Ferndale’s Cheese and Chocolate Oasis Is Opening an Even Bigger Shop in Cass Corridor

After less than a year in Ferndale, specialty cheese, chocolate, and charcuterie shop Provisions is expanding to a new location in Detroit and changing its name. The company now known as Mongers’ Provisions is planning to open at 4240 Cass Ave. (Suite 111) in the former Midtown Interior Finishes space.

Unlike the Ferndale store, which shares space with butcher shop Farm Field Table, the new storefront will be much larger at 1,028 square feet. That will allow owners Zach Berg and William Werner to expand their selection of products and also offer more events. “In our current spot in Ferndale we don’t have enough space to do interactive events,” Werner tells Eater, noting that the company currently hosts tastings at nearby brewery Urbanrest in Ferndale as well as talks at local community centers. “The bigger space just allows us to do a lot more of what we wanted to do in general,” he says.

That means a larger, 12-foot cold case dedicated primarily to cheeses. Werner and Berg estimate that they’ll carry roughly 100 different types of cheese at the new store — about twice as much as their original location. The owners note that cut-to-order cheeses make up about 85 percent of their current business. The shop will also be outfitted with a slicer for cutting charcuterie to-order, something the pair had to forego in the Ferndale store due to space constraints. Berg add that they also plan to more double their current selection of chocolate bars.

Mongers’ Provisions will also be adding new items like olive oils, jam, olives, dried fruit, and books on cheese and chocolate to the space. The store will also serve as a retail location for Farm Field Table to sell both fresh and frozen meats.

As for the name change, Berg and Werner say they were looking for something to distinguish their brand from the growing list of companies in the area with similar names such as the Detroit Optimist Society’s Gratiot Avenue Provisions. The pair say they hope to train even more cheese and chocolate mongers at the new store, which is on track to open in late November.

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