Cheese, please

[Fat Guy]

May I ask you to expound a bit on cheese? I'm very interested in your thoughts on the importance of cheese, the current state of cheese in New York City and the United States, and your cheese program including how you have integrated it into your menu, particularly in Bar Demi. Also, do you organize any dinners or tastings around wine and cheese?

[VerbenaNYC]

Cheese for us is a very important and integral part of the dining experience. Not only do we employ it in several of our dishes served on the menu but we offer an eclectic variety of cheeses on our cheese board. We make it available to guest in both Bar Demi and Verbena.

Cheese in NY and the US in general has always played a prominant roll. Wheather it was the Velveta that formed so well around the hooks that we would use to catch fish on Sunday afternoons in MacArthur Park in LA or the Kraft singles we (most of us had in our lunch boxes as kids.

You could say that we have come a very long way baby.

I can remember when getting a taste of Brie was an exotic occasion and that Jarlsburg Swiss was so special.

Now that our palates have fast forwarded in this country at an alarming rate and thankfully so, we find that several of the few family farmers (that have mostly gone by the wayside - we are greatful to those holdouts and people who support them) are using artisinal, centuries old techniques to forge a great tradition of American farmstead cheese production. Due to our countries relative youth we are learning at an excelerated pace and this lack of experience gives us the courage to try many nontraditional methods that old world cheese makes would not (due mainly to a steadfast belief in tradition) What occurs can sometimes be dissapointing but is often exquisite. We encourage all cheese lovers to support our countries cheese makers by purchasing their products wheather on a cheese board at a Greenmarket or even from the farm direct. The quality can only continue to grow if we support the product. I do not mean to sound so patriotic but this is obviously an issue that I strongly believe in.

At the restaurant and Bar you can enjoy a selection of up to 18 cheeses at a given time. We shop at the best retailers in taown and several of the whosalers for the goey stuff. We also buy from the Greenmarket. A normal cheese plate is accompanied by a nine-grain bread which we bake in house and

two fruit pates. One is prune and date and the other is golden raising and dried apricot. They are an interesting counterpoint to help accentuate the cheeses charachter.

Bar Demi has hosted several wonderful cheese and beverage events that focus on anywhere from 6 to 14 varieties. We have had groups of friends book the bar for entire evening to enjoy a guilded tasting of great cheese, wine, ales and cidars. We find that it is an original and fun way to spend time with small groups of food focused people.

Our next cheese event that is open to the public is going to feature Steven Jenkins from Fairway. We are very syked to have wrangled his involvement. He will choose nine cheeses to bring with him and discuss and of course taste. We pair the cheese with small tastes from the kitchen and Vanessa and Aaron our Sommeliers do the beverage pairings and generate informative tasting notes. Any interest - it will be on Sunday, February 9 at 6pm. Reservations are very limited.

After all is said and done though we do not spurn the great European cheeses. In fact at any given time at least half if not more than half of our selection is from all over.