Petit Fromage

I was so disappointed!
Petit Fromage is now located inside Delicious Dishes. There is only a small case of cheese. I asked a staff member which of the blue cheeses she preferred and she wrinkled her nose and said «eww I don’t eat blue cheese». HUH? Needless to say I was ready to walk out. I asked which of the cheeses were made locally besides the one brand of goat cheese I recognized and she began looking around to find the place of origin.
These people don’t know anything about the cheese and the selection is awful!

Warning: the previous reviews were when Lara was running Petit Fromage. I’m sad to say that I stopped in there today and found that apparently now Delicious Dishes is running Petit Fromage and Lara is no longer involved? What a disappointment! The lady who showed us the cheeses was more than happy to help us, but the cheese selection was not the same. Nothing super unique, it’s more like the cheese case at Safeway now. No meats in the case, either. I enjoyed having someone knowledgeable to explain the unique cheeses so it’s a shame that this place has changed.

This review is long overdue…
I brought a friend into Petit Fromage last month on a national holiday of sorts — ⁴⁄₂₀. Lara took the time to put together a hand selected range of fromage to appease our palates. There were lavendar hinted, coffee rubbed, and black pepper infused delicacies. I knew that I should have taken notes, dammit, I don’t know the names of the small farms that she directly sources from or the names of the cheese. We took the selections to my home, with presecco and bread from La Grande Orange (in the ‘hood). Perfect for a late afternoon lunch! We even had some left over for the next days lunch.
While perusing the shop, we noticed many cheeses priced accordingly — $ 4.20. It is the little things…

This is the best cheese shop in the valley, in my opinion. While Whole Foods probably has a wider selection, no one has a BETTER selection and passion+knowledge of cheese.
The place is in a portion of what appears to be an old Circle K store. In that incarnation, there was certainly an emphasis on domestic cheeses such as Kraft singles, Cheez-​Whiz and the like. I am happy to say that Petit Fromage proudly carries on that tradition, but with artisanal domestic cheeses. Certainly there are fine imported cheeses offered, but the domestics are clearly a passion of the owner, Lara.
Domestics have come a long way! Clearly, some of the best cheeses in the world now are from the US. Don’t think so? Have Lara sample some «Barely Buzzed» Cheddar from Beehive Cheese Co (UT) or the great cheeses from Bittersweet Plantation (LA) or the amazing ColoRouge from MouCo (CO). You will be blown away.
The great thing about Petite Fromage, other than great cheese, is an infectious passion for the cheese and for helping the customer learn more. They sample generously and offer charcuterie and appropriate companion products with cheese. Their cheese plates are wonderful and they are always ready to make a recommendation for cheeses to take home. I just wished that I loved closer!

Unilocal,
You make me go to Petit Fromage,
you lead me beside a Charcuterie,
Cheese restores my soul.
Surely sopressata and stilton will follow me
all the days of my life.

When I die, there will be with a smear of Camembert on my lips and salami in my riggored hand.
Come to Petit Fromage and come here often.
Stand in front of the display case for about 15 minutes like I did and let the thoughtful selection of unique meats and cheeses inspire a week’s worth of dishes.
Will be back soon, but not soon enough. Extra points for the eye candy working the cheese counter.

Looking for some unique cheeses? It’s about time places like this pop up into this town. PF shares a corner with D’licious Dishes and combines selective american artisan cheeses with some charcuterie.
The staff are friendly and helpful and you’ll most likely find something that tickles your fancy. Tried some interesting flavored american cheddars and picked up some local goat feta.
Along with your cheese pick up a baguette, some fruit spreads, and whatever else you can grab on your way and bon appetit!

Stepped in just to see what the hulabaloo is about… and boy am I glad I did. Cheeses galore .I can’t wait to try my goat cheese this week. I ‘ll be back soon with Mom in tow… neat place. My only question is where does Petite Fromage stop and Delish Dishes begin ??

Well, after a mere month, I’m updating my review of Petit Fromage to reflect that they are the Five-​Star shop I knew they could be. I just stopped in for lunch and hade one of Lara’s «Petite Snacks» for lunch, and am radiating happiness for having done so. I can only refer to Petit Fromage in superlatives based on my experiences there over the past month. Customer service is tip-​top, the selection is great, and the shop really fosters a sense of community. Life is good with a cheese shop such as this in the neighborhood.

This place is no joke. Amazing cheese, fantastic charcuterie and some of the nicest and most knowledgeable people I’ve met in a long time.
Case-in-point…I went in looking for items for a cheese course that I am composing tonight. The Oregon blue was one of the reasons that I stopped in, as was the fresh curds that had been packed and delivered earlier in the day. Both are delicious. But I needed some salumi and had my hopes on a morbier, since the line of ash makes it look so pretty when plated. Random… I know. But, it helps to illustrate this next part…
What I left with with far exceeded my hopes. In the salumi department, I ended up with 2 links of a sopressata that is in line with some of the best I’ve ever had. The cheese? No morbier in the case, but I was offered to taste the fleur de teche on the spot. A triple cream ash cheese that is just as pretty as, and considerably more flavorful than, what I had been after. Thank you! With products like this, all we will have to do is enjoy.
At the end of the day, I…
— met some really cool, good people
— got what I needed
— and learned about something new that will become a staple on my cheese boards
If I could give them 6 stars, I would.
Cheers!

I am far from a food critic, more like a foodie in training. But I do know what I like to eat… Wow, not knowing much about cheese, I was welcomed by Lara and her staff with open arms… This was a great experience. They explained to me the different cheeses and wines during the tasting tonight. I had no idea what a cheese curd was… And guess whos heading back tomorrow to buy fresh cheese curds??? ME!!! I came home with proscuitto, goat bleu cheese and fontina for dinner. If your a cheese lover, this place is a must see in Central Phoenix. Its a one of a kind place that has huge potental. So go, show some love and eat some cheese!!!

HOLY CHEESE CURDS! Literally! They are so good they have to be holy and heavenly and all associated greatness. These are hands down the best cheese curds I have ever had in my life. I’ve had Beecher’s in Seattle, and they are good. I’ve had some curds from the dairy farm run by the polygamists up in Colorado City and those are really good. Nothing can even come close to how good the cheese curds are at Petit Fromage. They make the best midnight snack in the world. They actually make a great breakfast. I can eat them all day long! I got some last week and then I begged the husband every 5 minutes to take me back there to get some more after I finished. Do yourself a favor. Stop reading this and go to get some curds! Make sure you leave some for me!

I asked for stinky-​sock cheese, and pow, did they deliver! The owner gleefully pulled several from a huge refrigerator case beautifully filled with hundreds of luscious cheeses, I was treated to several samples of some of the most delectable cheeses I’ve had this side of the Atlantic. I returned home with a selection of three cheeses wrapped in cheese paper (how often do you see that??). What a treasure!

Um hello — BEECHERS! The fact that I can go a mile down the street and pick up a brick of Flagship (and Flagship reserve) just makes my day! My Seattle cravings have been slightly tempered by the introduction of this fromagerie. I love that they make their own mozzarella and will be frequenting them quite often. Thank you so much for bringing us something so amazing to CenPho! I can’t wait to go back.

Ok, I’m pretty much cheese obsessed. I love it. Can’t get enough of it. Doesn’t mean I’m an expert though. With the limited resources in AZ, haven’t gotten the education I need. If Murray’s Cheese from New York was here, I’d be broke by now but I’d be a cheese expert.
So I’d been looking very forward to the opening of Petit Fromage. I would have been there opening day but the family returned from Oz that afternoon & it just wasn’t possible. We finally hit it today (a week late). In the interim, I’d heard mixed things. I did hear that the selection wasn’t that huge and it was pretty much 1 case of cheese.
So I went in with an open mind but not expecting Murray’s (which is good). I left way, way more excited than I expected.
Speaking with Lara Hardwick, she DEFINITELY knows her cheese. It turns out she’s been supplying some of the top restaurants in town for some time. Found out we have eaten her cheese multiple times when we visited Binkley’s (one of our favorites). From what I understand she has been supplying them for some time along with other fine restaurants in town.
So walking into Delicious Dishes, we found the Petit Fromage section. It is one case. But after talking with Lara and sampling numerous cheeses, I was so not let down. I found that she specializes in artisan American cheeses. Cool. That is definitely not a population that I have targeted nor do I know much about it.
I tried a host of cheeses and found many remarkable. We ended up leaving with the 2 featured cheeses, Smoky blue cheese from Central Point, OR and Beemster XO, an aged Gouda from Beemster Holland. I already love blue and aged Gouda so I’m not surprised I would love them. I hadn’t heard of either but thought they were fabulous and am so looking forward to cracking into them.
Another standout for me was Mahón (a cow’s milk cheese from the island of Menorca, Spain with sharp, lemony, salty flavors). I also absolutely loved an intense blue cheese that I think was called Azul something or other.
I also quite enjoyed trying the unsalted and salted goat butters.
I’m already excited to return. I am confident that I will consistently find new and interesting cheese there and will learn a great deal from Lara.
If you are at all into cheese, you must get to Petit Fromage. Don’t be let down at the first appearance of the single case (which is no bigger than something AJ’s or Whole Foods might have). Engage Lara and put yourself into her hands. It is truly exciting to have someone here in town who knows and loves cheese, is quite ready to let you sample the case and that will help you learn and find just what you like.