As we start each work week, About Town gets to know some of the folks who make your favorite businesses in Bronxville the special places they are. This week, we talk to Leslie Corcoran, one of the cheesemongers (we love that word!) at Bronxville's very own Dobbs & Bishop on Pondfield Road.
About Town: Dobbs & Bishop just celebrated their first anniversary here in Bronxville – have you been with them the whole time?
Leslie Corcoran: I started about two weeks after they first opened.
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AT: Did you have prior cheese experience before starting?
LC: I learned as I worked. I didn't have much knowledge about cheese prior to working here other than I loved it and it was a great accompaniment to many things. I remember my first day I walked in to work, I threw on an apron and got behind the counter and the rest is history. Kevin [McNeill, one of the owners] taught me the proper way to wrap the cheese and the rest I learned by reading and tasting.
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AT: In a town like this, close to the city, with its Murray's and Dean & Deluca, are a lot of customers connoisseurs?
LC: Actually, just working with the customers is a great way to learn. A lot of them know little to nothing, which is really helpful, as well as the customers who are very knowledgeable. Ruth [Walter, another owner] and Kevin have a cheese specialist come in every few months to talk to us about different cheeses and give us quizzes and such. My friend's mom growing up owned a cheese shop and I loved going in there and checking out all of the delicious things the store carried.
AT: Our favorite cheese is Monte Enebro, a Spanish goat cheese, which can be hard to find, but you guys carry it. What are your favorites, now that you've got a year under your belt?
LC: It changes all of the time. Right now I love Delice de Bourgogne, which is a French Triple Crème. I also love St. Agur Blue. I'm finding I love a lot of the sheep's milk cheeses like Pyrennes Fermier (Ossau Iraty) and Ewephoria which is a sheep's milk Gouda. Some of the Sheep's Brie we carry are amazing as well. I also love our imported sausages, pates, fig spreads, and olive spreads. I can go on forever. Everything is amazing.
AT: Sounds like you've gone from a relative novice to a real expert. You also live in Bronxville, so you must know a lot of the customers who stop in.
LC: Yes, I live just a hop, skip and jump from here. I love being able to see people I know on a regular basis, whether they are shopping or walking by with a wave. The kids come out for lunch and I get to see them as well. It's also a great way to meet people that live in the town that you never had a chance to meet before because your kids weren't in the same grade. One of the most rewarding things is getting to know the other merchants. They are all so great and I'm honored to be a part of this community of people.
Monday Musings
We're starting to wonder if this winter is going to be especially harsh, given the incredibly nice weather we had over the summer, and our continuing luck even into November. Highs on Saturday were in the 60s, and blue skies and sunshine continued throughout the weekend. The great weather allowed us to spend a lot of time out and about in the Village, and here is some of what we saw…
- Pondfield Road could have doubled as a NASCAR track for strollers on Saturday. Speaking of doubling, tandem strollers are not uncommon, but we had the great fortune of seeing a triple, yes a triple stroller pass by. Unfortunately, this led our daughter to exclaim, "I want another baby brother so I can get one of those!"
- You've gotta hand it to for their innovative marketing efforts. We got a holiday card from them in the mail, with the promise that the card is worth $5. Not $5 off their goodies, a straight up, no strings attached five dollar bill will be handed to you just for stopping in. Of course, unless you really want to come off as jerk, you won't take your five bucks and run (although it would buy you a couple of packs of ), you'll spend it right there on their fabulous cookies. Hats off to Topps for their unique approach.
- The Broncos football team continued to steamroll opponents, winning their semifinal matchup with yet another shutout. If you missed it on Saturday, you can read Danny Lopriore's .
- Finally, we'd be remiss if we didn't wish Bronxville Patch Editrix a wonderful and very well-deserved vacation this week. Have a mojito for us, Marisa!
