The Glory of Williamsburg can be found in the shop of cheese…

As a poor college student, bread ends is the cheapest, most satisfying meal within a ten mile radius of Williamsburg. For a total of $1 you can buy a bag of this delicious bread which can last you through both lunch and dinner.

The concept of bread ends may be foreign to you unless you have been to a place in Colonial Williamsburg called “The Cheese Shop.” Along with its hundreds of assortments of cheese, this Williamsburg novelty is one of the most popular student and tourist lunch stops around. The only thing that may impede your Cheese Shop fix is the massive line that forms in the store around peak lunch hours. The crowd can span the whole length of the store. But as an avid fan of this wonderful shop, you learn to work around such things. Often by calling ahead of time or simply groveling they will prepare your sandwich or find you bread ends even if they appear to be “out.” This perseverance will be worth it, I promise. Also, on Wednesdays you will find the most number of William and Mary students; these are the days the Cheese Shop boasts its student discount on sandwiches.

While I could go on about the bread ends and sandwiches forever, there is much more to the Cheese Shop than that. The Cheese Shop has more than 200 imported and domestic cheeses and over 3,000 great value wines in its new wine cellar for the over 21 crowd. You can enjoy a glass of Merlot on the patio or take it home with you. The shop is also filled with “Whole Foods”-esque baking supplies from pasta to cookie mix.

My favorite trips to the Cheese Shop were early on in the fall semester. It was sunny every Thursday, and every Thursday I would get out of my freshman seminar ready for a snack. My classmates and I would take this opportunity to enjoy a weekly stop at our favorite lunch place, where we were able to sit outside and watch the pedestrians and tourists stroll through CW. For people watchers or dog lovers, this is the spot to be. I have found by nearly exact science that every 3.5 pedestrian has a dog walking with them along this appropriately named D.O.G street (Duke of Gloucester.) These quaint afternoons of relaxation and conversation facilitated by the Cheese Shop’s pleasant atmosphere are something I will never forget, and plan to continue for my next three years at the College.

So why go to the Cheese Shop? Bread ends. The end.

– Anna Mahalak ’12