Oakland’s Market Hall Foods has been a destination for food lovers since opening in 1987. Originally named The Pasta Shop, it has endeared itself to its affluent neighborhood by supplying top-of-the-line pasta, olive oils, vinegars, prepared foods and—most notably for me—cheese. Under the guidance of cheesemonger Juliana Uruburu (above), who was 18 when she started working there, Market Hall Foods has become one of the nation’s most influential cheese merchants. Now, after a store remodel, this terrific counter has gotten even better, with a more accessible and inviting setting and more room for shoppers and staff. “It’s everything I wanted for it—open, airy and not tucked in a corner,” says owner Sara Wilson.
I recently interviewed Uruburu, now retail programs director, about the past 38 years in artisan cheese. Not surprisingly given her work history, she had plenty to say about “then versus now” on her side of the counter. Our conversation has been edited for clarity and brevity.
How many cheeses do you typically stock and what is your import/domestic ratio?
New and improved: cheese shop at Market Hall Foods
I’m comfortable saying 200 and I’m guessing it’s 30 percent domestic. But between one-third and one-half of our selection will be completely different in a month. When we’re doing an American promotion, we’re two-thirds domestic. When we do Spain, we’ll have 75 Spanish cheeses. We’ve trained our team to turn product.
What was the cheese counter like in the early days?
We pre-cut everything. We didn’t understand cut to order. We sold a lot of Brie. We had Parmigiano Reggiano, pecorino romano, provolone…the top 10 Italian cheeses. Getting Taleggio was really exciting. We had the top 10 Spanish cheeses, but when we ordered Manchego, we didn’t know what we were going to get—young? medium? aged?
When people said they wanted fresh goat cheese, they wanted Montrachet and Bucheron—French commodity cheeses. Teaching people to eat goat’s milk and sheep’s milk cheeses took some time.
Cheese was an ingredient back then. Remember Stilton cheesecake? But by the early 2000s, people were into cheese for cheese.
How are today’s cheese customers different?
People travel more and do a lot of research now. They want to have something special and secretive, and they want a deeper relationship with the cheese. Where is it from and who makes it?
German rock-star cheesemakers Albert Kraus (left) and Norbert Sieghart at a Market Hall Foods meet-the-makers event with a starstruck cheese blogger.
Are they more adventurous now?
Absolutely. They know so much more. They grill our staff. In the past, I had to wait for the right time to call Europe so I could get on the phone with someone. We didn’t have information at our fingertips. It could take a week or two to get answers. I literally used to write letters to cheesemakers.
What questions did shoppers ask in the past that they don’t ask anymore?
The late 90s was the beginning of the buzzwords—artisanal, farmstead, organic. But people don’t ask about organic anymore. Now, customers understand that we know these producers.
People were scared of mold, and they didn’t understand cheese classifications. One of the funniest questions we get—and it’s sort of a joke in the industry—is when they hold up a hard cheese and say, “Is this a Brie?”
People still don’t understand different milk types (cow, goat, sheep). They don’t understand how that can affect flavor, aroma, texture, even meltability.
Did the pandemic change your cheese counter in any lasting ways?
During Covid, people stopped talking about cheese. They didn’t want to hear the stories. They didn’t want tastings. They would just come in and buy big pieces of cheese. It’s fifty-fifty now. Some people want to read the signs, and we’re really trying to bring that type of service back—sharing stories, feeding people, to truly be a service counter. Let us entertain you and teach you.
We don’t do passive sampling anymore (sampling stations where shoppers help themselves). We actively sample. It’s safer.
How has your merchandising changed over the years?
We were one of the first shops to sell Neal’s Yard Dairy cheeses, and they talked to us about hand cutting, about how to store cheese and maintain a healthy environment, and how to wrap cheese, which is so important. So at that point we started doing more hand cutting. Nothing stays wrapped more than three days. If any cheese has been in wrap for three days, we unwrap it, scrape it and rewrap it.
We buy Gorgonzola Dolcelatte by the whole drum. Most stores buy a 1/8 cut. When you open a whole drum and trim off the top and use an ice-cream scoop, you can sell a whole wheel in one afternoon. It’s entertainment, drama. People love big wheels.
We change our display weekly so that customers see something different every time. Our cheese counter is taken down every day and we re-set every case daily.
Any ideas you’ve tried that didn’t work?
We tried to do gift boxes. And we tried a cheese-of-the-month program, but it’s so hard. With shipping, and being in a warmer climate, we just couldn’t make it work financially.
What cheeses at your counter are underappreciated?
Uruburu favorite: Mothais sur Feuille
I wish people would buy more Parmigiano Reggiano to eat as cheese and not just use as a finishing cheese. And Zimbro—it’s one of those Portuguese cheeses I flip for. Every cheese board should have a wrinkly-rind Geotrichum cheese, whether it’s a delicacy from Vermont Creamery or a traditional goat cheese from the Loire Valley. It’s a lesser-known category and for sure my favorite. Mothais sur Feuille! I could sell one to every customer.
When you visit other cheese counters, what impresses you…or distresses you?
I love a clean “glass wrap” on a cheese. A glass wrap is when you wrap cheese in clear cellophane with zero wrinkles. It doesn’t look like it’s wrapped. The reason you want this is that if you have wrinkles, the wrap will gather moisture in those wrinkles and mold will grow.
I love seeing how people make signage, where they put the emphasis, what they have to say about cheese. I love seeing the accompaniments they have. I’m always looking for local products. It’s important that mongers are talking about pairings and asking whether the cheese is being served before the meal or after.
Give me an example of what you suggest before the meal versus cheese at the end.
I would serve a fresh, high-moisture goat cheese with bright acidity before a meal, and I would pair it with fresh produce. When guests walk in and see something fresh, it’s enticing. So many customers come in and say, “I’ll have a Brie, some Gouda and salami as a starter.” That’s too much food. You want to entice people with fresh, bright, light flavors to start a meal. At the end of the meal, you want slow-eating, dense, concentrated cheeses, like washed rinds and blues and nutty alpine cheeses. And you pair those with honey and jams, ginger cookies, dark chocolate, dried fruit. You’re not hungry after the meal, but you’re still entertaining the palate. You’re dancing around.
When we learn some simple pairing rules, it makes cheesemongering more effective.
So…what are some simple pairing rules?
Something fatty plus something acidic. Salami with goat cheese is one of my all-time favorite pairings. Or goat cheese with fatty smoked salmon. Acidity cleanses the fat, but if you have too much acidity—like goat cheese, strawberries and white wine—it will strip your palate.
Perfect pair: High-acid goat cheese with smoked salmon
Fresh, high-moisture cheeses with fresh, high-moisture foods. Dense and concentrated cheeses with dense and concentrated foods. Take Uplands Pleasant Ridge Reserve. It has a complexity you want to match. You’re not going to put fresh strawberries with it, but you could put strawberry jam. They’re equal in weight.
Cheese counters have improved so much in the past decades. But is there anything we have lost? I’m thinking of those contraband raw-milk cheeses from France that we used to get.
I’m straight as an arrow. We’ve had opportunities to bring in illegal cheese and we have always said no. Other people used to brag that they had all this raw-milk cheese, but I never wanted to be the one to compromise our industry.
Your top-selling cheese?
Parmigiano Reggiano, hands down.