When it comes to dessert, you’re either a sweet person or a cheese person.
Some may love nothing more than diving into a chocolate brownie or attempting to summit a mountain of profiteroles, but others find joy in curd-y delights in a smorgasbord of soft, hard and blue cheeses.
Typically perceived as a dinner party must-have, a great cheese board is best accompanied by wine and a few other accoutrements.
What should go on a cheese board?
Think of it as a savoury end-of-meal tapas. Along with a variety of cheeses, fresh and preserved fruits, relishes and chutneys, nuts, pickles, and of course, some tasty crackers will elevate your cheese board to greater heights.
Depending on who you’re feeding, you could also add pleats of salami and cold-cuts into the mix too, creating a party or starter board instead of a dessert one.
But before you get to work artfully arranging your fare, you’ll need a board to set it all on. As a nation of cheese lovers, there are thousands to choose from: think marble, wood, options with cheese knives and some with clever sliding drawers to accommodate for more nibbles.
We’ve whittled the selection down to make shopping for them a breeze.
See our favourites below
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Miro Cheese Board Gift Set
Perfect for home and away, this portable cheese board not only offers 35.5cm of space to load your feast across the acacia wood surface, but it comes with six cheese knives and six forks for easy picking. Beautifully made, and available with speedy delivery on Prime.
Buy now £37.52, Amazon
Michael Aram Olive Branch Cheese Board with Knife - White
Bring style to your next fancy dinner party with this opulent white marble cheese board and knife set. The brass handles are inspired by olive branches, a look echoed on the handle of the cheese knife. As you might imagine, a piece this delicate is hand wash only. One for dinner parties that go long into the night. Also available in black.
Buy now £220.00, Amara
SO’HOME Cheese Board with Knife Set in White Marble & Wood
Made with marble and wood, the board of this design swivels to reveal a knife rack underneath, so you can store all your cheese board equipment safely in one place (and minimise endless rummaging in the cutlery drawer for the right knives!). Measures 6 x 22 x 22cm.
Buy now £40.50, La Redoute
VonShef Cheese Board with Knives
Combining function with form, this folding cheese board is perfect for small parties, or even an indulgent dinner. Compartments swivel out in a staircase-style configuration with the base layer offering space to hold a selection of hard and soft cheese knives, also provided. As well as using as a cheese board, it’s the perfect way to display nibbles for your next fondue night.
Buy now £15.99, Von Haus
VonShef Oval Bamboo Cheese Board set
This small oval cheese board is the perfect dimensions for a smaller party, measuring 35.2 x 20x 4cm. Crafted from sustainable bamboo wood, the board sports a grooved border to stop the delicious contents from sliding off, and a concealed drawer opens to reveal four utensils - a stilton knife, cheddar knife, hard cheese knife and cheese fork - so you can tuck in without delay.
Buy now £14.99, Von Haus
Marble Rotating Lazy Susan Cheeseboard Turntable 35cm White/ Light Grey
There’ll be no need to reach over your guests or ask for anyone to pass the camembert with this rotating Lazy Susan-esque board. Simply swivel it until you can reach the nibbles you want. Ideal for charcuterie as well as cheeses, it measures 35cm across and 3cm deep.
Buy now £27.28, Amazon
Cartwright & Butler Lytton engraved wooden cheese platter and knife
Impress your mates at your next dinner party by rolling out this acacia wood cheese board for afters. Measuring 44 x 20cm, it comes with a cheese knife which sits in a shaped groove.
Buy now £25.00, Selfridges
Anthropologie Marble Moon Phase Cheese Board
One with bags of millennial appeal, this pretty white marble cheese board would look good as a tray or display piece as well as functioning as a platter for cheddar, brie, Wensleydale and friends. The carry hands and moon phase detailing are rendered in brass, adding a touch of luxe to the proceedings.
Buy now £46.00, Anthropologie
Paxton & Whitfield Slate Cheese Board Chalk set
If you’ve invited exotic cheese varieties to your party, clue your guests in to what’s on the table with this genius cheese board. Made of slate, it comes with a pair of soapstone chalk crayons which allows you to scribble directly on the surface.
Buy now £20.00, Selfridges
Bordallo Pinheiro Cabbage Leaf Cheese Tray
For a cheese board with character, look to Bordallo Pinheiro, a homewares brand that puts food front and centre. It used the humble cabbage leaf as inspiration for its cheese board, made from earthenware and hand painted for a realistic finish. That’ll give ‘em something to ‘Gram about.
Buy now £57.00, Amara
Culinary Concepts Octopus Cheeseboard and Knife
Looking straight out of a Bond villain’s lair, Culinary Concept’s cheese board is a real conversation starter. The circular white marble board comes with a rope-handled cheese knife with an octopus keeping watch over it all. Nautical and nice.
Buy now £54.95, John Lewis
Oliver Bonas Star Inlay Knives & Cheese Board Set
Inlaid with a border of brass stars and moons, Oliver Bonas’s acacia wood cheese board set makes a beautiful gift or a splurge-worthy self-treat. The statement design comes with a trio of blades to help you slice and crumble your cheeses with style.
Buy now £59.50, Oliver Bonas
Anthropologie Agate Cheese Board
Officially a cheese board but with a look that lends itself well to many other uses, like a canape tray or serving platter, this stunning agate design will look seriously impressive in any setting.
Buy now £68.00, Anthropologie
