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Murray's Cheese

Murray's Cheese Shop, New York's oldest and best cheese shop, has a rich history dating back to 1940. From its humble beginnings as a wholesale butter and egg shop, Murray's has evolved into a full-service specialty shop that offers a wide range of high-quality cheeses, a kitchen, a new website, mail order options, a gift catalog, a classroom, and cheese caves.

Upcoming Classes at Murray's Cheese (96)

All courses are held at 254 Bleecker St, New York, NY unless indicated.

Wednesday, February 19th
6:30–8pm EST

$108.56

Thursday, February 20th
6:30–8pm EST

$119.09

Friday, February 21st
6:30–7:30pm EST

$76.99

Saturday, February 22nd
2–3:30pm EST

$129.61

Saturday, February 22nd
5:30–7pm EST

$119.09

Sunday, February 23rd
2–3:30pm EST

$108.56

Tuesday, February 25th
6:30–8pm EST

$92.77

Wednesday, February 26th
6:30–8pm EST

$113.82

Thursday, February 27th
6:30–8pm EST

$100

Friday, February 28th
6:30–7:30pm EST

$76.99

Saturday, March 1st
2–3:30pm EST

$119.09

Saturday, March 1st
5:30–7pm EST

$119.09

Sunday, March 2nd
2–3:30pm EST

$129.61

Tuesday, March 4th
6:30–8pm EST

$113.82

Wednesday, March 5th
6:30–8pm EST

$100

Thursday, March 6th
6:30–8pm EST

$119.09

Friday, March 7th
6:30–7:30pm EST

$76.99

Saturday, March 8th
2–3:30pm EST

$119.09

Saturday, March 8th
5:30–7pm EST

$119.09

Saturday, March 8th
6:30–8pm EST

$108.56

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Provider Description

Murray’s Cheese began as a simple cheese counter in Greenwich Village in 1962. What started as a small, family-owned business has recently expanded after being voted the “Best Cheese Shop in New York” by Time Out in 2007. Over the past several decades, Murray’s has become a New York institution. They operate two restaurants in New York City and have a few cheese shop locations in Long Island, Grand Central Terminal, and their flagship location on Bleecker Street. 

Cheese lovers are sure to find something that piques their interest among the many classes at Murray’s Cheese. If you’re interested in learning to make your own cheese, they’ve got you covered by their famed Burrata Making and Mozzarella Making workshops. In these 90-minute programs, participants learn traditional methods of making these popular cheeses. The courses start with a tasting (along with Murray’s house wines) before diving into the hands-on work of stretching and pulling fresh, high-quality cheese. Students who attend the cheese-making classes are able to take their cheese home to enjoy or share as gifts with their friends and family.

There are also plenty of courses for students who are more interested in learning about the different flavors of cheeses and how to pair them appropriately with wines and other foods. For example, there is a Cheese and Rosé Tasting class that showcases four different cheeses and four varieties of rosé wine. Throughout the course, an expert instructor will share the history and other fun facts about each wine and cheese, as well as the specific reasons why each pairing works so well together. 

Students who have attended classes at Murray’s Cheese have largely positive things to say about their experiences. Many students report appreciating the interactive nature of the classes, stating they had a lot of fun while learning a great deal about making cheese from scratch. Reviewers also shared how thoughtful and organized the instructors are, often reporting that the classes “exceeded expectations.” The instructors at Murray’s are often cited as being knowledgeable and fun, keeping students engaged and making them laugh throughout the process.

The History of New York's Oldest and Best Cheese Shop:

Murray Greenberg (never met him; he died before I got here) was a Jewish Spanish civil war veteran and communist who opened a wholesale butter and egg shop a few doors up Cornelia street in 1940. The old timers tell me that even though he was an old leftie, he was still a street smart capitalist who used to buy cheese cheap and trim it and sell it. In the 70's he sold the shop to his clerk Louis Tudda, an Italian immigrant from Calabria.

The old shop was used like a bodega or a Korean deli is today; not only cheese was sold but cheap oil and tomatoes to the locals, who were predominantly Italian back in '91 when I bought the shop. That's changing now.

I'd left the family supermarket business in '85 to do full service specialty shops in New Jersey, where I was from. When my shop, in Princeton tanked with the crash of '87, I wound up in my brother's old apartment here in the Village (he's a lawyer and he'd moved to L.A.), wondering what to do with my life next. One day, when I was in line at the original shop, I heard Louis say he'd lost his lease and was closing. I made him an offer and moved the shop to the corner of Bleecker, where we stayed 14 years, until November '04, when we moved to our current location at Bleecker and Leroy.

Frankie came with the shop; he lived around here and had been the delivery boy, then a counterman through college, and stayed here when his folks returned to the island of Malta where they were from. Louis himself worked for a year before he went back home. We'd hang out behind the counter selling cheap cheese, mostly commodity stuff bought on deal.

Around ten years ago we got serious about the good stuff, and at first we couldn't sell it. Now we can't keep it in stock! The first line we got in was Neal's Yard Dairy cheese, and boy, did it sit there in the case. The old neighborhood is changing. Zito's bread, older than Murray's even (1920) is gone, and so is the pioneer of all, Balducci's up on 9th St. (Citarella's there now). But the new customers are a lot younger and hipper.

We always had a good staff, though this is by far the best. I'm often grouchy, but everyone else was, and is, really very nice. Go figure. And the business grows each year.

These days I can barely keep up on all the new stuff that's going on: we have a kitchen, a new web site, mail order, a gift catalog, a classroom and cheese caves. It's not quite anarchy but it's certainly not corporate. It's the Village: artists, folkies, poets, creative types have made this their home for over a century. Our shop in Grand Central even has the feel of it.

The main thing is to let the customers see our passion, that's what it's all about. Turn them on to whatever we've got going. Taste it yourself. My Grandpa, whose own store is in a picture above the dairy case (ca. 1925), and an immigrant (Russian Jewish) himself, always said, in that sort of accent of his, 'go on, take a taste.' Nothing's changed, I suppose. We tell them, 'here, take a taste.'

--Rob

254 Bleecker St, New York, NY 10014
Murray's Cheese
Greenwich Village, Manhattan
254 Bleecker St
Btwn Leroy & Morton Streets
New York, New York 10014

Reviews of Murray's Cheese

(4.6-star rating across 720 reviews)
  • Pasta Making & Cheese Tasting (Includes Wine)

    Anonymous review on 2/12/2025
    I think I expected more and this just didn’t fulfill. We neither cooked nor ate any of the pasta. We weren’t told the measurements until I asked. We didn’t learn how to make the best sauce. We didn’t even consume the pasta we took home. It felt like a cheap scheme. The staff were great however, and we drank our moneys worth in wine.
  • Mozzarella & Burrata Making (Includes Wine)

    Reviewed by Elizabeth B. on 1/13/2025
    It was SO much fun! I learned a ton and left super inspired!
  • Pasta Making & Cheese Tasting (Includes Wine)

    Anonymous review on 1/13/2025
    This pasta making class a gift for my dad’s birthday. The class was an absolute delight! We learned so much and had a blast making pasta. The instructor also provided wine and a cheese tasting. The whole experience was incredible!
  • Wine & Cheese Crash Course

    Reviewed by Katherine B. on 8/25/2024
    Loved it, easy to get to, wide variety and its so interactive. Ended up buying a cheese i tasted hehe.
  • French Wine & Cheese Crash Course

    Anonymous review on 7/27/2024
    Super insightful, fun and engaging! Definitely would book again & will be booking another class again!!
  • NYC: Mozzarella Making & Wine with Murray's Cheese

    Reviewed by Jaclyn H. on 6/6/2024
    Everything went great and the team had a wonderful time!
  • Pasta Making & Cheese Tasting (Includes Wine)

    Anonymous review on 5/25/2024
    The class itself was fantastic, really fun and had such a great time. But when I cooked the pasta at home it was inedible :( I felt like I followed all the instructions in class to a tee so I'm not sure where I went wrong
  • Wine & Cheese Crash Course

    Anonymous review on 5/24/2024
    Very interesting, engaging class! Learned a lot and really enjoyed the experience. Would recommend.
  • Cheese & Red Wine Tasting

    Reviewed by Emma L. on 10/22/2023
    The teachers were very knowledgeable and shared a good amount of information. The class would have been more fun if they allowed a few minutes on each pairing for interaction between the students. I have been to a class before that offered a small second taste of your favorite at the end and let students discuss and mingle which adds a nice social element. Cheeses were delicious and the class was really informative on how they are made. Wines were not great. I would not purchase any of them.
  • Infused Burrata Making with Mike's Hot Honey

    Anonymous review on 9/24/2023
    It was fun!!
  • Mozzarella Making (Includes Wine)

    Reviewed by Andrea P. on 9/22/2023
    The structure was great - starting with a tasting of different mozzarella considerations. A demo of how to make mozzarella followed and then we were able to make our way. The mozzarella turned out amazing and it is so much easier to do than I thought. Thanks to this class I have the confidence and instruction to make fresh mozzarella at home any time!
  • National Cheese Day Pairing Perfection

    Reviewed by Karen B. on 6/5/2023
    I love Murray's!
  • Wine and Cheese: Mediterranean Masterpieces

    Reviewed by Dilara O. on 6/4/2023
    It was fun! interactive, interesting and delicious choices1
  • Burrata Making (Includes Wine)

    Reviewed by Bob W. on 5/21/2023
    The concept of the class was great and something we were looking forward to. The sampling of different cheeses in different states, along with the bubbly/wine was a nice touch. We have done a number of cooking classes in our hometown as well as other cities we have travelled to. None of these classes involved cheese or in this case making a specific cheese, so it might not be a fair comparison. The other classes were instructor lead and participatory, just like this one. However, the process was laid out in steps, with the instructor giving you direction for each step. This class was watching the instructor go through all the steps and then we were allowed to start. It was easy for her since she has done this multiple times in the past. But for a first timer it was very confusing, trying to remember what was said and then try to duplicate the steps. And it didn't go very well, with each of our efforts resulting in a less than acceptable finished cheese. Since we took it with us as we left, we both threw our "finished product" in the trash. The class was also very messy dealing with the cheese and water. It would have been nice to have some protection/covering (aka an apron) to protect our clothes as both of us experienced some splashes and spots on our clothes that were supposed to be worn again during our vacation. I doubt we will try this at home based on our experience, and instead just go out and purchase the cheese when we have the occasion to serve it. For the money, this was a total bust. We had hoped for more.
  • Cheese & Rosé Tasting

    Reviewed by Lindsey C. on 5/8/2023
    Very informative, teachers were nice and did a great job, delicious cheese and wine!
  • Tour of Europe: Cheese & Wine Tasting

    Anonymous review on 4/17/2023
    The class was great, super informative and fun!
  • Mozzarella Making (Includes Wine)

    Reviewed by Lauren D. on 1/8/2023
    Fun experience, great information, delicious mozzarella! Staff was friendly.
  • Mother's Day: Cheese & Rosé Wine Pairing

    Anonymous review on 12/11/2022
    I loved the class!
  • Mozzarella & Burrata Making (Includes Wine)

    Reviewed by Kristen H. on 11/15/2022
    What an absolutely perfect afternoon! This class was fun, informational, delicious and lovely. Our instructor was so knowledgable, witty, helpful and warm. What blew me away was how well it was prepped and run. From the wine and tasting to the actual making and the gifts to take home, it was an incredible experience that exceeded my expectations.
  • Virtual Pairing Perfection: Picnic Edition

    Reviewed by Kyla B. on 9/30/2020
    Very educational and fun! Learned a lot and the food was delicious!
Show More Reviews

Review Summary by CourseHorse

Students who have taken classes at Murray's Cheese speak positively about their experiences. Many students found the classes to be fun, interactive, and interesting, with delicious choices of cheese and pairings. They enjoyed the knowledgeable instructors and the opportunity to learn about different cheeses and their pairings. For some students, the virtual classes provided a unique experience. Many students highly recommend the classes. Quotes: 1. "The instructor was extremely knowledgeable and knew her material inside and out. The session was so excellent, I signed up for two more." 2. "The instructor Michelle for this virtual class was great! She focused on the cheeses and the paired accoutrements. Her set up was very nice, she was fun and engaging. We hope she teaches more virtual classes!" 3. "The structure was great... Thanks to this class I have the confidence and instruction to make fresh mozzarella at home any time!"

Teachers at Murray's Cheese

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