This East Coast City Just Opened One of the First Cheese Vending Machines in the U.S.

In Philadelphia, you can pick up a cube of cave-ripened cow’s milk cheese at 7 a.m., or a wheel washed in seawater from the North Atlantic for a midnight snack. Perrystead Dairy just unveiled one of the country’s first cheese vending machines outside of its creamery in the city’s Kensington neighborhood, and its artisanal, award-winning cheeses are now available to buy any time of day or night.

Owner Yoav Perry opened Philly’s first urban dairy in 2021, garnering awards for his American original cheeses, but the production facility — a small white building surrounded by a pollinator garden growing lavender and rosemary — is too small for a retail space. Would-be customers have been knocking on Perrystead’s door looking to buy cheese since they opened. Until now, though, it’s been available nationwide in shops and restaurants, online, or for timed in-person pickups. “But the immediate satisfaction and experience were missing,” Perry told Travel + Leisure.

Perry got the idea for his 24-hour cheese dispensary after seeing similar setups in Europe, where rural farmstead cheesemakers use them to sell their goods without the overhead of a shop. He also recalled Philadelphia’s history with vending machine fare — luncheonette Horn & Hardart borrowed the concept from Germany and opened America’s first automat in the city in 1902.

“We thought a 24-7 self-service dispensary in our pollinator garden would be a fun convenience and product showcase — a mere few feet away from where the cheese is made and aged,” he said.

Set inside a music-filled, temperature-controlled booth, the machine is stocked with Perrystead cheeses like Atlantis, a seasonal semi-soft cheese washed in ocean water, the creamy, spruce bark-wrapped Treehug, and the tangy, cream cheese-esque Real Philly Schmear. (The innovative cheeses make for a uniquely Philly souvenir but for those looking to slice in straight away, a nearby picnic spot includes the grassy, riverfront Penn Treaty Park.)

Also on offer: all the essentials for rounding out a cheeseboard, including a rotating selection of crisps, preserves, and charcuterie — and even the boards and serving tools.

For American Cheese Month, which runs until the end of May, Perrystead teamed up with famed New York City institution Murray’s on a special limited edition cheese called Umbra. Besides the Murray’s shop and website, you can also get the cheese with the push of a few buttons at the dispensary.

The response, both from the community and beyond, has been enthusiastic, with the cheese dispensary drawing lines and social media attention. Perry said they’re focused on perfecting the experience, though he hasn’t ruled out opening more machines.

“Given the enthusiastic response,” he said, “it became evident that other communities too, deserve their own cheese accessibility concepts.”