Little Cheese opens in Stony Brook

A little cheese shop would be just right, figured Christopher and Krystal Abate.

The husband and wife had been working in the hospitality industry even before they met as students at Johnson & Wales in Miami in the aughts. Since 2015, when they moved from New York City back to Long Island, Christopher opened and managed restaurants for the Bohlsen, Tunneyvision and Coastal Verde groups while Krystal, whose career had been mainly in event planning, was selling custom charcuterie boards through her @spreading_hospitality Instagram.

Now, with two kids at home, they wanted a business that they could build together. Said Christopher, "we always wanted our own restaurant." But, interjected Krystal, "we also wanted to get home at a reasonable hour so we could have dinner as a family. A little cheese shop is a nice, happy medium."

Little Cheese opened Feb. 14, taking over the Stony Brook Village Center space that had been Brew Cheese. The Abates jettisoned the beer, lightened the decor and focused their energy on finding not only great cheeses, but cheeses produced by dairies that practice what Christopher referred to as "regenerative agriculture," an approach that prioritizes soil health and biodiversity over yields. "We’ve found that the quality of food can decrease as producers look to maximize profits," he said. "We want to buy from people who take care of the earth."

And there’s no reason that approach can’t be delicious. Little Cheese’s top seller is Alp Blossom, made in the German Alps from cow’s milk and aged with fragrant Alpine herbs and flowers. They’ve got a lot of excellent small-format cheeses such as Kunik, a nuttier take on Brie from the Adirondacks, earthy Harbison from Vermont, La Tur and mini Taleggios from Italy, Epoisses and Brillat-Savarin from France. Or bring home a slab of Shawondasee from Bridgehampton’s own Mecox Bay Dairy; Stilton, Shropshire Blue and Cheddar from England, Italian Parmigiano-Reggianos that have been aged 18 months or five or 10 years.

There are crowd-pleasers such as Drunken Goat from Spain plus cured meats domestic and imported; spreads, dips and preserves; olives, crackers and everything you might need to make your own cheese or charcuterie board. Or perhaps you’d like Krystal to handle that for you? Her offerings range from "Little nibble boards" (assorted cheeses and cured meat, grapes, nuts, olives, accoutrements) that are packed and priced to go ($24.99) to the "small graze" (serves 6 to 9, $119) to the "grand graze (serves 20 to 30, $299).

Need a nosh right now? There are freshly pressed grilled cheese sandwiches like "Alpine bliss" (Gruyère with blueberry preserves), "Goodfella" (Fontina and pistachio pesto) and "Nordic heat" (jalapeño havarti with pineapple-mango chutney). Cold sandwiches include Caprese, a New Orleans-style muffuletta and Parma (Parmigiano-Reggiano with prosciutto, truffle cream and honey). Most sandwiches are $16.99 to $19.99.

Little Cheese will pack up your sandwich, salad or soup to go, or you can enjoy it at one of the little tables that looks out at Stony Brook harbor.

127 Main St., Stony Brook, 631-223-0245, littlecheese.shop. Open Monday to Thursday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.