Best Board For Charcuterie – What To Look For in the Perfect Cheese Board

You’re just about to host the party of the century, and you want to make it extra special. You’ve got your playlist ready, you’ve got the snacks lined up, and now all that’s left is finding the best board for charcuterie. Let’s find you the best one.

Our Top Picks – At a Glance

1. Best Overall: Virginia Boys Kitchens Black Walnut Cheese Board
2. Best Personalized: Mark and Graham Personalized Wood Marble Charcuterie Board
3. Best Slate: Brooklyn Slate Cheese Board
4. Best Marble: Marble and Brass Charcuterie Board
5. Best Round: Virginia Boys Kitchens Round Charcuterie Board
6. Most Unique: Agate Serving Board

Best overall: Virginia Boys Kitchens Walnut Wood Board

At a glance:

• Material: American Black Walnut
• Dishwasher safe: No
• Dimensions: 24 x 18 x 1 inches

We’ve looked at dozens of options, and we think Virginia Boys Kitchens’ large cutting board is the best choice for most parties. Here’s why:

1. Made in USA – It’s made in America from sustainable wood, and it is a dark wood so it makes a charcuterie looks very pleasing. The neutral colors of cheese and crackers you put on it will contrast very well against a dark wood. We always go with dark boards for charcuterie instead of blondes such as maple.
2. Food-safe: It’s also antimicrobial because it’s made from solid wood, which means no chemicals can leach into your food.
3. Reversible: It also doubles as a regular cutting board on the other side – it has a juice groove to catch all the juices from your carving of steaks or turkeys! A charcuterie board that is versatile and can be used everyday in your kitchen? Yes please!
4. Perfect size: the size of this cutting board is perfect for most party sizes: It’s not too big, but not too small either (we’ve found that cutting boards around 18×25″ are ideal). Larger ones tend to be too heavy to carry around.

In fact, we recommend using this cutting board for all your cheese, bread, charcuterie needs as well as for normal cooking and prepping!

How did we choose? What factors should you look for in a charcuterie board?

Before we talk about the other runner-ups in our list, let’s dive into the factors that helped make this decision. There are many factors when looking for the best cheese board for your next gathering. Let’s look at the most important ones:

• Size
• Material
• Shape
• Others: price and ease of use

What is the best size for a charcuterie board ?

For a small intimate party:

This really depends on the size of your party. For an intimate party for 2 to 4 people, a board around 17×11 inches would work. If you like shapes here is a good place to get something with a handle – a round board with a handle, or a square one with a handle. Some charcuteries are displayed on long boards as well.

You probably don’t need anything larger than 17×11 or 12×16 inches for a party this size.

For a large party

If you are having a larger gathering for more than 6 people, you’ll definitely want to opt for something larger than or around 20×15 inches.

If you have a party larger than 25 I would definitely have 2 large charcuterie boards – one will not be enough.

You can even opt to make individual appetizers instead of having a shared board such as charcuterie cones or skewers.

What shape should I choose?

For a small gathering:

For a small party of under 6 people you can have a little fun here and choose from round, or ones with a handle. When you have a larger party you’d need a large board and most likely that would be a rectangular one. Some fun shapes to consider for a small intimate gathering:

For a large gathering:

You’ll most likely need rectangular, consider having more than 1 board if you have more than 25 people. Here you might also want to consider a tray instead of a cutting board or display board. Things are less likely to fall off, and it’s easier to move around.

However, most households have more use for a cutting board that doubles as a charcuterie rather than having to purchase a tray just for this purpose. It is up to you – if you think you’d rather a large cutting board that doubles as a charcuterie display board, or a dedicated tray that isn’t as versatile.

What is the best material for charcuterie?

The best charcuterie boards of 2023 is wood – specifically a dark wood such as walnut or cherry. Wood boards give that nice rustic farmhouse charm, and they are the most popular charcuterie display boards at restaurants, such as this:

Wood boards are both easy to care for and look great on any countertop.

A marble or black slate charcuterie board, might be aesthetically pleasing as well, however they tend to come in small sizes only (no one wants to carry about a fifty pound 18×24 stone board!). Slate also breaks very easily and it’s difficult to pick up once placed on a table. Both tend to be very small, and is more appropriate for a “cheese tasting” than a real charcuterie experience.

Other things to consider:

Price

The best charcuterie boards of 2023 are wood, cute, and popular. They are affordable, durable, and versatile, making them a good investment for any home chef.

Maintenance

Other than compressed cardboard such as Epicurean boards, most materials for charcuterie are not dishwasher-safe. They are handwash and air dry only. In a restaurant setting it is definitely much easier to clean – although the presentation is not as aesthetically pleasing so a casual setting rather than a steakhouse can opt for this.

This may be a consideration for someone looking for a good charcuterie board – the ease of use and the required maintenance that comes with it.

If you are using drizzles or putting jams, spreads, honey, or sauces directly on the charcuterie board, it will be hard to clean. A good way to prevent that is to use a wooden large cutting board – you can apply a layer of food safe cutting board wax beforehand. The food items will literally fall off the board as you rinse gently with water. This wax option isn’t really possible if you use materials such as slate or bamboo.

Alternatively, you can also use decorative parchment paper and line the display board with it before placing charcuterie items on top – they are more aesthetically pleasing than just wax paper.

Decorative food-safe parchment paper makes an attractive and easy-to-clean display for your charcuterie

Best Personalized: Mark and Graham Personalized Wood Marble Charcuterie Board

At a glance:

– Material: White marble and acacia wood

– Dimensions: 24 x 9 x 3 inches

– Dishwasher safe: No

Pro: Can be personalized

Con: 2 different materials with different maintenance and cleaning needs make it tricky to care for

This board is great for charcuterie, and it can be personalized. It’s made of white marble and acacia wood, which means it’s sturdy, but not too heavy. The board comes with two small bowls that are perfect for dipping sauces and spreads, or serving up nuts and olives.

The only downside is that the material can make it hard to clean. But if you’re willing to put in a little extra effort, this board is a great addition to your kitchen!

Best Slate: Brooklyn Slate Cheese Board

Pro: can be written on with chalk, which is included

Con: shatters easily

If you’re looking for a board that can be used to display and serve charcuterie, our top pick is the Brooklyn Slate Cheese Board.

It’s made of slate, which is a very fragile material. This means that if you drop it, the board will most likely shatter.

This board doesn’t double as a cutting board like some of our other picks do; however, it makes an ideal surface on which to write with soapstone chalk (to label different types of cheese). This product comes with soapstone chalk included!

The dark color and unique shape make this a great display piece in any kitchen. It’s also great that it is dish washable. The only downside is that slate boards show oil marks from meats or cheese if they sit on there for too long.

Material: Slate

Dimensions: 10 x 8 inches

Dishwasher safe: Yes

Our Top Pick, again