🥂Guest Post: How to Build the Perfect Island Cheese Plate

With Morgen Schroeder of MV Cheesery

Today I’m excited to share a guest post from island cheesemonger, owner of MV Cheesery, Morgen Schroeder. She also writes the popular Substack Finding Your Cheese. I’m excited for her to be our culinary tour guide of the Cheese Scene on MV!

Friends, hello! Are we doing our best to make the most of these long, sunny days? I admit that some days have felt quite hard recently (the state of the world, parenting two-under-two, etc.), but I refuse to let summertime pass me by. I’m finding little pockets of joy where I can. I’m dipping in the ocean. I’m walking in the woods. I’m playing in the sand. I’m eating tasty treats.

When life feels especially chaotic it’s nice to fall back on little rituals or routines. For me, that often means composing a cheese plate and enjoying it in a beautiful place. Building little bites and breathing deeply. Pairing big feelings with big flavors. To that end, I’m so happy to be collaborating with Lis of MVacay to share a few of my picks for places to gather provisions and vistas to settle in and enjoy your creation.

As a cheesemonger and cheese educator, I’ve picked spots that have the materials and supplies you can use to put together a cheese plate of your own. There are a few spots on this list that offer pre-assembled cheese plates, and I’ve indicated those for you. For future posts on how to compose a well-rounded cheese plate, follow my Substack and my Instagram. I hope this list inspires you! Without any further ado… let’s make some cheese plates…

A Cheese Plate made by Morgen

Edgartown

Ah, Edgartown, with its classic white picket fences and whaling captain houses. In addition to having the superior of the island’s Stop & Shops, there are a few smaller spots I like to grab supplies here:

• Black Sheep near the airport has a curated selection of cut-to-order cheeses, prepared foods, pantry provisions, and pre-made cheese plates.

• Soigne on Upper Main Street is a great spot to snag a bottle of wine and a small wheel of soft, French-inspired cheese.

• Speaking of wine, Rosewater Spirits further down on Main Street has a really impressive selection, as well as a grab-and-go case with some solid cheese options.

• If you find yourself in the triangle, Edgartown Meat and Fish has great cheese options as well as a very impressive cracker selection.

• Once upon a time, Morning Glory Farm had a cheese CSA (or so I’m told!). While that’s no longer available, Mo Glo still stocks some wonderful cheese options that they cut and wrap themselves.

• The vista: You simply can’t beat the sunset at Lighthouse Beach. Bring a blanket, set up on the sand, and watch the boats glide in and out of the harbor.

Soigne + Tony's

Oak Bluffs

Colorful gingerbread cottages, overflowing T-shirt shops, and a bustling harborfront, Oak Bluffs boasts a few places I like to provision up:

• The Reliable Market on Circuit Ave. is exactly as the name suggests! You can always count on this place for basic cheese, crackers, and since it’s a slightly larger market they’ve got fresh fruit as well!

• Newer on the scene is the Notalot Farm Shop right on Kennebec. A convenient place to snag some gourmet-leaning cheese and crackers.

• If you’re looking for a one-stop-shop for wine and cheese, look no further than Our Market on East Chop Drive. They’ve got a grab-and-go cooler where you can pick up some basic cheese for a quick fix.

• The vistas: If you’re feeling beachy, Inkwell or State Beach. If you’re feeling vibey, Ocean Park or MVCMA Tabernacle.

Vineyard Haven (Tisbury)

The island’s year-round port of entry, the maritime history mainstay, hardest working town on Martha’s Vineyard (I said what I said!), the one, the only, Vineyard Haven! In addition to having the larger of the island’s Cronig’s, there are a couple notable places I like to provision up here:

• I’m obsessed with (and a co-owner of) Catboat Coffee Co. in the Tisbury Marketplace. Taking that obvious bias into consideration, Catboat is a great place to snag homemade Lebanese dips, crackers, and in the summer months, and pre-made personal grazing box with cheese and fruit.

• La Strada is a cute spot on Main Street that offers a selection of Italian cheeses and charcuterie options.

• Ok listen, don’t sleep on Vineyard Grocer on State Road! They have a unique selection of Brazilian cheeses and they make pickled veg and dried fruit in-house!

• The vistas: Owen Park if you’re a little in-town, and Lake Tashmoo Town Beach if you’re a little outside-of-town.

Chilmark General Store

West Tisbury

Home of the West Tisbury Farmers Market and a handful of other outposts, there are a few spots to snag some cheese in West Tis:

• Located on State Road, we have North Tisbury Farm & Market. They focus on stocking New England cheeses and even do some cut-and-wrap in-house, so you can usually find an interesting wedge here.

• The slogan of Alley’s General Store is “dealers in almost everything” and that definitely includes cheese and crackers.

• The West Tisbury Farmers Market has what I like to call “friends of cheese” i.e. freshly baked bread, local honey, and summer produce. Surprisingly, there isn’t any cheese being sold at the WTFM. (Hmmm… is this an opportunity for an MV Cheesery Cheese Club? What the heck, let me know if this is something you’d be interested in by sharing your email on the form above)

• The vista: During the day, there are so many lovely spots to sit and savor at Polly Hill Arboretum. Well worth the $10 price of admission!

Visit Grey Barn while you can!

Chilmark

Farm stands, farm stands, farm stands! That’s what Chilmark does! Here are my faves, which also happen to have a cheese selection:

• Quick! Get yourself to Grey Barn before the summer is over! They’ve had to make the gut-wrenching decision to cease cheesemaking operations, so summer 2025 is the last time you’ll be able to savor this farmstead, island-made cheese. This honestly breaks my heart! Prufrock forever!

• Once this summer is over, Mermaid Farm & Dairy will be the only spot to snag island-made cheese. Their feta is what they’re most known for, but they’ve also got some funky, natural-rinded cheeses periodically hitting the honor-system farm stand.

• All the makings of a great cheese plate can be found at Chilmark General Store way up on State Road.

• And while you’re in that area, you may as well swing by Beetlebung Farm Stand to see if they’ve got any fresh bread, some made with grains that they mill on-site! Pretty sure they stock a few small-format cheeses in their cooler, too.

• The vista: Menemsha Public Beach draws applause with every sunset, so if that doesn’t sound like a nice spot to enjoy a cheese plate then idk what to tell ya!

Mermaid Farm Dairy

Aquinnah

So you’ve committed to catching the sunset at the Gay Head Light? Do you need something tasty to accompany this breathtaking experience? Say less!

• On your way up to Aquinnah, pop into the honor-system farmstand at Orange Peel Bakery for some “friends of cheese”; perhaps a fresh-baked treat or some local jam.

• Up at the cliffs, The Gay Head Store has a solid selection of exactly what you need to compose a lovely cheese plate.

• The vista: I think this one is pretty self-explanatory! I particularly like the stone benches right at the base of the Gay Head Light.

Thanks for coming on this cheesy journey around the island with me! As I like to tell everyone during my cheese tasting workshops, the best cheese is the one that tastes good to you. So tune out the noise, tune in to your taste buds, and do your best to savor a little something this summer. If you compose a particularly brilliant bite, I want to hear about it in the comments. I’m cheering you on!

Thank you, Morgen! I can’t wait to find my own Marthas’s Vineyard Cheese and follow along on your journey. Follow her here:

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