Course One of the Cheese Food Marathon

As part of another project (you'll notice the difference in quality of photography below) I'll be going on cheese food marathons over the next few weeks. This is the first post in the series.
The day started with a Tuna Melt from CJ's Cafe.Last time we were there it looked really good and proved to be upon finally tasting it. It's one of the few times where the low quality of the ingredients (mass produced white bread, frozen french fries, industrial mayonnaise) actuality contribute to the greatness of the meal. I guess it's the unhealthiness of these ingredients- hitting directly on the salty, sweet, greasy flavor sensors in your brain.
In an effort to explore the top cheese shops in LA we started with Cube. I've been a fan for a while for their extensive list of cheeses.We sat outside and were served a starter plate of Ubriaco al Prosecco. Simple, easy- a palate cleanser of cheese. The main cheese plate from Cube featured a variety of cheese including a hard (vintage 5 year cow's milk gouda from Holland), a bloomy rind trio (cow's milk, goat's milk, créme fraice from California) and a blue (Tilston's Point cow's milk from Wisconsin).The gouda was paired with pecans, the trio was paired with hazelnut créme (créme de noisette) and the blue was paired with New York basswood honey. I liked the trio, but not with the hazelnut. My favorite was the blue.
Next was Joans on Third for another cheese plate. We kept the cheeses similar to compare and contrast. This time hard (Beemster Gouda, cow's milk), blend (Robiola due Latte, cow and sheep's milk from Piedmont) and blue (Crater Lake, raw cow's milk from Central Point, OR).
Pairings included fig paste, Marcona almonds and honey. The gouda had a much more defined flavor than Cube's. The texture of the Robiola was exquisite. As I'm a fan of blues, the Crater Lake was also one of my favorites.
Joans has a such a vast array of products in their marketplace that it's hard not to choose it as the main place to buy cheese in LA- it's also two minutes from my house. I do like the ease of Cube though, with their BYOB policy, long menu of cooked dishes, easy parking and access.
Stay tuned for much more from Silverlake to Beverly Hills and others in between.