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DiBruno Bros. has taken a new step in its ever expanding presence on the local and national food scene — it now boasts a literary accompaniment. In the recently published “DiBruno Bros. House of Cheese: A Guide to Wedges, Recipes, and Pairings,” author and Philly’s resident cheese courtesan Tenaya Darlington delivers an approachable and enjoyable ride through the culinary possibilities offered by the iconic neighborhood cheese shop. More than a traditional cookbook, it is a work born of Darlington’s obsession with cheese and an introduction to that hole in the wall on South Ninth Street.
“I moved to Philadelphia from Wisconsin in 2005, and I had one address that someone had given me, because I didn’t know a single a person. A former neighbor said when you get to Philadelphia you got to go down to the Italian Market and check out this little cheese shop called DiBruno Bros.,” she recalled. “Not only was the selection amazing, it was just fun to stand in line. You’re behind chefs, you’re behind little Italian grandmas wearing thick black shoes and black socks waiting for their hunks of Pecorino-Romano.
“You got sausages hanging from the ceiling. It smells wonderful. That place just felt alive to me in way that no other cheese shop had ever felt alive. I felt so welcome to Philadelphia just by stepping into that shop.”
After that, Darlington said DiBruno Bros., 930 S. Ninth St., became her “Cheers,” stopping in weekly to check out new cheeses that she would often then bring to parties. She learned quickly that arriving with cheese in Philly will make one pretty popular, helping her settle nicely into her new city.
Darlington’s background as a poet and novelist would then manifest itself in her newfound cheese habit, as she began writing down her cheese experiences. Soon after her popular blog and alter ego Madame Fromage was born, a project that would eventually gain her enough notoriety and credibility to garner the blessing of DiBruno Bros. brass in authoring the first and only cheese guide in its roughly 75-year history.
“House of Cheese” strikes fun loving and non-pretentious chords, amusingly categorizing cheeses not by world region or technical definition but by personality — calling them “vixens,” “mountain men” and “rock stars.” Each of the 170 cheeses detailed in her book falls into these, or equally colorful, categories and all are favorites that can be found at DiBruno Bros.
Darlington professes she wanted to reflect the, “enthusiastic and approachable feeling inside DiBruno Bros.,” and she succeeds in doing just that. Published by Philly’s own Running Press, the book is a must-have for anyone aiming to craft the ideal cheese plate, find the perfect drink pairing or bring the atmosphere of the Italian Market DiBruno Bros. to his or her kitchen.
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