The Fine Cheese Shop

Had an opportunity to visit this tasty shop one year ago. Service was friendly and willing to take their time to insure a match for our tastes. I loved browsing the store and wished that it was closer to visit again and again.
Since my visit I have opted to use their online delivery service for gifts twice. My expectations have consistently been exceeded and I have loved the ease of online shopping and guaranteed delivery to my family in the UK.

Not so long ago, in my student days, I made ends meet working on the deli counter at Sainsbury’s. Actually, it was much longer ago than I care to count, but sometimes it’s nice to pretend that you are kind-​of still young.
And so, upon entering the excellent establishment that is The Bath Fine Cheese Shop, I thought that I would be able to hold my own when discussing the cheeses that had to offer with the counter staff.
Boy was I mistaken. These guys REEEALY know their stuff.
The lovely gent behind the counter, who when he realised he was dealing with a true cheese fan, proceeded to tell me that the shop receives CV’s from hopeful applicants that have been filled with cheese-​jokes and detailing their bountiful cheese knowledge. That is just how respected this place is!
Upon walking into the relatively tiny shop, you are presented with an array of hundreds of cheeses. So staggering is the sight, that you might think you have walked off Walcott street and straight into cheese-​narnia.
There are also shelves of bits and bibs to accompany the cheese, all of extremely high quality.
To the right of the shop, attached to it, there is a quant little café, the perfect place to sate your appetite after staring hungrily at the wall of cheese for a while.
The reason I found myself a considerable distance from the cheese shops of Bristol, was because I was hunting down the perfect cheeses to make up mine (and hubby’s) perfect cheese wedding cake. Our caterers, Topline Catering, order their cheeses though the Bath Fine Cheese Co, and suggested that we visit to make our all-​important decisions.
Incidentally, The Bath Fine Cheese Shop do their own cheese wedding cakes as a bespoke service, and offer their clients a private sit-​down tasting session to help them make their decisions.
However, as we were ordering our cheese through our caterers, they were unable to offer us this service. However, they DID give is absolutley brilliant service in the shop, and were excellent at sending us information and reccomendations via email to help us.
Hubby and I decided that the best approach to take was to hold several cheese tasting sessions at home with our groomsmen, who as fellow cheese lovers were significant stakeholders in the affair. The best man still maintains that the cheese tastings were the best part of the wedding planning, and that these sessions were his most valuable contribution to the day. He also and recalls that the the total destruction of the cheese cake on the wedding night was hands down the best part, and I have to say I sort-​of agree!
And so, I visited the Bath Fine Cheese Shop a total of three times, each time carefully selecting a different array of cheeses to take home and sample.
The counter staff, who were different people every time I visited, were always incredibly helpful. They spent a long time discussing with me the cheeses that would compliment, and the subtle differences between the cheeses on offer. They allowed me to sample a wide range to help me decide. They were always keen to make their own reccomendations, and I am glad they did, because most of the recommendations came up trumps.
Wonderful service. You always got the distinct impression that these guys love their jobs, and really believe in the shop itself, which is a really nice feeling — and a reason for me to keep supporting their business.
When we finally decided what would make up the perfect cheese wedding cake, it was like Einstein must have felt when he discovered the theory of relativity. A perfect peace of work. However, it came with the sadness that I didn’t have an immediate reason to go back for another trip.
Happily, I have been back to the cheese shop since. In fact, only last month did the Bath Fine Cheese Shop hold a free cheese tasking festival in milsoms place. Bringing together all of their local suppliers, allowing the public to taste and buy.
I brought a foodie friend along with me, and we went away with wide (cheesy) grins, full bellies, and handbags full of cheese.
So great was the thought if the cheese in our handbags during that afternoons shopping trip, that we had to stop in a pub garden to crack open the cheese over a glass of red.
So, in short, if you like cheese — you really gotta give this place a go!

For ordering; unreliable, then a bit snotty, then didn’t do enough to make me ever go back again.
Hi, I ordered some cheese for my father’s birthday. They didn’t deliver. When I called to chase this up, I had quite a stroppy sounding girl telling me it was probably the delivery company’s job and she didn’t have to answer the phone, etc.
I finally got a call from the lady who runs sales, explained it was their fault and then allowed me the pleasure of re-​ordering their product. But, to be honest, I would have appreciated and forgiven them if they had added another lump of something. It’s what I would do.
I’m the kind of foodie that’s a long term customer. But you haven’t done enough to get me back and you come across as if you don’t care.
Bit sad, really.

The Fine Cheese Shop is my idea of food heaven. The right side of the shop is a charming little café serving breakfasts, lunches and gorgeous cakes, while the left side is a fully fledged cheese shop with crackers, breads and pickles.
The café serves tasty toasted sandwiches and salads on attractive porcelain plates designed by local artists. Their coffees are rich and delicious, as are their ginormous cakes (which are rich in price as well as flavour). In summer you’ll be able to sit outside the shop or in the yard out the back, but I personally like to sit itself at their pretty pastel tables and smell the delicious foodie smells inside.
The shop is a cheese-​lovers paradise stocking everything from Gorgonzola to Roquefort. The shop assistants are wonderfully helpful and will give you advice if you need it, as well as plenty of free samples. (They do this when they expect you’ll be buying something at the end of it). I love to peruse their range of tasty crackers and chutneys to accompany your purchases. It’s a great place to visit before a dinner party with people you want to impress.

Just awesome — what more can one say. Thanks Anne Marie.

This business is really two in one, a first rate shop which sells, unsurprisingly, a range of unusual artisan cheeses together with some wonderful biscuits, pickles etc. There are also some very good chorizo and the like. The service is informed, and as the previous reviewer mentioned, you can try before you buy. Then there is a coffee shop, which does very good sandwiches and cakes and a range of dishes which change daily. The coffee is really wonderful. On the downside you will pay top dollar, and the coffee shop is small, some of the seating arrangements are best suited to yoga afficianados with a steady hand! You would be hard pressed to find better quality though.

This is possibly my favourite shop in the world.
The array of cheeses (plus salami, ham, other deli good) is huge, you can try anything before you buy, the advice from the staff is spot on (can you recommend a couple of nice eating cheeses to have with wine? — perfect result).
There’s also a coffee shop section with very good croissant and cakes — a favourite Saturday morning breakfast venue.
Luxury hampers if you’re very rich, I’ve not actually seen one in real life