*skips paragraph about how much I love cheese cos I’ve written it about eight gazillion times before*
A few weeks back, G decided – just for the hell of it – he would take the afternoon off. I skipped Friday-afternoon novel writing and we headed across the road to The Bishop’s Cave, the new cheese and wine bar that has opened in St Albans.
I mean I basically did a little wee, I was so excited.
The Bishop’s Cave is half deli, half bar and serves cheese, wine and craft beer. The décor is all exposed brickwork and low beams and the moment you walk in, you’re faced with a huge cheese counter with at least 40 different types of cheese. Get in my belly.
The inside stretches out towards the back into a mini bar area that is a little more secluded and cannot be seen from the front. Like a cave. Get it, get it?!
SO, we got settled on a little table in the corner and ordered a glass of wine for me and some beer for G, at lunch time because we are a couple of leisure apparently.
The food menu is a mix of cheeseboard, cured meat board and antipasti. Obviously we went for the cheeseboard. You get to choose 3 cheeses from the counter and the staff are super knowledgeable and take the time to get to know what you like and advise you on what will suit your tastes. We picked a creamy brie, the beauvale (a soft blue) and the red wine farmer (a sweet, hard cheese with a subtle smoky taste). The board came with a wide selection of crackers (and we were advised which cheese went best with which), grapes and some chutney which we could pick ourselves. We went with the apple cider which went so well with the red wine farmer.
We also tried their scotch egg (solid, no complaints) and the antipasti which included stuffed bell peppers, marinated olives, feta and artichokes.
The atmosphere, drink and food were all great but the cheese, in particular, was so dreamy. I eat cheese on a regular basis – shocker – but there really is something about being advised on the best flavours and complimentary tastes that make it particularly good.
I already have a table booked to go again when my girls - and fellow cheese obsessives - visit in June.
Also, the background music had some banging tunes so there's that as well.
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