Eating blue cheese as a child set Lynsey Henderson in good stead for a job working at The Cheesery, Dundee.
Lynsey, 28, has been working at The Cheesery since it opened back in 2019.
This was the perfect role for her, considering her varied appetite as a child.
“Growing up, I was always an adventurous eater,” she says.
“I put that down to my dad. He would always encourage me and my siblings to just ‘try it’.
“Pretty much everything he would bring us, I would love it.
“When I was young, my dad and I would eat blue cheese together – at the dismay of my mum and my brothers.
“Food has always been a passion of mine.
“So I think this is where I was meant to end up.”
‘It’s nice to be able to show off my chops’
After Lynsey left school, she started studying renewable energy sciences at university.
But it became clear that working in food and drink was her passion.
“I was working part time in a pub,” she tells me.
“And it was getting to the point where I would wake up and dread having to go to uni.
“But I was actually really looking forward to working in the pub.”
Now, she puts her skills as a people person to good use chatting to customers in The Cheesery.
“We always liken The Cheesery to an adult version of a sweetie shop,” laughs Lynsey.
“It’s a bit different to going and doing your weekly shop in Tesco.
“It is a feast for the senses.
“People tend to be in a very good mood when they come in – and when they leave.”
There are times when customers assume Lynsey may have less cheese expertise than her more mature colleagues – but they would be wrong.
“I have a total baby face, with the chubby cheeks,” she says.
“Sometimes, I can see, if I’m working with one of my older colleagues, people naturally go to them to get their expertise.
“Some people are maybe a little bit shocked by how much I do actually know, and how much experience I have in the shop.
“It does frustrate me a bit, but it’s nice to be able to show off my chops, really.
“I’m just standing there chomping at the bit to share what I know.
“Then people are like ‘oh right, she does know her stuff’.”
‘I think a lot about cheese’ says Lynsey
“I’m genuinely lucky,” adds Lynsey.
“I count my lucky stars every day that I’m working somewhere that I love so much.”
“A lot of my time is spent thinking about cheese, reading about cheese, eating cheese,” she laughs.
“I think about cheese a lot but I’m not like ‘ugh, here we go, I’ve got to go to work again today and think about cheese’.
“I wake up every day happy and excited to go to work.”
Working at The Cheesery is great fun for Lynsey, particularly during the festive period.
“I love Christmas the most,” Lynsey tells me.
“The Cheesery is synonymous with Christmas for many people.
“We open early and serve hundreds of customers, and we’re absolutely exhausted.
“But I am still really eager to come to work.
“If I’m happy to be here even when it’s crazy busy, then that shows it’s the right place for me.”
Conversation