Beloved Santa Barbara cheese shop closes its doors for good during COVID-19 shutdown

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - C'est Cheese, popular gourmet cheese shop and restaurant in Downtown Santa Barbara, made the hard decision to close its doors for good while being shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic.

C'est Cheese announced the closure Saturday evening on their social media and website in a letter to the "C'est Cheese family."

The letter reads in full:

To our C’est Cheese family,

As many of you know, we had a big set back a few years ago during the Thomas Fire and resulting mudslides.
Ever since, we have been working to recover from its impact, but the current pandemic has been more than we can overcome.
We hung on as long as we could, but unfortunately the time has come for us to close our doors.
With a heavy heart, we regret to inform you that Saturday, July 18th, was C’est Cheese’s last day in business.

Thank you everyone for all of the support and love that you have given us over the years.
We never imagined how fulfilling our lives would become when we decided to open up our little cheese shop 16 years ago and for that we are forever grateful. It has been a pleasure and an honor to be a part of this community.
With love to you all.

Michael & Kathryn & the entire C’est Cheese team

Opening 16 years ago in December of 2003 as a small cheese store, C'est Cheese quickly became a Santa Barbara staple.

Fine quality meats and cheeses have been some of the shop's showcase items over the years. Over 100 cheese varieties were offered by the store, cut to order for customers. Their artisan selection of cured meats ranged from Italian prosciutto and Spanish Jamon to their own house-made chicken liver pate. The store also offered cheese platter catering services and gift boxes.

The small shop tripled in size in 2013, allowing them to open a cafe area so they could fulfill their dreams of serving cheese, breakfast, lunch, coffee and more on a larger scale to customers. Sadly, the cafe was forced to close in 2017 following the Thomas Fire and resulting deadly Montecito Mudslides.

C'est Cheese was also known for its cheese classes which were offered twice a month at the shop. Store owner Kathryn Graham led the classes which showcased five cheese from around the world including goat, cow and sheep milk cheeses. The cheeses were often paired with a glass of wine and other side-dishes.

For more information about C'est Cheese, you can visit their website at www.cestcheese.com. Beautiful pictures of the shop, it's mouth-watering menu items and, of course, cheeses can be viewed on their Facebook and Instagram pages.

C'est Cheese was open Tuesdays through Sundays at 825 Santa Barbara Street in Santa Barbara.