Di Bruno Bros.

Love this location and all that it has to offer. A great place to get some of the finest cheeses, baked goods, various Italian dishes and sides as well as delicious grilled cheese sandwiches and soups. The prices are right for what you’re purchasing… gourmet items and fresh ingredients, so no complaints. Love the entire staff, Sequoia, Anthony, Aj and the others, they all make the place warm and inviting, super helpful and always friendly as well as knowledgeable!

Excellent Italian specialities and service too. But the best thing is they play The Beatles music… lol

This is a much small location, but it will never forsake you in delicious cheese.
Extremely friendly staff who always patiently take their time to help me find the distinct cheese I’m craving– sometimes I forget the name I’m looking for (Can you blame me? They’re a mouthful to say and there’s only like hundreds to choose from! Props to the staff for their expertise in this area!).
Love the suggestions the staff give in what cheese they think I’d enjoy, accompanied with a slice to test– it almost becomes a cheese tasting festivity! I never walk away without a freshly cut new block in my hand. This is the hub for cheese lovers.
Also, avoid squeezing past people and long lines at this location. It just perfect, not too crowded yet lively enough where you can enjoy yourself and interact with staff workers.

CHEESE HEAVEN.
So many delicious types of cheese in varying price ranges. Great for entertaining, holiday gifts, and snacking. Extra sharp provolone is everything I dream of. Amazing prepared foods like crab cakes (for pretending you’re a five star chef when you host dinner parties). Di Bruno never fails me, and this location has a great layout, friendly staff, and far less crowded than the Rittenhouse location.

AJ who works at this location is PHENOMENAL. I come here frequently with a big appetite and no idea what to make for dinner. AJ is so enthusiastic — always excited to recommend creative, thoughtful meat & cheese parings.
Tonight I was really struggling with what to order, so AJ offered to make me a sandwich… I just finished it and it was THE BEST sandwich I have EVER had, a true work of ART.
AJ’s sandwich is the reason God gave us tastebuds.
Go see the man (and the rest of the wonderful staff there as well).

Echoing some of the reviews below, Service from some of the staff could be better (much friendlier/​more helpful) but otherwise another winning location.

It’s with a heavy heart that I have to give DiBruno Brothers 2 stars. Their prices have gotten absolutely insane, and the new location on Chestnut street has hit or miss service at best.
I started going to DiBruno’s Rittenhouse location years ago whenever I visited Philly. I grew up going to Italian stores and bakeries so it always felt like a bit of home. The selection was excellent, the staff was knowledgeable and the prices were reasonable.
Fast forward to 2015, and DiBruno Brothers seems to be floundering under the weight of it’s expansions. Prices on the staples of the store (meat, cheese, bread, pasteries) have skyrocketed to the point where Whole Foods now seems like an economical alternative.
Here are a few examples:
–Fratelli Beretta sweet coppa can be found for about $ 12.50 a pound in the real world.
Yet it’s $ 21 a pound at DiBruno Brothers.
–A single croissant is $ 3.99. The sign says «baked locally in Manyunk.» A croissant that sat in a truck on 76 for an hour being marinated in exhaust isn’t exactly local, and it sure ain’t fresh. If you’re going to charge 4 bucks a pop at least bake them on premises.
–A baguette is $ 3.99 (they must like that number). Even wildly overpriced La Colombe only charges $ 3, and Whole Foods, which actually bakes its bread on-​premises, is even less.
Service at the Chestnut Street location is also pretty weird. Hispters, with or without mustaches, man the meat and cheese areas and provide unasked for, unwanted and generally unenlightened opinions on everything in an annoying theater-​nerd sort of way.
Other times they totally ignore you, which at least allows you to shop without being verbally assaulted by an unending stream of inanity, but makes it hard to get anything from the meat counter.
Too bad.

Lovely café with top quality foods for take out or eat in (limited seating). Very clean nice location. I’d eat here again.

Thought I would give this place a try… the cheeses are amazingly delicious. Also the staff is the friendliest and nicest people you will ever encounter. I heard about this place two weeks ago I have been back here 3 times!!! Try the truffle tartufo cheese!

Can you say laurels? As in resting on them.
The have fantastic cheeses and related products (4.5−5 stars), and have for years, so I think they sometimes coast on that. The coffee here and at Rittenhouse is subpar and the service at this Brother is often lacking: There can be three people behind the coffee counter and only one person will be making coffee… slowly and with one hand. Pre-​made food can be hit-​or-​miss, but it’s always pricey. Example? $ 8 for a spinach salad with dried-​out prosciutto.
Love the original, love the family business concept, want to love all locations, but…

I love cheese, though hardly consider myself an expert in the matter. That’s part of what really drew me into this classic philadelphia destination. We were given 1^st class revive by one of the managers at the tasting counter. He readily explained the types of cheeses, how they are made, even why they are made the way they are. He could easily give a multi-​day seminar on the topic– and I would definitely attend! I was happily surprised that he readily allowed us to sample event he more expensive cheeses they had on hand. I think one I tried was about $ 50/​lb.
Can’t wait to try this place again!

I just like di Bruno’s. Is it a regular in my food shopping? No. Honestly, as someone who’s very health conscious I think they’re lacking some serious options. But I just like it here.
The staff are ALWAYS friendly from the cheese guys to the check out. People truly seem happy here. Speaking of cheese, if you want to treat yourself to the finest or even make up a cheese plate for an event you won’t find better.
I’ll continue to stop on here.

I love the dibrunos in the Italian market and on chestnut street, but the service at this location just sucks.
I went to this location to pick up my cheese tote and of course you can’t walk into dibrunos without perusing around. I got to the cheese section and no one asked me if I wanted help (very different from the other locations that I love). So I got tired of standing around and just go to the counter to pick up my tote and I ask if I could pick up my friends tote as well. The cranky lady just says «no. We don’t do that. That’s not allowed» so I say… I have his email confirmation and she says «fine let me ask». She asks someone behind the cheese stand and he says «no». So i say… «Why not? What if I show you a picture of his drivers license? To confirm it’s the same person» And he just says «no we can’t do that»
So rude. I suppose I was expecting the type of service I would get in any other di Bruno’s. I wish they gave me some reason like «we are trying to generate more traffic to this store so we would like people to physically pick up their own totes», instead of not giving me a reason at all.
Maybe if their service was up to par, people would actually go to this branch. In the meantime, I will definitely stick to my favorite friendly Di Bruno’s at 18^th and chestnut.

I may be a little biased to this location of DiBruno Bros. mostly because I live a mere elevator ride away at the Franklin. I’m pretty sure any store that allows me to sample free cheese and bread (my two staple foods) on the way home has a special place in my heart. However, this place wins me over in so many other ways. The selection is pretty extensive. specialty cheeses, meats, and an olive bar that are perfect for special occasions or just as a midweek treat, pre-​packaged salads, pastas, and soups that make an easy meal, fresh bread, various marinades and dips, and a decent produce selection for when you forget that one onion or tomato you need to make dinner. I personally enjoy their breakfast sandwiches and their caprese sandwich at lunchtime. All of the employees are very helpful and friendly as well! The prices are what you would expect for a specialty grocery store.
Though this particular branch of DiBrunos is smaller than their Rittenhouse counterparts, I feel that the special events and deals they have at this one gives it a much more neighborhood-​friendly, welcoming atmosphere. I love attending their free happy hours on Thursday from 5 – 7. I couldn’t think of a better way to spend an evening after work, socializing while eating free cheese and meat and drinking free beer from a craft brewery! Employees are always walking around giving out coupons too, so there’s even more incentive to buy some of the tasty morsels you get to try! During the summer, they hosted free events on Saturdays with even more free samples, alcohol, and live music! They also have various contests with giveaways. I am pretty sure winning any kind of cheese would complete me as a person.
Anyway, now that I have professed my love for all things cheese, you should definitely check this place out next time you’re in the area. You won’t regret it!

Every Di Bruno Bros location is consistently awesome — lots of great food (especially cheese), and helpful, knowledgeable staff to point you in the right direction.
The Di Bruno’s at 9^th and Sansom is great because they are holding a lot of special tasting events, and it seems that they decided on the layout with this in mind. It’s spacious and open, which means they can more easily accommodate the crowds that a Di Bruno tasting is sure to draw. Fancy grilled cheese, beef jerky, and melt-​in-​your-​mouth brownies were just a few of the tasty treats that were available at the last tasting, and they usually have some alcohol vendors in attendance as well. Keep an eye on their Twitter so you’ll be ready for the next event!

This location might not have the most spacious of interiors, but the space is designed really well so that each section flows nicely into the next without feeling cluttered. All of your favorite DBB specialties are in this location (helloooo, meatballs) and there are new concoctions being rolled out constantly. The cheese counter is also enormous and well-​stocked with very knowledgeable cheesemongers. That’s worth a visit alone.
There are a ton of cool (and free) promotions going on at this location (such as the Summer Salute on Saturdays). My favorite is the 3 Cheese Thursday happy hour from 5 – 7. One cool brewery with 3 – 4 of their best beers, plus cheese pairings for each brew– it can’t get better than this (I went to the Victory and the Dogfish Head events). Sometimes there are even samples of the newest DBB food release (killer brownies and mac and cheese grilled cheese, for instance). If you post your pictures to IG or Twitter with the hashtag #3cheesethursdays, you can even get in the running for prizes.

It’s Thursday. You’re itching for a drink, but you’re also kind of hungry because that sad salad you ate by your desk might as well have been last week. You want to go out but you also feel like you should be «saving» because you accidentally went on a shopping spree yesterday and feel like you should be «responsible.»
DiBrunos has the answer. IT’S CHEESE HAPPY HOUR! And it’s glorious. $ 0 gets you: cheese, random cured meats (spicy pepperoni, anyone?), various assorted other snacks, friendly knowledgeable cheese mongers and charcuterie people (although with these servers they should start calling it the charCUTErie counter amirite?), and heavy handed beer reps that won’t judge you for wanting to try another sample… Of the same beer. (This week was Victory beer, but offerings vary).
PRO TIP: I know you’re here for the free stuff, but if you spend some amount, there might be more free stuff! We bought some pepperoni and were rewarded with a delicious bottle of raspberry vinegar that goes for $ 15 a bottle.
You know where to find me on Thursdays from 5 to 7. I’ll be the one trying to beat this week’s record of how many pieces of cheese I can skewer on one toothpick.

Loving this new DiBruno location in Market East. They carry a healthy array of to-​go items, packaged foods and snacks, have a nice selection of cheeses and meats, and there are loads of helpful and friendly employees all over the store.
Very nice touch giving customers free flowers with a purchase the day before Thanksgiving. They were beautiful and lasted at least a week!

Working across the street from this new DiBruno’s location is dangerous. They have a beautiful store, and the renovations executed their corner market concept perfectly. They have a nice selection of prepared food; I had a tasty baguette sandwich one day, and sushi another. The sushi was basically high end supermarket quality, about as good as you’ll get out of a premade tray, but still premade. A great tabouleh also made me excided to try their other salads.
They have a nice coffee counter just inside the door. A red-​eye one morning did it’s job, though more than 12oz would have had me climbing pipes. Another day’s americano was perfect to get me through a long afternoon. Deeper in the store they have their cheese and meat counters, which I have not yet sampled, as well as produce and other ingredients.
If there is a knock against this DiBruno’s, it’s that everything is a bit expensive for a working breakfast or lunch, especially with so many nearby options. For the most part, it is paying for quality, but almost everything leaves me feeling I paid 15−20% extra for the name on the bag.

Lovely new DiBruno’s brother with great service. Some fresh veggies, good cheese and smoked/​aged meats, sandwiches, a small bakery. A great place to get a fresh lunch on the go. I wish they had meats here too, oh well. DiBrunos is always a bit expensive, but very fresh and everything is quality.