Barnyard Cheese Shop will return with Barnyard Express on Avenue B

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy

Barnyard Cheese Shop is set for another encore on Avenue B.

Owner Beatriz Gutierrez confirmed that Barnyard Express is in the works featuring a full menu of her best-selling sandwiches and other items.

She plans to house the quick-serve establishment at the current Brix Wine Shop at 170 Avenue B between 10th Street and 11th Street. The wine store will move into the vacant retail space she leases next door, and the two storefronts will connect via a passthrough.

Gutierrez gave this concept a test run for several months in a limited capacity on weekends starting in December 2021. It did well enough for her to consider reviving Barnyard Express.

The original Barnyard Cheese Shop closed in October 2021 at 168 Avenue B. (The business dates to 2008 on Ninth and C, with a 2016 opening on Avenue B.) Like other food service establishments at the time, Gutierrez said she was having difficulty finding kitchen help. Victor, her longtime cook, lost his brother during the pandemic ... and he returned home to be with family in Mexico.

We'll provide an update as work continues on the new Barnyard Express in the months ahead.

The former Barnyard Cheese Shop is for rent on Avenue B

Unfortunately, the Barnyard Cheese Shop's Barnyard Express experiment didn't last.

In early December, Beatriz Gutierrez decided to reopen her popular sandwich shop/market for weekend-only service at 168 Avenue B between 10th Street and 11th Street. It was done by the end of January. 

This past week, the smaller for-rent sign on the storefront was joined by a much-larger banner.

Barnyard closed in October after Gutierrez could not find someone to helm her kitchen. Her longtime cook, who lost a brother during the pandemic, left to be with his family in Mexico. 

Barnyard Cheese Shop's companion business next door, Brix Wines, remains open.

Barnyard Cheese Shop making a return as Barnyard Express with weekend-only service

Text and photos by Stacie Joy

After an October closure, Beatriz Gutierrez is rebooting Barnyard Cheese Shop at 168 Avenue B. 

Starting today, Gutierrez will be operating Barnyard Express from the storefront between 10th Street and 11th Street.

Barnyard Express will have a limited menu featuring the six best-selling sandwiches from the original menu (including the Mexican-Cuban with slow-roasted pork, ham, Swiss, avocado, pickled jalapenos, dill pickles and mayo, and the Barnyard Classic with eggs, thick-cut bacon and a farmhouse cheddar). There will also be two vegetarian options in the sandwich mix. 

Other items include soup and dessert. (There are rumors of the return of the crowd-pleasing lemon bars.) For now, there aren't any salads or sides. 

Also new: Online ordering. (Use this link.) Starting today, patrons can order online and then come and pick it up. No delivery. 

Hours: Friday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with the possibility of expanding as time goes on. 

Gutierrez said that so many people asked her to reopen, she decided to bring Barnyard back in a limited capacity. 

"I feel a huge responsibility ... Food is everything to me," she said. "I am excited, but this is daunting —will people come back?" 

She closed in October after being unable to find someone to helm her kitchen. Victor, her longtime cook, lost his brother during the pandemic. Victor returned home this fall to be with his family in Mexico.

So moving forward, Gutierrez will be doing the cooking. Her cousin and goddaughter, longtime counterperson Diana Chain (below left), will be working the front of the house...