Best grilled cheese in the U.S.

By Food & Wine

Courtesy of Grahamwich

Chicago chef Graham Elliot Bowles's take on grilled cheese features Wisconsin cheddar, prosciutto, tomato marmalade and cheese curds.

The best grilled cheese sandwich is the gooiest grilled cheese, says Laura Werlin,?the James Beard Award?winning cookbook author behind this year's "Grilled Cheese, Please!"

"After you bite into it, the cheese should stretch out past your face as far as your arm will reach. Otherwise, it's just not right."

Slideshow: Best Grilled Cheese in the U.S.

While it?s easy to achieve some level of crunchy, buttery excellence at home, chefs and restaurateurs are creating exceptional grilled cheese sandwiches across the country.

Given the West Coast?s reputation for producing great cheeses (there?s even a book titled?"The Guide to West Coast Cheese"), it?s fitting that some of the most delicious innovations are turning up in that part of the country. In San Francisco,?Heidi Gibson,?an?engineer with a degree from MIT,?won the national Grilled Cheese Invitational and opened American Grilled Cheese?Kitchen?in the city?s start-up-heavy SOMA neighborhood. Tech geeks now come for well-constructed sandwiches like the Mousetrap, with cheddar, Havarti and Monterey Jack on artisanal sourdough.

Over-the-top combinations are the specialty at the rabidly popular Grilled Cheese Truck in Los Angeles. In most places, mac and cheese would be served with house-smoked barbecued pork as a side dish. Here, that?s the basis for a Cheesy Mac & Rib Sandwich.

Angelenos looking for more restrained grilled cheeses head to Clementine, where?chef-owner Annie Miler got so excited about her bakery-caf??s 10th-Annual Celebration of Grilled Cheese Month in April 2011 that she offered 10 variations every week that month. A year-round favorite:?extra-sharp white Tillamook cheddar on country white with bacon or roasted cherry tomatoes.

The nouveau grilled cheese trend is now spreading through major cities. A new caf? in Queens, N.Y., called The Queens Kickshaw, focuses on two buzzy foods: grilled cheese and coffee.?The menu takes inspiration from the amazing ethnic diversity of the borough with sandwiches like a Greek-influenced feta with roasted red pepper spread and the French-style?Gruy?re?with pickled and caramelized onions.

Top chefs won?t be left out of the gooey movement either. Chicago?s?Graham Elliot Bowles is known for playful cuisine at Graham Elliot, and the sandwiches at his local take-out joint, Grahamwich, are equally inventive. The grilled cheese on sliced Pullman loaf features Wisconsin cheddar, prosciutto, tomato marmalade and cheese curds, which, when melted, add an extra soft, melty effect.

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Source: http://itineraries.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/10/11/8274235-best-grilled-cheese-in-the-us

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