, all while tending to their two young sons at home. Always concerned first with family, Rob and M.J. brought their children in on the excitement.

“We took the boys up to have dinner on the roof of the new place when it was still under construction,” Rob said. “And I remember pointing to all the cars passing by on 501 and saying, ‘Look guys, some day soon, those cars are going to come here.’”

On February 29, 1996, Charley’s moved out of the mall and into its new location. With more than 6,400 square feet of space, the restaurant now had plenty of room to host parties large and small, in addition to the 200 guests it could seat on the floor. Business picked up even more.

“Everyone thought we were crazy for moving out of the mall, but in hindsight, it worked,” M.J. said.

Since then, Charley’s, like any business, has had its ebbs and flows, but one thing that has remained constant is its staff—a rarity for restaurants. Bartender Terry Brown, a former firefighter, has “been here since Day One,” according to Rob, and nine other members of their staff have been on the job for 20 years or more.

“We’ve become a family,” M.J. explained of their retention rate.

In the past year, Charley’s has gone through both a remodel and a rebranding, just in time for its 30^th birthday. Locals may have noticed billboards around town boasting fresh food photography and lower prices.

“It’s great to be 30 years old, but you don’t want to be dated. So we had to move out of the 80s,” M.J. explained of the change.

The updates include fresh colors on the walls and a closed-in kitchen “meant to be audio friendly,” according to Rob. They also updated the menu, offering smaller portions at lower prices, while keeping their customer’s favorites on the forefront.

“Chicken fingers are still our most popular item—it’s fresh and made from scratch,” Rob said.

“We go through 700 pounds of chicken a week!” M.J. added.

The new look and reduced prices are working—sales at Charley’s are up. One contributing factor to this is the catering department that was created in 2001 by Sarah Peters, Charley’s Catering Director and Head Chef.

“Sarah said she wanted to do catering … so we started by putting an ad in the paper, and it grew from there,” Rob said.

The Pearsons bought a van with a walk-in freezer to allow them to cater weddings, anniversaries, business meetings, reunions, picnics and “just about anything you can think of,” and now Charley’s is “almost to capacity on catering,” according to Rob.

Now that they have celebrated 30 thriving years, the Pearsons are taking time to reflect on the many funny stories and notable characters who have frequented their establishment, not the least of which was “regular” Jerry Falwell, Sr.

“He would come in and get fries with his order and look at me at say, ‘I know, Rob … I’m only going to eat half of them,’” Rob said with a chuckle.

Of course, this new milestone also means Rob and M.J. are looking ahead to the future—a future that looks quite different for each of them. M.J. officially “retired” from the restaurant this past New Year’s Eve, though she is still involved in the marketing and PR side of the business. She is also active at the couple’s church, Peakland Methodist, where she sings in the choir.

With no future plans to retire, Rob remains very active at Charley’s and on several boards around town, including the YMCA, United Way and Select Bank. His level of involvement, whether it be at his business, with his wife and sons or with local charities, defines his outlook on life, and his desire to keep on working—a desire that has helped both him and M.J. make Charley’s the success story it is today.

“Life is good,” Rob said. “Why would I want to quit?”