I spent about four hours last Saturday hunkered down at one of the bars in Manhattan to transition from day to night over some good wine. The wine really was something, actually.
But the cheese? For such a special place that takes such pride in wine service and quality, they made the most unfortunate cheese error. And it could have been remedied so easily! I'm hoping that by sharing their mistake, you won't make the same one.
I try not to be a wrist-slapper when it comes to cheese, and food in general, actually. People make mistakes, errors are made, food is served subpar. It happens. But when a solution is so simple, I can't help but be a pointer-outer.
A couple of things went wrong with those cheese plates (we ordered several, as we were many, and there was a lot of wine to get through), and I'll touch on that, too. But most significantly, the establishment served every hard cheese sliced into these thin, flimsy slices, nearly paper-like. Each bite was nearly imperceptible, the cheese was so weakly present.
It made me realize: It's vital to keep in mind the textural structure of a cheese before you cut it — whether you're serving it to guests precut, or you're serving yourself from a bigger wedge. In the case of an intensely-flavored, hard-textured cheese, you should be able to really sink your teeth into a thickness that feels substantial; a thin slice just can't match the heft of a cheese of that character. And it'd have been so easy for them to slice it thicker, or even serve a small wedge and let us hack into it ourselves.
To be honest, I think that the cheese slicer should nearly always be forgone for a knife. A knife ensures a bit of thickness, just by nature of its mechanics.
Briefly, other errors, again, easily fixed: The cheese was cold. Like, straight-from-the-fridge cold. Don't ever do this. And the portions were teeny tiny. Because of these wimpy slices — they nearly resembled deli paper — this place was able to make it look like the plate was more full than it actually was. So the skimpy factor was in play, on top of it all. And with wine? Don't you want a healthy portion of cheese?
Honor those hard, intense cheeses by saving the delicate slices for another time! Cut nice big hunks, or healthy-sized slices. They're so delicious because they linger on the tongue, with flavors of roasted nuts, butterscotch, or cured meat. Everything was lost because the cheese was so poorly sliced. Everything. And yes, I realize this is starting to sound a bit dramatic. But someone's got to stand up for the cheese. Especially in a wine bar.
Nora Singley used to be a cheesemonger and the Director of Education at Murray's Cheese Shop. Until recently she was a TV Chef on The Martha Stewart Show. She is currently a freelance food stylist and recipe developer in New York.
Related: Serving Cheese To a Crowd: Worthy Tips
(Image: mates via Shutterstock.)
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I would have reported them to the cheese police but seriously, serving cheese at the wrong temp is unforgivable. My question to you is this: why didn't you send it back?
I completely agree with every qualm you had. I would have felt ripped off to be honest..
Well I was expecting more hints, because I was looking forward to learning something new. It was what not to do, but where is the how to do?
How to serve cheddar versus brie? An idea of what's the right size chunk? Is a 1/4 inch slice ok?
My pet peeve: a big hunk of hard cheese stabbed by a knife in a reception with a lot of people. In said reception the cheese was Parmesan (gasp), the guy in front of me tried to stab the cheese, and rolled from the table. The large chunk fell on my feet.
Then why is parmigiano reggiano so often cut into paper thin slices for topping salads? I think it's absolutely delicious that way.
But someone's got to stand up for the cheese. Especially in a wine bar.
The cheese stands alone.
I couldn't agree more. A cheese slice has got to be thick enough to stand up against a slice of apple or pear and still sing. If I'm buying fancy cheese, I want something I can sink my teeth into!
@YTess: I would have given money to see the cheese roll off the table... though not see it drop on your feet! The poor man must have been *mortified*, and I'm sure your feet hurt!
I agree though. 1)Serve it room temp. 2)Respect the texture and taste
Also, I feel like the idea of "wine bars that serve cheese plates" is a little overdone... not in the sense that I want to see the trend disappear (because I don't!! I love cheese!!) but I want to see an increase in the amount of sophistication with which the idea is executed. I want them to find some really awesome cheeses. To offer a plate of just goat cheeses... fresh, aged, and hard. Maybe match them with wines. Offer interesting sides.
Basically, don't treat me like a noob who can't identify an unripe brie.
I think the differences in how you serve cheese has to do with whether it's in a dish, or alone.
That said, thinly sliced shavings are great in a salad, but to put that thin of a slice of say, Parmesan cheese on a plate is not a good idea. Jarlsburg for example needs some heft as it is that kind of cheese, it's texture and such makes it a good cheese to sink your teeth into (and it is more flavorful than Swiss cheese).
I agree, best to provide thicker slices, or better yet, hunks of cheese, and you dig in as you see fit with a knife.
And when eating cheese with wine, especially with many red wines, you want it to stand up to the wine, if you are not getting enough in your bite, it'll get lost in the wine's flavor.
In France, cheese doesn't go in a fridge. It goes in a cool place like a basement. You set up a cheese plate in the kitchen before a dinner party so that when you get to the cheese course the cheese is at the room temp. Soft cheeses like brie and camembert will soften. Cheese at a dinner party is served in chunks, because slices will dry out. The plate is passed and people cut off what they want. I can see the convenience of slicing cheese for a reception, but you have to count on throwing out any leftovers. In restaurants in France, you are served a chunk/wedge/small round of cheese at the end of a meal, or else a cheese cart comes by, where you point to two or three cheese you'd like to taste and the steward serves you (presumably they won't make the hard cheese roll off the cart and onto your shoe).
I was once scolded quite severely by a French friend for cutting across the wheel, not into the centre. It's very important to have a piece that contains some from the centre and come from the outside, as the cheese ripens from the middle out!
I hate it when cheese is pre-sliced, it feels mean and stingy! Unless it's a few slivers of Manchego with a glass of sherry. Even then, I prefer to slice it myself from a big wedge. I've found the best place to store cheese (and chocolate) is the wine fridge/cellar.
I hope you pointed this out to the management? It's careless and unprofessional. It does annoy me when establishments feel justified in charging top prices, yet do not invest in training. What is the point of having great produce on the menu if staff have no idea how it should be served, or just don't care?
In similar circumstances, I send a polite but specific hand written note to the business owner. It harkens to another era, yes, but I favor it for how it allows for less confrontation and more thoughtfulness. I always begin by pointing out that most establishments lose silent customers so they have no idea why they went out of business.
Where I get a reply, I return and where I don't, I do not. For the price of a stamp and a few moments of my time, I have built up a collection of local sources who are willing to please the customer. I would be curious to see what this wine bar would do.
@Suzemagoo - yes, that is fairer than, say, giving a bad review online, particularly if it was a genuine mistake. It also ensures that the comments reach someone who's in a position to put it right. I'm less patient than you, I'm afraid. If I sense indifference or defensiveness, I don't make a fuss, but don't return.
Yes this drives me crazy. I just did a 100 person party with a large cheese platter.
Asiago in 2" squares and about 1/8" thick. Enough to really taste the cheese, but not overwhelming amount.
Fol Epi swiss in small squares to eat by itself
Soft goat with a knife for those to get what they want.
nice crackers, raspberries, strawberries, walnuts, rolled prosciutto, thick hot salami slices.
Enough variety to enjoy and something for everyone. Please learn about cheeses, there are a bunch of do and do nots. I would have eaten the platter and then wrote a note or talked to an owner.
Yes this drives me crazy. I just did a 100 person party with a large cheese platter.
Asiago in 2" squares and about 1/8" thick. Enough to really taste the cheese, but not overwhelming amount.
Fol Epi swiss in small squares to eat by itself
Soft goat with a knife for those to get what they want.
nice crackers, raspberries, strawberries, walnuts, rolled prosciutto, thick hot salami slices.
Enough variety to enjoy and something for everyone. Please learn about cheeses, there are a bunch of do and do nots. I would have eaten the platter and then wrote a note or talked to an owner.
Yes this drives me crazy. I just did a 100 person party with a large cheese platter.
Asiago in 2" squares and about 1/8" thick. Enough to really taste the cheese, but not overwhelming amount.
Fol Epi swiss in small squares to eat by itself
Soft goat with a knife for those to get what they want.
nice crackers, raspberries, strawberries, walnuts, rolled prosciutto, thick hot salami slices.
Enough variety to enjoy and something for everyone. Please learn about cheeses, there are a bunch of do and do nots. I would have eaten the platter and then wrote a note or talked to an owner.
I prefer my cheeses thinly sliced, and don't really care if it is considered a "don't."
That said, I would never pre-cut cheese I was serving, so no one would have the chance to get huffy about my thin slices.
The idea of sending a written note is great. Usually when we are hungry, it's very hard to send the food back. In my whole life I did it 3-4 times. It's hard to deal with the manager during the rush of service time.
When I was in Paris I never ordered cheese in a restaurant, will try the next time. Yelp has great restaurant reviews for Paris.
@Amanda from 16thandMain
Oh, what did I do with a wheel of Parmesan at my feet? Goooooaaaaaalllll! I soccer kicked it under the table, knife and all.
@decogirl- That cheese is on salad, which is totally different than eating it on it's own. In the case of the salad, the parm would overwhelm the salad if it was served in thick pieces.
No way would I allow others to slice into a wedge or wheel of brie. When you do that, people leave the rind and tend to dig into the middle, which is the best part. I would serve them sliced into generous pieces that include both the middle and outside, and I would leave the rind intact. I cannot stand the sight of a good brie that had been decimated by people who just want the best part.