Truckle Cheesemongers has graduated from pop-up shop to permanent location, and they’ve got plenty of cheese available for your sampling delight, from mild cheeses to the kind of intense flavors you cheese nerds crave.
Richmond cheese-lovers might have a new favorite store in the city. The city’s newest cheese shop, Truckle Cheesemongers, opened this past Tuesday in Scott’s Addition. The small, one-room shop is located in the same building as Blue Bee Cider, at 1320 Summit Avenue.
Truckle Cheesemongers is actually much older than its new shop. Owner Maggie Bradshaw has been running classes and pop-up shops at other Richmond establishment since 2016.
“The dream has always been to open a dedicated cheese shop,” said Bradshaw. “And so when this opportunity came up… it was the perfect storm of, ‘Okay, this is actually doable.’”
The shop serves grilled-cheese sandwiches and charcuterie boards, custom-ordered by customers. They offer a selection of over 26 cheeses, ranging from mild cheeses like brie to intense, punchy blue cheeses and their own custom beer cheese mixture, made with locally brewed beers.
“I think any good counter, you need to have super mild stuff… that’s super approachable,” said Bradshaw. “And then you also need to add more challenging cheeses, for people who want to have something that’s going to knock ‘em around a little bit.”
The shop serves several meats to pair with the cheese, and customers are expected to enjoy their cheese with a cider from the bar just across the hall. Unfortunately, Truckle Cheesemongers is not a very large location, so any available seating for customers is outside-only.
In addition to serving cheeses straight from the shop, Truckle Cheesemongers also offers a “cheese-share” service. It’s a lot like a loot-box service, except that customers are required to pick up their boxes. For $35 a month, customers receive a selection of three different cheeses, chosen by the owner, and a variety of fruits and nuts, with suggestions for what foods and drinks to pair the cheeses with.
With their new location, Truckle Cheesemongers is no longer limited to pop-up shops and catering events. Now they are free to hold events at their own store, where they already held their first charcuterie party on opening day. Bradshaw says that she has more parties and events in mind for customers who purchase the cheese-share subscription.
Come get knocked around by some gourmet cheese at Truckle Cheesemongers, at 1320 Summit Ave in Scott’s Addition. It’s open from 9 AM to 8 PM, seven days a week. Or catch up with them online at trucklerva.com.
Photos by Jonah Schuhart
