Salt Meats Cheese in Sydney

This one is just because it appealed to me, reminding me of delis, charcuteries and the shop all over Munich and everywhere in Germany that sell Aufschnitt (cold cuts), cheese and beverages... trying to remember the German name, not Metzgerei, which is for the butcher's, is driving me nuts and no doubt will until I remember. I thought what a delightful place and isn't food about place as well as memories? My father, raised on a dairy farm outside Canton in northern New York State was a lifetime cheese lover. Food is still as much about memory and associations as it is about nutrition. A different kind of nourishment.


There are two types of people in this world: those who love cured meats and cheese and, well, those who don’t. And for the former, Salt Meats Cheese, situated in the same block as The Grounds of Alexandria in Sydney, is somewhat of a nirvana. Step inside this funky warehouse, and you’re greeted by an abundance of delectable, quality imported ingredients, as well as a vast cheese and salami room that’s definitely not for the lactose intolerant.

Cheese is certainly the hero here, and there’s an impressive ‘cheese lab’, reminiscent of the open cheese making displays you often find in Italian and French supermarkets. Every day there’s a different part of the cheese-making process on display, and the founders – a father and son team named Salvatore and Stefano – do live cheese demonstrations in The Grounds, as part of their weekend market.


And then there is the full stock of Casa Gusto products – a line of Italian sourced and made grocery items, which purport to offer a ‘taste of home’ (and whose packaging makes us swoon). In case the whole experience wasn’t Italian enough, there’s even a Vespa parked at the front, which coverts into a mobile kitchen for cooking up salty meat treats for passers-by. Yes, really.

Salt Meats Cheese in Sydney