In January 2024, The Grocer asked a question that made us smile: what is it about a Leeds cheese shop that makes customers willing to queue for an hour?
The answer is not one single thing.
A shop worth making the trip for
George & Joseph started as a local cheesemonger, and Chapel Allerton is still our home. But over the years customers have increasingly travelled from across Leeds, Yorkshire and further afield to visit the counter.
Part of that is range. Part of it is the chance to taste. But the thing we have always tried hardest to offer is confidence.
You shouldn’t need to arrive knowing the name of the cheese you want. Tell us what you normally enjoy, what you are serving it with, who it is for or how adventurous you feel, and we can take it from there.
Discovery rather than snobbery
Specialist cheese can sometimes feel intimidating. We think the job of a good cheesemonger is to remove that intimidation, not add to it.
A customer who comes in for Cheddar might leave with an excellent Cheddar — or discover something completely different. Both outcomes are good.
More than the counter
By 2024, the business had grown beyond the shop through online delivery, cheese boxes, tastings, events and education. Each of those things serves the same purpose: helping more people find cheese they genuinely enjoy.
You can read The Grocer’s original profile here.
And if you haven’t visited us yet, here’s where to find the shop.
This article was added retrospectively to the G&J Journal archive to record the people, milestones and stories that have shaped George & Joseph.