Crunchy, melty joy: Celebrate National Grilled Cheese Day at these 6 Newport area spots
Stock up on your Wonder Bread and Kraft Cheese singles, Friday is National Grilled Cheese Day.
Throughout the country, the sounds of celebration honoring this classic sandwich will echo throughout our kitchens and homes. There is no other sandwich that holds such a warm spot of comfort in our hearts than the grilled cheese. It was the lunch that Mom gave us on a rainy, cold day alongside that cup of tomato soup. It was the sandwich that provided the simple, perfect nourishment after a long, hard day. It was the simple meal we craved after being away from home for too long. It’s the sandwich that fills both your heart and your belly. And for this, we celebrate it on Friday.
While food historians will point out that the idea of putting cheese between two pieces of bread has been around for years (back to the Roman times), most consider the modern grilled cheese to have been a creation that came about in the early 1900s in the United States when two game-changing innovations were introduced. The first was when James L. Kraft patented a revolutionary pasteurizing process that allowed him to make cheese that wouldn’t spoil. Then, our hero Otto Frederick Rohwedder invented a bread slicer that made distributing white bread easy and affordable. (Side note: Otto missed a marketing opportunity by not calling his machine Freddy Rohwedder’s Better Bread Shredder.) With cheese that wouldn’t spoil and readily available sliced bread, the grilled cheese sandwich took off in popularity as a cheap, easy meal. Then, when World War II began, the grilled cheese became a staple of American Army and Navy mess halls when the cooks were tasked with feeding the troops en masse. When the troops eventually came home, they kept eating grilled cheeses at home as an easy, cheap meal and the rest is history.
Maybe your favorite version of grilled cheese is still the one with the plastic-wrapped cheese as mentioned above. There’s nothing wrong with that – that’s as comforting as it gets. But there are other versions available that are more suited for a more mature palate. A great grilled cheese is made with a hearty bread that’s buttered and grilled into a crunchy, pleasurable crunch while inside, a creamy, rich cheese slowly melts into a warm pocket of delight. Strands of cheese will stretch from the bread to the plate as you pick it up to eat. That’s a grilled cheese. If you want to see a good grilled cheese, watch Jon Favreau’s character make one in the movie “Chef.” That movie came out in 2014 and it still makes us dream of grilled cheeses.
To celebrate National Grilled Cheese Day (or just to enjoy a Grilled Cheese on any day), you should order one at your favorite restaurant. We’ve got some great grilled cheese makers here on the Island. Start your search at Scratch Kitchen & Catering on Broadway. They have a whole assortment of incredible grilled cheeses ranging from the classic (the Deluxe Traditional made with Applewood smoked bacon, thinly sliced Roma tomatoes and sharp cheddar cheese) to the exotic (the Duck Confit made with peach and habanero marmalade and melted mild gruyere cheese) to the unique (the Chicken & Waffles made with waffles as the bread filled with fried chicken, melted sharp cheddar and maple mustard dressing). They are the undisputed Grilled Cheese champions on the Island.
You can also head to CRU Cafe where they offer a sandwich called Just Grilled Cheese which is made with gruyere, jack cheese and mozzarella along with their Grown Up Grilled Cheese which is a double-decker sandwich made with the three cheeses, bacon and tomato. Plus, if you head there for brunch (and you should), they offer a Croque Madame which is the French precursor to the Grilled Cheese where the bread is prepared in egg batter. CRU’s version is made with Black Forest ham, gruyere cheese, rustic country bread and fried eggs and is worth seeking out.
It’s not hard to find a Grilled Cheese, but if you have a favorite spot that you know makes great food, it’s worth trying their version. Take for instance Picnic Bakery and Cafe on Bellevue. They offer a simple Grilled Cheese sandwich, but when it's made with good, hearty bread by professional sandwich makers, you know it’s going to be great. The same goes for the Brie Nice sandwich at Drift Cafe on Thames which is made with sliced apple, house-made raspberry preserves and brie. You know it’s going to be fresh and delicious because all the foods and drinks from Drift are fresh and delicious. Of course, Mozz on Bellevue is going to offer an unbelievably fresh grilled cheese too, which you would expect from a spot that specializes in cheese and bread. Is there anything better than their Classic Panini (house-made mozzarella and prosciutto crudo pressed in a freshly made ciabatta)? We don’t think so, but we’ll keep searching.
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Don’t forget about the Blue Lobster Cafe at Clement’s Marketplace. The always helpful staff have been making some of the best grilled sandwiches in town for years as anyone with a Clement’s Sandwich Card in their wallet can attest. Place your order for a 4-Slice Grilled Cheese with your choice of American, Cheddar, Provolone or Swiss and you’ll be rewarded with a lunch (or dinner) of down-home comfort and joy. Plus you can pick up your groceries while you are waiting.
Did you know that Competitive Eater Joey Chestnut holds the world record by eating 47 grilled cheese sandwiches in 10 minutes? Let’s not make that your goal this National Grilled Cheese Day. Rather you should just learn to appreciate the simplicity and beauty of this beloved sandwich. Tell your favorite restaurant to start buttering that bread and melting the cheese – it’s time for Grilled Cheese!
Dan Lederer is a Middletown resident with 30 years experience in the food service industry throughout New England. He continues to work locally behind the scenes within the industry and remains a devoted fan of all things restaurant and hospitality-related. His column appears on newportri.com and in The Daily News. Cheers!
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Newport area restaurants serve up grilled cheeses worth celebrating
