- Good coeliac knowledge
- Attentive, friendly staff
- Cheese!
I have cholesterol tip-toeing the line and a perimenopausal paunch I can’t seem to lose but I feel grateful every day that I can still eat lactose unlike some of my fellow coeliacs. With this in mind, my friends and I headed to the Cheese Barge in Sheldon Square. Situated along the Paddington branch of the Grande Union canal, the Cheese Barge is moored between Paddington station and Little Venice. It’s a lovely, picturesque spot filled with restaurants and a path along the canal.
The Cheese Barge itself is unassuming, painted grey and turquoise outside. It doesn’t look particularly flash but inside it’s kitted out with clean wooden lines, comfortable seating and large windows so you can watch people on the bankside and wildlife on the water. It has a quiet charm coming from its cosy décor and the uniqueness of the canal boat itself.
Unsurprisingly, the main foodstuff on the barge is cheese. The company originally started out with a food van serving grilled cheese sandwiches which expanded to include the barge. The focus is on championing small-batch British cheeses, and they do this really well.
There were 5 of us booked for a 12pm lunch booking. Before booking I’d skimmed the website which had a FAQ section that covered gluten free options and cross contamination. The day before visiting I also emailed notifying them that I was coeliac.
Upon arrival we were shown to our table by a very efficient and friendly staff member. She immediately asked who the coeliac was and gave me a brief run down of the menu, explaining the gluten free options marked on the menu and the swaps available – instead of bread, gluten free crackers, instead of chutney, some fudge. She also explained the cross contamination risk stating that the kitchen on the boat was small and handled gluten so there was a risk of cross contamination but that the kitchen staff would be careful with our orders.
She went on to explain the best way to sample the menu between the 5 of us – 4-5 small plates, a grilled cheese sandwich and a selection of the British cheeses with crackers. The British cheeses came in at 30g portions and are paired with something complementary.
With this in mind, we ordered drinks and perused the menu. To get a little of everything we opted to share between the 5 of us, allowing me first dibs on the plates to avoid contamination. We ordered 3 of the small plates; the La Latteria Burrata, Lincolnshire Halloumi and the La Latteria Mozzarella and Jalapeno Croquettes (noting the croquettes contained gluten). We also ordered two sandwiches for the ladies to share. As these could not be made gluten free, I had a side of the garlic butter potatoes instead. Lastly, we ordered some cheeses. Of the 9 options on the menu, 6 were gluten free and could have the pairing switched out for something different. We ordered all 6 gluten free options.
After a short wait, I was given some gluten free crackers and our two gluten free small plates came out – the burrata and halloumi. These were very different to each other but very well executed. The halloumi was served with honey and rosemary, so there was a nice contrast between the salty, squeaky cheese and the sweetness of the honey. The burrata came with nice, firm tomato wedges and a pepper salsa that had the perfect amount of chilli to add some bite and cut through the creaminess of the cheese.
The sandwiches came out with my roasted potatoes. I obviously did not eat the sandwiches but the consensus was that they were good – as they should be considering the Cheese Barge started with a grilled cheese food van. The potatoes were fine but not why you come to the Cheese Barge!
At this point, we realised the croquettes had not arrived, and we had to follow up with a staff member. When the croquettes came out, maybe 10 minutes later, everyone seemed happy with them.
When our table was cleared, the cheeses came out. It was clear that a lot of effort had gone into sourcing the cheeses and each was paired with something to balance the flavours. Our cheeses were:
- The Driftwood, a Somerset goat’s cheese paired with honeycomb and rosemary sugar
- The Cornish gouda with clotted cream fudge
- The Penwood from Berkshire, a hard cheese usually paired with damson jam that was subbed with fudge for me
- The Bix, a soft cheese with lemoncurd
- The Lincolnshire Poacher, a cheddar paired with pickled cucumbers
- The Cropwell Bishop stilton from Nottinghamshire paired with kimchi.
All the cheeses were good, but my favourite was probably the Bix – it was like a Brie, with a nice, buttery flavour. I also really liked the Poacher, a cheddar with pickled cucumbers and I surprisingly enjoyed the Cropwell stilton, a cheese I usually avoid because I think it’s gross! I think the pairings contributed a lot to how much I enjoyed the cheeses and they were very well thought out.
We split the bill 5 ways and it came to a tidy £31.01 each. A reasonable amount for the food and experience. Overall, the Cheese Barge was a fun and unique spot for lunch, it’s one of those places that London does so well – quirky, charming and cheesy!
