Welcome to the blog of the Rehoboth Beach Cheese Company. Pull up a bar stool and experience our Counter Culture!

I'm Andy Meddick, Owner and President of the Rehoboth Beach Cheese Company. In 2005, I left my corporate I.T. job in Washington DC, to relocate with my spouse's business to the DE beaches. What to do now we live in a state where chicken houses can often outnumber human? Faced with a four hour round trip to the closest decent food market, I opened my first store, Good For You Market, a full service grocery store, focusing on organic, natural, and gourmet foods. In the worst economy since the 1930s, I won Best of Delaware awards three years running. After four years, I decided to simplify the business, re-aligning to focus on what we did best. The result is the Rehoboth Beach Cheese Company. We sell (retail and wholesale) artisan/farmstead cheeses, charcuterie, organic produce,and other specialty foods such as spices and seasonings. We also teach cheese classes, cater, sell online, and consult with other businesses to build their cheese programs.

I've learned much since starting out. For example, staffing was a steep learning curve, and I discovered that a savvy sales and marketing professional lay dormant in an I.T. geek! Systems analysis, business analysis, database design and development, data architecture, web design, specialty cheeses and foods, organic farming, catering, and cooking. What do all these threads have in common? Curiosity! It begets technique, which in turn begets better solutions to commond needs. Why complain about lack of choice, if you're not willing to offer an alternative? Our move, and my business development has taught me to participate in life, and to be ever curious! Enjoy!

Jan 29, 2010

I'm on a gnocchi roll this week. Gnocchi are so easy to make, there's no excuse for discarding any less than perfect vegetables in your pantry. Just peel, cube, and steam the vegetable of choice. Then mash it, or, if you have a potato ricer (and why not if you don't?), it's a breeze. I've been experimenting with Rutabaga, Yukon Gold Potatoes and Spinach, or Broccoli, Winter Squashes (Butternut, Acorn, Kabocha), Carrot, Gold Beets, Red Beets, Sweet Potatoes, and Parsnips. The result has been a range of flavors (mild to sweet and earthy), and color (pale green, pale yellow, golden orange, and deep red). I'm working on an article for The Grapevine...

Jan 28, 2010

Dum da-da, dum da-da… Are you a, “Man/woman on a mission?” I am. I have a mission to get us cooking. If we make it ourselves then we know what’s gone into it. At the very least we understand the waiter when they’re discussing the specials, or know what a huge deal it is when a local chef posts live Maine Lobstah, or boasts of rutabaga in a subtly sweet gnocchi – a vegetable we would never eat otherwise. We’re all so distracted – so much information from so many media. It’s overwhelming, but if we have access to a computer, how is there ever an excuse for not knowing where to start? Whenever I asked my Dad how to spell, or drove him nuts with,...

Jan 25, 2010

Each time I declare I’ve had enough of Facebook, vowing to re-enter the ‘real’ world, someone posts a great snippet of information. Leave it to the folks at the excellent Saveur magazine (http://www.saveur.com)/ to post this update, “Advanced Rutabaga Studies Institute declaring 2010 the International Year of the Rutabaga.” I’m sure tongues are firmly planted in cheeks, but as far as I’m concerned, it’s a case of, “Rutabaga: you give so much and get so little love in return.” Rutabagas are not well understood, nor widely eaten, and this is a shame. I admit they look and smell ghastly when raw. In fact, never eat it raw; for you will not pick...

Jan 17, 2010

I just made wholewheat shortcrust pastry and pasties with said pastry and frankly I'm stunned! The pastry is light, crumbly, and a little crunchy. For the filling I used some caramelized onions which I cooked down over 24 hours in my crockpot and added steamed organic veggies and a strong cheddar from the store. While I don't think I'd win many awards for appearance, the result is one to be proud of. I listened to my Mother's advice when it comes to pastry and, well as always, Mother knows best! Next time I roll the edges of the turnover like an old Cornish lady. Meanwhile Tom, being from Jersey thinks a British pasty could be improved by deep...

Jan 8, 2010

I've been reading various online posts that discuss the proposed benefits or not of Agave Nectar. Also the marketing of said nectar. I'm not going to link to the posts since, well you know how to Google, don't you Steve? Also, admittedly, I haven't trawled my way through all the research, articles and conflicting viewpoints that have arisen this week. So, why mention this at all? I have a guilty pleasure when I view online articles. I love to scan the comments. It's like people watching on the boardwalk. Fascinating. Such diversity. One thing disturbed me in the comments on the Agave nectar posting. There was a trend toward bashing 'Natural Food' stores. Now y'all know (that I'm from The South, right? South Wales that is!) that I don't consider Good For You Market to be a 'Health Food' or...

Jan 4, 2010

G4U Cheese Ads

Check out our new Artisan Cheese ads running locally in DE. We're now upto 40 artisan cheeses and not 25 as mentioned in the ads.Clip 1: Cheese 101 Class being held at the Good For You Market, January 16, 2010Clip 2: The Power of Y...

Jan 2, 2010

I changed the blog name yet again. Why? I think words matter, they matter a great deal. Language is a great gift and an enormous tool, best used for good and to develop others. After 16 years in the USA, I still get in trouble over verbal and cultural misunderstandings and I hail from a country with (allegedly) the same language. So, "The Moodie Foodie" - while close, just didn't cut it. For now, the closest I can find is, "Curious and Cooking." Why not Moodie Foodie? Too limiting and just didn't sit right with me - like wearing someone else's shoes. They may look good and be your size, so come close, but they don't feel right and make you walk...

Jan 1, 2010

Happy New Year! Our Bayberry Candle burning New Year's Eve. Burned out just in time for New Year EST!This morning I woke up convinced it was New Year's Eve and that I had to open the store. I made it to the bathroom before going, "Huh?" So Happy New Year from a bleary eyed retailer who is glad things can settle back to normal. It's a long crazy ride from Thanksgiving to December 31. Tom's New Year outfit. Skipped the crowds in downtown Rehoboth and stayed home. Tom made Crab Imperial and we drank heavily to get over the shock of how much we paid for the Maryland Crab. No we did not get it at Good For You Market!...

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