Forget your traditional cheese and wine bar, Mathew Carver, known for championing the best of British cheese, is ripping up the rulebook with Pick & Cheese, the world’s first cheese conveyer belt at the highly-anticipated Seven Dials Market in London WC2.
Opening in September 2019, Pick & Cheese will give each guest a bespoke cheese experience: plate after plate of small producer cheese will wind their way around the restaurant atop a 40 metre-long electronic belt, as diners follow Carver's suggested tasting flights, or simply help themselves to that day’s selection as it passes their table.
With space for 38 cheese-lovers, visitors to Pick & Cheese can choose from over 25 different cheeses, along with a selection of British charcuterie from Tottenham’s Blackhand Food. The cheese, all sourced from UK-based farms and urban cheesemakers, reflects Mathew’s continued passion for supporting small producers.
Each one will be paired with an individual, chef-driven condiment, from Coolea with Hazelnut Brittle, to Fresh Ricotta with Sherry Cherries; and handmade ceramic plates will be colour-coded to reflect different prices.
Cheese aficionados can pile up the plates as they wish, but for guests unsure of where to start, Carver has created tasting flights to guide them through the best of the blues, or from mild to wild – whatever takes their fancy.
Pick & Cheese will continue their producer-led focus with a list of natural wines from Les Caves de Pyrene. Specifically selected to pair with the cheeses, customers will be encouraged to venture out of their comfort zone with interesting wines by the glass, such as the new organic Pet Nat, from Davenport winery in Kent.
For those who prefer their cheese melted, diners can also order from a handful of off-belt hot dishes, with The Cheese Truck’s classic gooey grilled cheese sandwiches making an appearance on the menu. For something sweet, Pick & Cheese is teaming up with dessert heroes Happy Endings to dish up cheesy soft serve, with flavours like Baron Bigod Brie and Beauvale Blue in the pipeline.
Carver said, “We wanted to showcase British cheese at its best, while giving our customers the opportunity to hand-pick their cheese from our house list. We hope Pick & Cheese will make amazing produce even more accessible, and help change the perception of what a cheese and wine bar has to be!”
Pick & Cheese is the latest trader revealed to be joining London’s newest food hall, Seven Dials Market, when it opens its doors this September. From the capital’s leading street food organisation KERB, Seven Dials Market will welcome 26 of London’s best independent food and drink businesses, including entrepreneurs who served their very first dish at one of KERB’s markets.
The impressive 19th century former banana storage building St Thomas Neal’s Warehouse will be home to a London centric food and drink book shop, live entertainment stage and fresh produce market, as well as serving up some of London’s hottest new dishes. Opening on Earlham Street, the market joins Seven Dials’ intriguing network of seven streets that links Covent Garden to Soho and is part of the vibrant district in the heart of London’s West End.