On Church Street there’s a towering black and white building across from The Virginian—you know the one. It looks like it has been plucked right out of a side street in London, with its paneled glass shop windows and inky exterior practically begging you to stop and take a photo. Inside, you’re transported yet again—this time to a Parisian cheese shop. Wheels of cheese are stacked atop one another, and strands of salami sit nearby, tied up like delicious little packages waiting to be opened.
Behind the counter, a blonde woman flits about, pouring wine for one guest, and cutting a sample of duck prosciutto for another. Between tasks, she’s talking, laughing, and sharing about her passion: cheese and charcuterie.
The shop isn’t an ordinary cheese shop and the woman behind the counter isn’t an ordinary cheese monger. In fact, the space—Beau’s Gourmet Cheese & Charcuterie—is notorious for peddling the unconventional. Its counter windows are lined with charcoal lemon cheese—as jet black as the building itself—and blue-veined cheddar, cheeses you won’t find at your local grocery store. And Ashley Hall, the owner of Beau’s, has a backstory as unique as the cheeses she serves.
With a PhD in counseling, Hall previously worked in crisis intervention and disaster recovery, spending weeks or months at a time on-site after hurricanes, covering the needs of disaster survivors. But when life pivoted for Hall, she took a leap no one saw coming: She opened a cheese shop in Lynchburg, Virginia.
The concept for Beau’s Gourmet Cheese & Charcuterie started in August 2022, when Hall would go to wine festivals or pop up at local breweries to offer cheeses and charcuterie to hungry customers. From there, Beau’s took on a life of its own—amassing a loyal following of customers until, one day, Hall sought out permanent residence on Church Street.
Within its footprint, which includes the cheese and charcuterie shop to the left and a 1,000-square-foot event space to the right, Hall offers lunch, dinner, and cut-to-order cheese and charcuterie.
“Our menu is simple,” Hall said. “We always have a soup of the day and flatbread. The specials change daily and we update our menu at least three times per week. Our meats have no chemicals or nitrates. We offer 18 types of cured meats—lamb, elk, wild boar, duck prosciutto, Wagyu beef bresaola. I know exactly what’s in these products.”
With the fervor of someone who is truly passionate about food, Hall is happy to share information and even a nibble or two of cheese with curious customers—one minute showcasing a wheel of II Forteto Pecorino Toscano and the next educating customers on the importance of storing bleu cheese properly (“Always take bleu cheese out of the plastic when you get home and store it in aluminum to maintain its flavor.”).
“From day one I’ve said that I wanted to do things differently,” Hall said. “I wanted quality food.
My boards may not look as good [as others around town], but I know the quality. I know the farmers and the owners. I’ve built these relationships for the past two years.”
This dedication to quality is infused throughout every decision Hall makes, including a weekly shopping trip to the Lynchburg Community Market for farm fresh, local ingredients for menu items or local jams and jellies to accompany the cheese boards.
“‘Grow Virginia’, that’s what we’re all about at Beau’s,” explained Hall. “We shop local as much as we can.”
Customers come in for a cut-to-order block of cheese to have at home, stop in to sample from a curated cheese board, or dine-in for lunch or dinner and, if Hall has her way, they’ll leave with a deeper appreciation for the ingredients that found their way to their plate.
