Grilled cheese sandwiches are one of the great American comfort foods: almost all of us have memories of someone we love grilling up cheese sammies with care. Not surprisingly, this delicious simplicity lends itself to nostalgic one-upmanship and friendly competition, including an annual Grilled Cheese Invitational and my own local Grilled Cheese-Off.
The very basic requirements — bread, cheese, meltiness — lend themselves to countless creative combinations, resulting in another modern grilled cheese phenomenon: the grilled cheese sandwich-centric restaurant. Check out five temples to the tasty classic after the jump.
The insatiable food truck trend means lots of sandwiches on wheels. Last week, I read about a new fancy Italian sandwich truck, Cibo Per Strada, arriving soon in the East Bay. But from LA to the Bay Area and across the country, I've already got five sandwich trucks I need to chase down.
- 3-Sum Eats (San Francisco) From former Top Chef contestant Ryan Scott, this brand-new truck offers three choices in three categories: sandwiches, salads/sides, and sweets. I'm eying the pork sandwich with apple cole slaw and cheddar jalapeno bread (above) and gnocchi tater tots.
- The Grilled Cheese Truck (Los Angeles) Considering I've seen people cooking up grilled cheese sandwiches in the parking lots of Dead concerts, a grilled cheese truck seems like a no-brainer. Choices include brie on cranberry walnut bread and a sammy stuffed with mac 'n' cheese.
- Roli Roti (San Francisco) The porchetta sandwich at this rolling rotisserie — pork loin rolled up with pork belly, served on Acme Bread — gets endless accolades, including landing on San Francisco magazine's sandwich list.
- Gaztro-Wagon (Chicago) Naanwiches served on Indian bread but stuffed with ingredients from a cornucopia of cuisines, including lemongrass pork cheeks, veal picatta, and butternut squash with mascarpone.
- Coolhaus (Los Angeles, Austin, and NYC) Specializing in "architecturally inspired ice cream sandwiches," this dessert version puts homemade ice cream between the cookies of your choice (pictured below).
I promise I'll get to Roli Roti one of these days. Meanwhile, got some more food trucks I need to try? Share them below.
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