Incredibly delightful spot--an excellent choice whether you are stopping in the storefront portion…read moreup front for provisions, an excellent coffee, or some of the best, wonderfully curated cheeses you can find, or if you are venturing to the back for a certainly delicious, most likely cheese-forward meal.
I have eaten in here twice in quick succession. Stopped in for a quick meal before a nearby event and had a kale salad, which is simply sublime--the mix of savory (kale, farro, walnuts), a touch of sweet (dried cranberries) and the rich tang of manchego--and we're not talking a drizzle, we are talking honking large chunks of high end manchego dusting your salad like a snowstorm... one of the best things I've eaten in some time. I know what you might be thinking, just a salad? But an incredibly filling, satiating salad, and with the added frisson of feeling somewhat healthy... it was hard to avoid ordering on my next visit!
But try other things I did upon dining here with my fiancée, to great success! For appetizers, we shared several plates, which were also quite enjoyable, with highlights being the Artichoke Crostini (featuring parmesan and Manchego) and the Butternut Squash Soup topped with roasted pepitas was delightful (actually featuring zero cheese!). The spring pear salad (arugula, goat cheese, zucchini, pear, pomegranate, walnuts) was quite solid--zucchini perhaps a tad overwhelming the other ingredients, but still enjoyable, and of course we had to try a cheese plate--as I indicated above, their cheese selection is amazing--I doubt you can go wrong, but their Manchego is truly amazing, and the Barely Buzzed--with ground espresso crust--are stunners. We had an excellent blue cheese as well.
Drinks were fine--not my favorite part of the experience, but good enough. Wine was ok too--did have a "dry" white that I didn't feel met the description--but the beer list is quite interesting. They do offer good happy hour drink deals as well--though they didn't include some of the more adventurous cocktail options... perhaps I should come back later and try those.
The back is charming--calling it a speakeasy or "hidden" cocktail bar is a bit of a stretch, but it is nicely portioned off from the store, and there is a cool outdoor area as well. Staff is super helpful, particularly in the restaurant portion. The provisions/cheese slicing up front can be a little slow moving but again, damn if that cheese isn't worth any kind of wait!