Dr. Emiliano Tatar, a full-time general pediatrician, has branched out into cheese making and is selling these homemade delicacies through his new company, Merion Park Cheese, writes Len Lear for the Chestnut Hill Local.

Tatar, who has been a cheese nut for most of his life, has been making his cheeses in a licensed facility in the area and then selling them commercially to restaurants and specialty food markets.

These include DiBruno Brothers, Narberth Cheese Shop, and the Swarthmore Food Co-op, among many others.

Still, as with many other businesses, the pandemic has taken its toll on both his medical practice and cheese-making business.

“Before COVID hit, things were going well,” he said. “Our cheeses made their way to several new locations, and we were developing new cheeses, but COVID has cut sales by at least 50 percent.”

He also has had to completely change how he practices medicine, he said, including “the adoption of telemedicine and stringent protocols to keep our patients and staff safe.”

On the positive side, he got the chance to experiment on his cheeses thanks to extra free time, spent improving on several of his original recipes.

Read more about Merion Park Cheese at the Chestnut Hill Local by clicking here.