This Shippable Charcuterie Board Is My Favorite Party Hack as a Former Cheese Specialist

Tested by Kamron Sanders

As a former cheesemonger at a specialty cheese counter, I spent years helping customers select the perfect cheeses, charcuterie, jams and other accompaniments for everything from casual get-togethers to special occasions. So, it's no surprise that my wife and I are often tasked with assembling charcuterie boards for our own parties, friends' gatherings and even the occasional friend of a friend.

While putting together a beautiful (and delicious!) charcuterie board can be fun, it can also be time-consuming and expensive. Between selecting the right cheeses, tracking down specialty ingredients and arranging everything just so, creating an impressive spread takes plenty of planning and even more shopping.

That's where Boarderie comes in. The company takes care of the entire process, pairing specialty cheeses and cured meats with thoughtfully selected accompaniments like nuts, olives and dried fruits, all beautifully arranged on a reusable acacia wood board that arrives nearly ready to serve. But can a preassembled, mail-order charcuterie board really compare to one you've carefully curated yourself? As a former cheesemonger, I was eager to find out.

What Is Boarderie, and What Do They Offer?

Boarderie is a family-run business that delivers what it calls "catering-quality cheese boards" directly to your door. Founded by the former owners of a gourmet hospitality business, the company sources artisanal cheeses and pairs them with carefully selected accompaniments, including unique and often hard-to-find ingredients that make each board feel a little more special.

From classic cheese and charcuterie boards to festive holiday spreads and boards designed for special occasions like birthdays and anniversaries, Boarderie offers something for just about any celebration. And the selection doesn't stop at cheese. The company also offers baked brie and beautifully arranged dessert boards, which, of course, I couldn't resist trying.

What I Tested

To get a feel for Boarderie's offerings, I started with the Classic Medium Charcuterie Board, which featured seven artisanal cheeses, two varieties of cured meats and 11 unique accompaniments, all beautifully arranged on a reusable acacia wood board. The board also came with 10 bamboo cocktail picks, two bamboo tongs, a mini bamboo knife and a mini bamboo spoon, making serving a breeze.

Next, I turned my attention to the Classic Medium Dessert Board, which featured more than 30 colorful treats, including artisan chocolates, brownies, macarons, cakes, truffles, toffee and more. And I can't forget the chocolate smash surprise box, complete with its own miniature hammer.

How I Tested

To put Boarderie to the test, I started by exploring the company's offerings before settling on the Classic Medium Charcuterie Board and Classic Medium Dessert Board. When they arrived, I was pleased to find both boards carefully packaged in insulated wrapping with an ice pack to keep everything cool during transit. The boards themselves were wrapped in plastic, as were the individual trays holding the ingredients.

From there, I followed the provided serving instructions and evaluated each board from start to finish, paying close attention to everything from ease of preparation and presentation to freshness, flavor, variety and overall value. With my experience working behind a specialty cheese counter, I was especially interested in seeing how Boarderie's ingredient selection and pairings compared to a board I'd put together myself.

Unpacking and Serving: After removing each board from its shipping box, I unpacked and prepared it for serving (to myself, at least), following the included instructions to ensure I didn't skip any steps. I noted how long it took to get the boards party-ready and how difficult the process was.

Both the charcuterie and dessert boards were incredibly easy to unpack and required minimal preparation. In less than five minutes, I had both boards unpacked and ready to serve. If you've ever assembled a charcuterie board yourself, you know just how much time this can save. And that doesn't even account for the time spent planning and shopping for ingredients, which Boarderie eliminates entirely.

Appearance and Freshness: Once the boards were fully unpacked and ready to serve, I closely examined each ingredient for signs of freshness and overall quality. I also inspected the boards for shifted ingredients, damaged items like cracked crackers or macarons, excess condensation, and other signs of wear and tear from shipping. Before tasting, I checked for dryness, discoloration, staleness and any other potential quality concerns.

I was pleasantly surprised by how well both boards held up during shipping. Aside from a couple of cracked macarons and a little condensation (which isn't surprising with shrink-wrapped cheese), there was no significant damage, and both boards looked just as beautiful as they did in the product photos.

Everything appeared fresh, with no unusual discoloration or odors. If I were being extremely picky (which I was), I did notice some crumbs pressed into the brownies and slight drying along the cut edges of the cheddar. However, neither issue significantly detracted from the overall presentation.

Taste Test: To evaluate the flavor and quality of each board's offerings, I started by tasting every item individually, using the included cards to identify each one. I assessed flavor, texture and freshness, paying particular attention to how balanced and distinct the flavors were.

After sampling everything on its own, I experimented with different pairings to see how well the ingredients complemented one another and evaluate the thoughtfulness of each board's curation.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed both the charcuterie and dessert boards. While I naturally gravitated toward certain cheeses, meats and desserts more than others, this generally came down to personal preference rather than any shortcomings in taste or quality.

Variety and Balance: Throughout the tasting process, I paid close attention to the variety of flavors and textures each board offered, assessing whether the assortment felt well-balanced or leaned too heavily toward certain flavors, such as overly salty, rich or sweet ingredients.

I found the charcuterie board to be well-balanced, with nothing overly salty or sweet. There were plenty of rich offerings, as you'd expect from a specialty cheese board. I did find myself wishing for a pepper jelly or fruit preserve, two of my favorite cheese board accompaniments that were noticeably absent from the Medium Cheese & Charcuterie Board (though one is included on the Large Cheese & Charcuterie Board). Still, I felt the assortment offered something to please just about every guest.

The dessert board, on the other hand, was decidedly sweet-forward. So, if you have a sweet tooth, you're in for a treat. Admittedly, I don't have a big sweet tooth myself, but I certainly appreciate a good dessert. Naturally, I gravitated toward the more delicate offerings, particularly the macarons, which I found delicious. The truffles, while beautiful, were a little too sweet for my taste. I was also particularly fond of the two Dubai chocolate cakes.

Overall, the dessert board is clearly designed with sweet lovers in mind, though there are enough lighter, more delicate options to appeal to those who prefer a subtler approach to dessert, too.

Portion Size: To evaluate portion sizes, I compared each board's advertised serving capacity with the amount of food provided, assessing whether the portions seemed appropriate, too small or particularly generous. The Classic Medium Charcuterie Board is intended to serve between four and six people, while the Medium Dessert Board is intended for five to seven.

For both boards, I thought these numbers were accurate and generous, since they aren't meant to replace a meal but to be served before or after a meal, or alongside cocktails, coffee, etc.

Overall Value: After testing, I weighed the overall experience, including taste, freshness, variety, thoughtful curation and ease of serving, against the price of each board to determine whether it was worth the cost.

I really enjoyed both of my Boarderie boards. That said, everyone I shared them with or talked to about them was a little surprised by the high price. However, I know from experience just how expensive assembling a comparable board can be, and when you factor in the significant time savings, the price starts to make sense. Not to mention, both boards featured specialty items I wouldn't even be able to find locally without traveling or shopping online.

You'd also likely spend more trying to recreate either board yourself, since you'd have to purchase larger quantities of many ingredients rather than just the small portions you need. That means spending more upfront and potentially ending up with excess food that goes to waste. When you consider the variety, convenience and time savings, Boarderie's prices start to feel much more reasonable.

What I Liked Based on Taste Tests

Boarderie saves a ton of time on planning, shopping and preparation.

If I've said it once, I've said it a hundred times: Planning and sourcing ingredients for a cheese or dessert board takes time, not to mention the effort involved in arranging everything into a beautiful, ready-to-serve spread. Boarderie takes care of virtually every step, leaving you more time to focus on the rest of your gathering. This convenience also makes the boards excellent gifts, since you can have one delivered directly to a loved one's door.

Shipping is free.

Free shipping is a major perk, especially for a product that requires insulated packaging and temperature control during transit. Of course, shipping costs are likely factored into the price of each board, but knowing you won't face an additional shipping charge at checkout makes the premium price tag a little easier to swallow.

They take the guesswork out of creating a well-balanced board.

You don't need to be a cheese expert to serve an impressive spread. Boarderie does the work of selecting cheeses, cured meats and complementary accompaniments, so you don't have to research flavor pairings or figure out which ingredients work well together. As a former cheesemonger, I appreciate the thought that goes into assembling a cohesive assortment, especially one that offers enough variety to appeal to different tastes.

What I Didn't Like Based on Taste Tests

The boards come at a premium price.

There's no getting around the fact that Boarderie boards are expensive, especially when you consider the price per serving. While I think the quality, variety and convenience largely justify the cost, these aren't necessarily boards I'd purchase for a casual weeknight snack. Instead, I'd reserve them for entertaining, special occasions or gifting.

Some desserts may be too rich for certain palates.

While the dessert board offers an impressive variety of treats, many of the chocolates and truffles are intensely sweet and rich. As someone who doesn't have a particularly strong sweet tooth, I found myself gravitating toward the macarons and other lighter offerings. That said, anyone who loves decadent desserts will likely appreciate the selection.

There's limited room for customization.

Part of Boarderie's appeal is that the ingredients are already selected, paired and beautifully arranged. However, that also means you don't have the same control over the assortment as you would when building your own board. For example, I would have loved to see a fruit jam or pepper jelly included with the charcuterie board, but that's an easy addition to make yourself.

Bottom Line: Who Should Buy a Boarderie Board?

If you love entertaining but don't love the planning, shopping and preparation that come with it, Boarderie is an excellent option. Even as a former cheesemonger who genuinely enjoys putting together a beautiful charcuterie board, I can appreciate the convenience of having a thoughtfully curated spread delivered right to my door, ready to serve in minutes.

While the price might be difficult to justify for everyday snacking, I think Boarderie boards are well worth considering for parties, holidays and other special occasions. They're also particularly appealing as gifts, especially for friends and family who appreciate gourmet food but might not have access to specialty shops.

Ultimately, if you value convenience, variety and beautiful presentation, I think Boarderie delivers an experience that's difficult to replicate yourself without investing considerable time, effort and money.

Shop Boarderie's Seasonal and Specialty Offerings

Why You Should Trust Our Tester

Kamron Sanders is a DIY enthusiast and avid home cook who believes you only get so many meals, so you might as well enjoy them. A former cheesemonger and barista, he has long been fascinated by the ingredients, techniques and tools that make food and drinks worth savoring. In addition to the Boarderie boards, Kamron has rigorously tested numerous products for Food Network and HGTV, including charcoal grills, flat-top grills, grill brushes, espresso machines and more.

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