Country Cheese

I am so so sad they closed down-​I have not been there in a while and it sounds odd but he had the best almost Vegan cheese it had ½ % weigh which was fine with me as my veganism is more of a lactose issue than anything lse but it was amazing and it melted I wanted to buy some about 6 months ago and saw he closed-​Please Mario contact your loyal customers when you re-​open

We love the cheeseman here at Madusalon

Sadly he has to move the shop — a CHASE bank is moving into our neighborhood and the truffle shop and the cheese shop have to move. It’s exactly what I hate about chain banks and stores (taking space away from family owned places).
But I think he will stay close by — not sure yet where he is moving.

Mario and the crew have run a great shop. I’m sad to see this location go especially since it’s so close, but I’ll be visiting them again wherever they end up re-​opening.
Rumor has it they’ve been able to squeeze another week of being able to stay open, so you should run to this store and buy all you can.
There are still some amazing cheeses left, and of course the selection of nuts, crackers and other snack odds and ends are draws on their own.
Just save the king sized malt balls for me!

Like Five Star Truffles, Country Cheese has been evicted from its Divisadero building. The family run biz has been there for 26 years! It sounds like they’re hopeful to stay in the area which I would love, but more than anything I hope they find a space they are happy with in a neighborhood that will appreciate them.
This place goes beyond the cheese with all the necessary bulk items I need in my pantry. Rainbow grocery is cool, but who really needs 95% of the bulk items in that store? I get all my staples like brown rice, dried beans, lentils, quinoa, baking ingredients, and spices here. I’m not a cheese person but since it’s not all pre-​packaged, you can buy as little or as much as you want. Same with their delicious pâté selection.
I hope to update this review soon with good news of their move.

Mario is the owner of this business and I have to say — this guy knows his cheese! I’m very sad to hear the news that they are «temporarily» closing! Mario is a hard worker and has been at this for 23 years! I can walk in there on any given day and say «Mario — I’m making this dish or I’m thinking of making this what kind of cheese would you suggest — and hands down each time — a match made meal»
Not only does he carry the best cheeses, he also has a candy section that carries the most addicting chocolate covered raisins and chocolate malt balls EVER — that can cure any bad day!
I am in support of the local shops in my community — and with no exception when Country Cheese opens up in his new location I’ll definitely be following!
Best of luck Mario!

I HEART Country Cheese and Mario. That’s saying a lot for someone who doesn’t eat cheese. I go here often to get wheatberries, black beans, whole black peppers, rice, granola, and pasta. This is the best place to go for grains and spices. The price is AMAZING and the service is UNBEATABLE!!!
Everyone should go at least once, I dare you to not come back.

Forced to close 2011.
This was a Local family run busines. What a shame. Shame on Chase bank for ruining a charming element of our neighborhood. Big corporation don’t give a crap about keeping the charm of San Francisco neighborhoods. Chase could have taken over the empty and sizable space on the corner that had be vacant for a long time. But no, they wanted to take over the two businesses next to the space.
Mario [great personality and such a friendly man] was forced to close shop after the landlord gave him a 30 day notice because Chase Bank wanted the space (Also, the truffle shop next door was evicted as well and moved shop on 18^th street in the Castro across from the Post Office). This is a travesty because two locally business owners (men of color) were contributed to the very gentrified new NOPA area on Divisadero Street. After the Post All closed (that was one of the very few business’ on this newly developed corridor that were owned by men of color (black & Latin Americans). What a loss to the New NOPA-​dazation and newly high rents in this area.
Back to Mario: Mario is the owner and is exceptionally friendly and really engages the customers. Mario added charm and a great person to have an insightful conversation with. He was so knowledgeable and remembered your name and all over your life stories. What a man.
The place is a little sparse but they usually have what I am seeking.
I love the small selections of cheeses, bulk flower, nuts, spices, fruit and olives etc. It is clean and just a great addition to the neighborhood where their are only a few produce and fresh food options. If you have any questions about cheeses, Mario will be happy to help you find the right cheese.
Warning: Don’t go in then that lady with the short hair is working there. Rude, Rude, Rude. Problem: They have a women with short black hair working there who used to be pregnant that is not friendly, rude has hell and lacks personality. I don’t go in there when she is there alone I wait till Mario is there alone. Sometimes his girlfriend works there, she is nice, so go in when she is there.

Strolled into here yesterday and was surprised to find out that it had been in this same spot for 25 years. I’ve driven by it over a thousand times (on Divisadero btwn Fell/​Oak). Signage is limited and the front windows have been tagged with acid (why do these dickheads go around doing that?). Shop seems lost in time, but the selection of cheeses is good and bulk items (dried goods) was suprising diverse and interesting. The woman working the shop when we walked in was incredibly nice. Gave us a taste of a über mild goat gouda that was divine. Got some for dinner tomorrow. Also got some fresh ricotta and dates.
I’ll be back if I’m in the neigbhood.

When I lived in SF I would get a baguette, some bulk pasta, beans or nuts here.
Nearby there is a Asian fruit stand which can have some great prices for produce. This is the best place for cheap shopping in the area.

Country Cheese is good for the dried spices and fruit. For $ 8 we got what would have easily cost $ 30+ at a grocery store.
However, while the cheese section spans an entire wall, it could easily fit into 2 – 3 glass-​door refrigerators. As some of the other reviewers mentioned, you could find a better selection at Whole Foods!
That doesn’t mean I won’t be back. The women who were there are friendly and there are plenty of cheap bulk dried goods. I just won’t come to purchase cheese.

This place is amazing. My guess is the bad reviews from Nish and his Unilocal employees about Country Cheese are a result of the owner refusing to pay up for positive Unilocal reviews. This is a major complaint (
) about Unilocal and I wouldn’t be surprised if Unilocal tried to strong arm another small business with their despicable tactics.
I’ve been shopping at County Cheese for 13 years and NEVER had a bad experience. Everything I have bought here has been fresh and delicious. The prices are good and the service is fantastic.

A good, solid, inexpensive cheese store where I have NEVER gotten bad service (unlike many other cheese stores in SF). The other reviewers who’ve pointed out that this store doesn’t carry a huge selection of cheeses is correct, but they do carry a lot of cheeses I really enjoy, and often are priced less expensively than Safeway, which I think is pretty awesome! I’ve NEVER seen mold on the cheese I’ve purchased, nor has it been wrapped in a slimy anything. I know it’s not fancy, but I really like the Fromage d’Affinois…delish!
They also have bulk grains, etc., which is a great attribute of this retail establishment. I’ve purchased Arborio rice here along with my cheese and gone home to make risotto! And I’ve purchased entire meals here, too: a triple cream, a loaf of french bread, and a bar of chocolate… Yum!

I LOVE this place! I used to live around the corner and went in at least once a week. I now live across the city and get misty every time I think about how good I once had it. Little did I know that my cheese-​filled bliss would be taken away quicker than you can say «I’m moving to the Mish.»
My love of cheese continues, even as my options for delicious, smelly cheese decline. My heart yearns for the cheesy goodness that can only be found in this lovely little shop.
PS — Mario is a total flirt. Does anyone know if the woman at the shop is his wife or his sister?

Good selection; friendly service.
The french goat cheese with edible rine was deelicious; and proved to be a winner, when crumbled on a salad. I recommend a 2005 Heritages Cotes Du Rhone, Caves De Papes. Let it breathe for 20 minutes though or it won’t bloom. Available at Safeway for a steal: $ 7.99
The guy there made this excellent recommendation. Reasonable prices compared to Whole Foods. Not far from Oak/​Divis intersection. I’ll return.
He even has San Guiliano Olive oil (so sweet, you can drink it in a wine glass) Too bad, he doesnt stock wine.

This is a sad, sad place, where cheeses must go to die. Gourmet cheeses deserve better treatment and presentation.
The rest of the store is a mish mash of barrel foods, like granola and dried fruits. Strange mixture in a very inelegant layout. I am surprised the store remains in business.

I heart cheese.
I heart cheese so much that one of my daddy’s nicknames for me is «mouse». I will grind on cheese all day long if given the opportunity. When I go to France my cheese consumption is legendary.
In short, I knows my cheese and cheese purveyors.
I used to live a scant few blocks from this heavenly cheese mecca. I came here so often that the owner would put aside my staple (La Tur, a triple blend of goat, sheep and cow milk) for me. Additionally I would buy 2 or more other cheeses that were unfamiliar or at least moderately different and some accompaniments. Olives, dried fruits, crackers, bread, chocolate. I’ve had it all. Natch.
Friendly staff and reasonable prices.
My little nose is twitching at the idea of some La Tur right now.

There are three things you’d learn FAST if you were to spend a week with me.
1. I am THE BIGGEST slob EVAR. I am a nightmare mess.
2. I am a junk food junkie and late-​night snacker. I am up all night long shoving salty, greasy trans-​fat laden crap by the handfuls down my pretty little piehole.
3. I LOVE CHEESE. LOVE IT. Chevre, bleu, triple crème, double crème, washed-​rind, ash-​rind, semi-​soft, hard. You name it I will eat it all.
Because of the addiction noted in item 3 above and the habit noted in 2 above, I am constantly on the hunt for a new dealer. Country Cheese Company happens to be in my hood, so my partner-​in-​snacking and I headed their way this afternoon. It’s actually a fairly large shop. They have TONS of bulk grains, dried goods, and (weird) granolas. Like, they have about eight drum-​barrels of different granolas one can purchase in bulk. Friendly staff, a small selection of boxed dry goods and canned/​jarred condiments and spreads. Just one question: Where’s the Cheese? There is a refrigerated area lining one wall. With a sparse selection of cheeses, mostly focusing on pretty typical, boring varieties that one can easily find at other establishments. Prices were okay but nothing spectacular. Brie de mieaux seemed to be a deal and they had a mixed-​milk italian triple crème on hand that you’ll be hard pressed to find anywhere else but Say Cheese in Cole Valley.
Lady McCheese, silently manning the register area never really made eye contact with me or spoke to anyone in the store but she was quick and efficient and I’m sure she was just busy attending to cheese-​related business.
Nice store but a real let-​down if you go in taking the name literally.

This place is pretty good, but I think would be better if they just focused on cheese. The bulk foods nearly outshine the cheese and is a little scary since they don’t have a ton of customers. (Just how long have those oats been in that cardboard bin?)
They have some manchego and other sheep cheeses that are to die for, when I asked about fresh mozzarella in bulk (rather than in packaging) they didn’t even know that existed. (Check Golden Produce for that, across from the olive bar on the bottom shelf of the fridge next to the freezer. You’re welcome.) We just bought a pecorino from there which was very sub-​par. However, their fresh ricotta is a sweet, creamy dream. I’m also not sure about the pre cut chunks that are wrapped in saran. I’d like to think that the proper procedure is more along the lines of cutting the quantity you want from the big wheel. The pre-​saran wrap just turns me off. I also think that they should have a better selection of cheese accompaniment products. I.e. better selection of (and just plain better) bread and crackers.
However, the staff are pleasant, fairly knowledgeable and helpful.

Some things I can’t forget. Like the first time my crush talked to me (my heart nearly leapt out of my too tight Christmas-​themed turtleneck), my first rated R movie (My Cousin Vinny), my first snickers bar, my first detention,… and the first day that my mother made me go to an after-​school program in 6^th grade.
I can remember the latter too well. It was humiliating. I can still hear the muffled giggles as the school bell rang, and all of my friends slung their backpacks onto their shoulders and ran out of the school doors. I, on the other hand just sat on the front steps with my brother, as we waited for our after school teachers to collect us. We pouted in silence.
My mom had taken on a job at the hospital. She stayed late, and sometimes just slept there. Concerned that my brother and I would unleash eye gouging, hair pulling, and upper-​cut frenzies on each other if she left us alone together (because we did), she enrolled us in an after school program, consisting of three kindergardeners, my brother, and me.
It was basically babysitting with rules and a schedule. Yuck.
I was in sixth grade!!! Sixth grade meant automatic cool factor, I’d waited six years for this title. But… here I was at the peak of my elementary-​hood —with a planned «homework time», «snack time,» «craft time, and… nap time!
Each week-​day after the school bell had rung, two elderly women would assemble all five of us into a small musty classroom and coo at us, while they made us play with glitter, and eat tiny packets of raisins and nuts. My face would squish up and both my brother and I would throw away our raisins immediately. Making loud dramatic noises as we pushed them down into the trash. Those raisins were insulting. My fingers couldn’t even fit inside the box. Sixth graders don’t eat dried fruit.
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But years later… and trying to give up candy for Lent (‘trying’ being the operative word) I find myself wandering into Country Cheese, looking for the very food that I used to despise so vehemently back in elementary school — dried fruit.
I’ve walked past Country Cheese countless time. This weekend I finally pushed through their see-​through doors. Inside are big barrels of all sorts of nuts and grains. On the far opposite wall to these barrels are large glass refrigerators with different shapes and flavors of cheese. I stayed away from the cheese.
I stuck with their dried food. Country Cheese has a formidable array of healthy snacks ranging from: trail mix, dried apricots, dried bananas, yogurt covered rasins, yougurt covered almonds, mint chocolate covered almonds… the list goes on. Their prices are fairly reasonable too. Nearly all of their snacks are ideal for when you’re feeling like a mid-​day sugar fix, and don’t want to cram artificial sweeteners into your body. I highly recommend stocking up on some dried apricots and bananas during the weekend before the work week.
The man helping me at the counter was very friendly and attentive. I grabbed my bag of trail mix and hurried over to my nearby friend’s place. Once there, I punctured a small hole in the bag, and worked out the raisins and dried coconut as best I could, from the plastic with my cumbersome fingers.
Sitting cross-​legged on her bed, snacking on the sweet dried morsels, while watching Jennifer Hudson’s acceptance speech, I thought about all the raisins I had once sacrificed to a glitter covered trash can.
The California Raisin troop would have cried. So many delicious innocents lost for the sake of sixth grade pride.