The Cheese Store of San Diego

I love love love cheese! This was cheese heaven! I was here for my friend’s bday and the large group had the whole place to ourselves! The servers were so great, catering to our every whim and need! My wine glass was never empty! There was cheese and fruit on the table the moment we arrived and there was plenty to look at on the walls while checking out the place! Lots of fun cheese facts.
I had the grilled cheese and tomato soup. So yummy! I will definitely be back for more cheese very soon!

My man & I stopped here after a day walking around downtown. Adorable, quaint little shop with outdoor seating. The service is excellent and the sandwiches are superb and huge! This will definitely be on our «keeper» list. ps. These are the kind of people that are good for the community.

Beautiful cheese shop that serves the best grilled cheese & tomato soup I’ve ever had. I will definitely be back for the cheese 101 class they offer.

I am so in love with this place! I was in town this last weekend for my 30^th birthday and we just stumbled upon this place and decided to try it. I for sure will be going here again when I return to San Diego. I had the mixed green salad with turkey and it was probably one fo the best salads I have ever had! It was super fresh and topped with mozzerella they make fresh yum!

I’m finally back to sunny San Diego! With my foodie friend greeting me with open arms, we went to this spot for a late lunch. The interior was so welcoming with its hand crafted cheese accessories proudly displayed on its wooden shelves and the cheese counter glimmering with endless possibilities.
We ended up ordering sandwiches — the grilled cheese and the prosciutto and mozzarella. She got the tomato soup and after she tasted it, automatically got up and got me one as well. It was that good. My prosciutto was on the smaller side (the description did say crudo), but every bite was just as delicious. We each had a glass of wine that paired well with our dishes.
Overall, a wonderful visit and a wonderful, cozy homage to fromage. I would come back again to try their meat and cheese plate.

I get the Frenchie with a cup of tomato soup (which I dipped my sandwich into, of course). The tomato soup has this cheesy bit on top that is so freaking good. Like the corners of the lasagna pan good. Everything is so high-​quality and delicious. Their shop is full of great gifts for foodies. I left with a half pound of the best bleu cheese I’ve ever tasted, and I’m planning to go back for some of that fancy heavenly French butter they have.

I’m a cheese lover so how can you go wrong with a store specifically centered around cheese?! Stopped by with the hubby to check the place out and discovered they served food here. Thought I’d go more traditional with the Caprese panini and I wanted to try the tomato soup, so ordered a cup. The husband ordered their mac and cheese and Cubano sandwich. The Caprese was outstanding! A perfect melt of pesto, cheese and tomato in between nicely toasted bread. The tomato soup was so flavorful and on the even included what appeared to be a parmesan crisp on top. It had already started melting when I got the soup but that made it even better! When we ordered, they warned us that the mac and cheese took 20 minutes due to cook time, but it ended up coming out not too long after we started eating our sandwiches so it worked out perfect. An amazing blend of cheeses, pasta and topped with some crispy and nicely seasoned bread crumbs. My husband enjoyed his Cubano sandwich too and said it was filled the perfect amounts of cheeses and meats and had a nice spice to it.
I was later asking about pairing wine and cheese and they offered for me to bring in my wines and they’d help craft the perfect pairings for each bottle! Friendly staff, and super knowledgeable. This place can easily be missed as it’s a cute little shop that’s almost hidden, but don’t miss out. Parking can be a pain, so it’s probably best to park elsewhere and walk, but they do offer call ahead ordering and they’ll bring it to you when you arrive! I’m also on their email list and they offer cheese inspired dinners approximately once a month on Sundays and other great specials! Can’t wait to try another cheesy creation from this place.

Review is late.
Came here for a pop up dinner as a birthday surprise in October. 5 course meal each having cheese along with a wine pairing. To say the least it was an event to remember! Each course was beyond words to describe and the atmosphere was just fun and inviting. Will try to go to one of their pop ups again as soon as I can for sure!

The cheese store did not disappoint. We ordered the meat and cheese platter And it was amazing. They included their homemade mustard which I paired with the mustard seeds on their tasty bread which complimented the chosen meats and cheeses perfectly. We also enjoyed some delicious wine can’t wait to go back!

I have to say… customer service is everything to me. And this place does it so well, I couldn’t give them anything less than 5 stars. First let me start with the food… I ordered the basic grilled cheese and tomato soup. Everything was delicious! I don’t find myself craving this in particular, but it was really good. One of my co-​workers ordered the cheese board and it looked amazing! My other co-​worker ordered the mac and cheese. The mac and cheese seemed really dry. For a place known for their cheese, the cheese was lacking. He expressed to the waitress that he wasn’t pleased with it and ordered a grilled cheese instead. The waitress came back with his money back. Thennnn, the owner came out to apologize and let us know that it was a dry batch and hopes that we come back for a different batch another day. And thennnnn, a third worker who brought out the new grilled cheese came out and apologized profusely as well. That’s pretty amazing customer service. Sometimes, an apology is well worth the dry mac and cheese :). Definitely coming back here!

ALWAYS a fan of cheese… they make an awesome Grilled Cheese with your choice of cheese and bread.
Parking not great… but walking in this area is great. Plenty of window shopping after lunch.

Let me start by saying that this is not just a fancy cheese store. We went in there for lunch and had a Cuban sandwich, Banh Mi sandwich, and their coleslaw. We left super impressed by the taste and quality of their food. They prepare their own pickled vegetables in-​house, use only high quality meats, and the cheeses are top notch.
I work in Little Italy and this place will definitely be on my lunch rotation.

My dream come true place~~Formaggio my love! Bright beautiful & inviting shop that has bountiful selections of exquisite cheese. So happy to have found this unique place of cheese heaven, they serve lunch as well, but this was the perfect stop for us, it made for a short & sweet delightful snack. Staff was helpful and we sampled several cheeses and ended up ordering Monger’s Cheese Board! ~~ Simply Lovely~~We cant wait for our return! Ciao

We stopped in here since we were in the area before our later dinner reservation.
We ordered a bottle of red wine ($ 29 bottle) and the cheese platter ($ 16). I honestly cannot tell good wine apart from great excellent wine or expensive cheese apart from regular store bought Trader Joes cheese. It all tasted pretty good or okay. I just really enjoyed the company and good conversation.
Side note: it would be nice if the cheese platter included either burrata or mozzarella since those are my favorite cheeses!

I have to tell you, this place makes one mean Caprese with freshly made Gioia Mozzarella, an amazing pine nut pesto, perfectly ripe juicy Roma tomatoes, and served on a pressed French Bread for only $ 9 and a cup of «The Tomato Soup» for $ 5.
This caprese was absolutely one of the best I have ever had and every component in the sandwich played a role in its success. First, the pine nut pesto spread was absolutely luxurious and packed is flavor. The basil flavor was fresh and clean, the pine nuts were nutty and mildly sweet, and the Romano cheese added a great salty element. However, the pesto had an excellent viscosity from a very good quality olive oil, not to mention the oils flavor.
The Gioia Mozzarella was very delicate and delicious. Melted, it had a creamy consistency with a great fresh dairy flavor, and the best part was that they put plenty of it on the caprese. I was very pleased with the Roma tomatoes. I don’t know were they got them, but I sure hope they continue to get them from the same place. Great tomatoes. Finally, the French bread had a great grilled which gave the sandwich a terrific crunchy exterior. Also, it was heated so well, that the pesto and mozzarella came bursting through whatever crevasse it could find.
The tomato soup was bliss. The soup was very cream and a had a red vibrant color, but most important of all, it had great flavor. The tomato flavor was rich in flavor with a very mild acidity, very well seasoned, and came with just a bit of an herb flavor. I really enjoyed the Parmesan cheese crisp that came along with the soup. It was very crispy, nutty, and salty. It was a smart garnish for the soup.
The young ladies who were running the cheese and sandwich shop when I visited were awesome.

This place is incredible. We stumbled upon it after walking out of Underbelly and despite our being stuffed full of ramen we had to check it out. Aaron helped us and was so nice! He gave us two samples of brie (my favorite was the triple brie). They had an amazing selection. I would love to return so I can try the prosciutto I had my eye on!

Located on Kettner Street next to Café Gratitude in Little Italy, you’ll find The Cheese Store of San Diego. You can still visit their booth at the Little Italy Mercato on Saturday mornings, but now you can also indulge in mac n’cheese and grilled cheese (and other sandwiches and soup) from their brick and mortar location. Staff is friendly and provides you with plenty of reasons to visit — $ 9 sandwich and side between noon-​1 pm on Tuesdays. Happy Hour is Tuesday-​Friday from 4 – 6 pm. Plus classes to learn about cheese. And yes, they serve wine and cheese boards! What more could you want? Besides the cheese you can purchase, you can also pick up some jam and honey. I first got to sample some of the Cheese Store’s offerings during the Taste of Little event. This place is one with the community it serves and it shows.

Really cute new restaurant/​shop in Little Italy! Loved the décor and setup. I ordered the grilled cheese for lunch and it was delicious! I was a bit disappointed in the size of the grilled cheese as it was rather small, but the service was nice and friendly! I will definitely be back for the Mac and cheese!

Do you like cheese? Well they have every kind of cheese you can imagine. Hard soft stinky! They have it all! They also have a cute little lunch menu with grilled cheese and tomato soup! Classic comfort combo!
It is right aorund the corner form my work so I will be heading back there lots!

I was in Little Italy yesterday and saw that the Cheese Store of San Diego was having their soft opening. We went inside and I was impressed by how cute the shop looks! The friendly staff greeted us right away and offered us samples. They have a large selection of unique cheeses and I had to stop myself from getting carried away.
They have a food menu and if I wasn’t already satisfied from my $ 1 oysters at Ironside, I would have wanted to try some of their dishes. I bought ¼th lb (the smallest size they sell) of one of their bries that I had sampled. It was really buttery and tasty and I can’t wait to snack on it later!
I really like that my receipt has a description of the cheese and suggestions of what to eat /​sip with it. Such a great touch!
I wish this was open when I was living in Little Italy but I will try to visit if I’m in the area again! Best wishes for sucess, Cheese Store of San Diego!