Cheese Shops We Love: Milkfarm

Location: 2106 Colorado Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA

Early in her culinary career, after graduating from California Culinary Academy in San Francisco, Leah Park Fierro worked as a pastry chef in high-profile kitchens at places like Stars in San Francisco, the Ritz-Carlton Half Moon Bay and The Four Seasons Palo Alto. “I always knew I wanted to open my own business since playing with my fake cash register and plastic coins as a child,” Fierro says. Given her trajectory, a baking business made sense, but she got other ideas overseas. She took off 2006 to travel the world and her plans totally changed.

“When I got back I found myself yearning for the little bodegas and specialty shops in all of the little neighborhoods I traveled through,” she says. “I landed a job working at The Cheese Store of Silverlake and what I thought was going to be a seasonal gig, ended up being six glorious years in cheese!”

She finally felt ready to open her own business, and since she grew up in Monterey Park, recognized the need for her cheese expertise on the Eastside. She foresaw particularly strong potential in Eagle Rock and opened Milkfarm in 2014 on one of Eagle Rock’s two main drags: Colorado Boulevard.

The Store

Cheeses are front and center at Milkfarm. Customers sit at sidewalk tables or at communal picnic tables in a light-strung dining area past the display cases.

To get a sense of Milkfarm’s focus, refer to their U.S. map pinned with dozens of creamery logos. At any given time, the store sells 150 cheeses that tilt toward America, though Fierro does frequently dip into Europe for certain selections.

“We have standards that we always have around the shop such as Parmigiano-Reggiano, Pecorino-Romano, block cheddars, a selection of Goudas, mozzarella, burrata, etc.,” Fierro says. “Since we are an independent shop, we can change our selection week to week, and we quite often do! Some cheeses are seasonal, some cheeses are special order via boat/plane, and some are simply requests from customers.”

Keeping the focus on cheese

Milkfarm also stocks salumi, terrines and sausages from artisan American companies like Creminelli (Utah), La Quercia (Iowa), and Smoking Goose Meatery (Indianapolis). Fierro leans on L.A. producers like Letterpress Chocolate, Bub and Grandma’s bread and Semolina Pasta for additional support. Milkfarm also offers a small selection of natural wines, craft beers, sakes and ciders. Handy/fun items include cheese graters, ceramic “salt monsters” and cheese-themed greeting cards. “For the most part, I try to stock items that are relatable to cheese, meant for cooking with cheese, pairable on a cheese board, or eating alongside cheese,” Fierro says. “The end goal is not to be a generalized gourmet grocer, rather a specialty shop with a focus on cheese.”

“It was really important for me to have an area where friends and family could drink a glass of wine with their toddler/kids, since Eagle Rock's demographic is heavy with young families,” Fierro says. To secure their dine-in ABC license, Milkfarm was required to offer prepared foods. They started making soups, mac and cheese, and sandwiches. Raclette nights also proved to be immensely popular. “Literally hundreds of people would show up on the first Friday of every month for a dinner plate of Raclette melted over potatoes.”

Ultimately, Fierro decided to pump the brakes on such an ambitious food program. “Prepared foods really started to spiral down a path that I never intended Milkfarm to go down. My mission was always to be a cheese shop, not a restaurant, so we stopped doing all of those other things and now just focus on being top-notch Cheesemongers that happen to have amazing sandwiches.”

Milkfarm Cubano Sandwich Chocolate Chip Cookie

Sandwiches include a signature grilled cheese that combines three American cow’s milk cheeses - Reading Raclette from Vermont, Landaff semi-firm from Vermont, and Hook’s 2-year cave-aged cheddar from Wisconsin - with caramelized shallots, leeks, and onions with cracked pepper on crusty pressed whole wheat bread. They also run specials like a Cubano with house-roasted pork loin, house-pickled cornichons, grated Swiss, roasted garlic aioli, spicy mustard, pepper, and smoked pancetta on pressed Bub and Grandma’s ciabatta.

Fierro also continues to flex her baking muscles on a regular basis, crafting 12 chocolate chip cookies per day, which she sprinkles with Jacobson sea salt.

“The shop could be a bit intimidating since we have 150+ cheeses at any given time, but my Cheesemongers are here to lead the way as far as taste preferences, price points, and cheese education,” Fierro says. “We take our jobs seriously as Cheesemongers, and for most of us, this is a career choice that we love very much and excitedly share with our customers, especially people new to the wonderful world of cheese!”

Top Selling Cheeses

Fierro shared insights on why Milkfarm’s three best sellers earned that status.

Prairie Breeze Cheddar

“Folks love to categorize cheese and Cheddar is a popular category! This cheese is robust, sharp, sweet, savory, and has a totally approachable price point.”

Brebirousse d'Argental

“This cheese is densely creamy, striking to the eye (orange on the outside and beige on the inside), and has more character than a basic Brie, whilst staying in the "brie" category. I love that this is a gateway cheese for people to step out of Brie, and into the wild world of other soft, bloomy-rinded, and/or washed-rind cheeses.”

Reading Raclette

“I love that Raclette is making a comeback! We used to host Raclette Nights at Milkfarm and it would bring 100's of cheese-loving patrons to the shop in a two-hour span. People are learning about this traditional dish in L.A., and who doesn't like melted cheese AND melted cheese on top of food!?”