Emily In France Exclusive 🇫🇷 My Favorite Cheese Shops in Paris in Every Arrondissement (Part 2: 8 to 14)

From the desk of an expat.

While I was hosting a recent cheese tasting for WICE, I got a very good question – more of a request. One of the participants wanted to know how to pick a good cheese shop… and she followed up by asking me if I had a favorite in every arrondissement.

Last week, I shared part 1 of my response, with my top cheese shops in arrondissements 1 through 7. Now, I’m moving a bit further afield with arrondissements 8 through 14.

As I mentioned in the first part of this series, the very idea of a fromagerie is a relatively recent invention. It was in 1909 that peddler Henri Androuët got the idea to widen the cheesescape for Parisians, who historically would have only had access to local cheeses like Brie. Androuët opened his first fromagerie in 1910 on the rue d'Amsterdam; today, Paris is home to 175 fromageries, and that number is rising every day.

As we move away from the heart of Paris, don't be surprised if the offerings veer more esoteric. Younger mongers specialized in house creations as well as less recognizable raw milk cheeses from small producers are far more common in these more exocentric neighborhoods, particularly in the trendy eastern arrondissements, like the 11th, which we’ll cover this week, or the 19th and 20th, which we’ll explore in the final installment of the series.

It’s perhaps unsurprising that I had a particularly tough time narrowing things down in the 11th, known for its preponderance of truly excellent commerces de bouche (literally: mouth businesses), and the 10th, where I live. For most Parisians, after all, the very best cheese shop – or, for that matter, bakery, butcher shop, or greengrocer – is the one closest to home, I have no shortage of wonderful fromageries within walking distance of my front door, some of which guests on my food tours will already be familiar with.

Still, I somehow managed to pick just one fantastic cheese shop in arrondissements 8 through 14. So let’s get into it.

cremeriedelacour

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8th Arrondissement

Crèmerie Delacour (8, rue Corvetto) It's not always easy to find phenomenal food shops in the 8th, largely dominated by the touristy Champs Elysées. But near the border with the residential 17th, Crèmerie Delacour is a notch above the rest. Emmeric Gonzalez's selection boasts a consequential choice of chèvres, not to mention a few rare jewels like an aged gouda made from a blend of goat and sheep's milk.

Creativity is definitely the name of the game here. Past house creations have included goat cheeses paired with Ethiopian coffee roasted right in the 9th arrondissement as well as house-aged "Brie brun," a slightly less intense play on Brie noir, a local delicacy I wrote about for MISE Magazine. Given the luxe location of this shop, it’s no surprise you’ll also find a host of truffle-infused specialties, including Saint-Nectaire, Camembert, and Comté.

monbleu

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9th Arrondissement

Monbleu (37, rue Du Faubourg Montmartre) I rarely eat cheese in a restaurant, but I make an exception for Monbleu, a restaurant that doubles as an excellent cheese shop.

The restaurant boasts two menus. On the à la carte side of things, expect appetizers like egg-mayo paired with mimolette or gougères made with Comté and stuffed with Brillat-Savarin.Mains might see a casserole of autumn veg topped with a savory Parmesan-feta crumble or a play on a croque monsieur made with shredded, slow-cooked beef and Emmental cream. But you can also order one of the best raclettes in the city (which I wrote about for Paris by Mouth), with an assortment of infused raclette cheeses flavored with anything from spring garlic to truffle served with unlimited steamed potatoes and your choice of charcuterie or veggies. (I always go for the latter – leaves me more room for cheese!)

And if that wasn't enough choice, you can also get a generous board of cheeses from the on-site aging cellar, with about 100 options hand-selected in partnership with MOF cheesemonger Pierre Gay. These may include French options like Tome des Bauges from Savoie or Basque Ossau-Iraty, but a few international choices are represented too, like Italian Gorgonzola or truffle-infused Kaltbach from Switzerland. And of course, you can purchase your favorites from the on-site cheese shop to take home.