An old-fashioned cherry-red bicycle with worn leather seat and wicker basket, casually propped up outside, beckons gourmets and romantics into this gorgeous cheese shop on pedestrian rue des Ramparts. The tantalising pong of hundreds of different cheeses, many local or regional and dozens ripened in situ by female fromagère and affineuse extraordinaire Delphine Lapena, is heaven for cheese aficionados.
Specialities include a creamy camembert studded with figs and hazelnuts, and nutty mature gouda fashioned like sticks of nougat. Pair with a full-bodied Bordeaux red for a match made in heaven. Chez Delphine also sells a stunningly curated selection of smoky cured meats and saucissons, Beillevaire butter and other top-quality dairy products.
