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The Best Grilled Cheese Sandwiches in NYC, Ranked

Sweet dreams are made of cheese

ny grilledcheese hero

Guys, there’s more to NYC than glorious bagels, amazing pizza and epic breakfast sandwiches.

There’s also the mind-blowing grilled cheese sandwiches. Here are the ten best in the city. (Psst: One of them has waffles in it.)

10. The Grilled Beast Of Midtown East At The Pullman Kitchen

Yep, we’re already bringing out the big guns. This ten-layer monstrosity includes fried chicken, bacon, ham with melted pepper jack and cheddar, spicy cherry peppers, tomatoes and…two cornbread waffles with maple syrup. Perfect for those moments you feel like going into a full-fledged food coma.

959 Second Ave. (at 51st St.); 212-888-7404 or thepullmankitchen.com

9. Sauteed Greens And Taleggio Sandwich From Bklyn Larder

Compared with the Beast, this little guy almost looks healthy. But don’t worry, there’s still tons of BKLYN Larder’s own gooey taleggio (a creamy, tangy Italian cheese) hidden in there. Smush it between some chewy bread from Grandaisy Bakery and you have what might be NYC’s best comfort food.

228 Flatbush Ave. (at Sixth Ave.), Brooklyn; 718-783-1250 or bklynlarder.com

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High Street on Hudson

8. The Best Grilled Cheese Ever At High Street On Hudson

It’s a pretty big proclamation, but this newbie on the grilled cheese scene lives up to its name. Noble cheddar is sandwiched between homemade roasted potato bread and slathered with cultured butter. Simple but definitely drool-worthy.

637 Hudson St. (at Horatio St.); 917-388-3944 or highstreetonhudson.com

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Little Muenster

7. Grilled Cheese With Avo Mash From Little Muenster

Micromanagers, rejoice: This GCS is totally customizable. You get your choice of white American or cheddar on local Pullman bread, and you can add on any number of toppings, including braised pork belly, house pickles, Virginia ham, a fried egg or, our favorite, avo mash.

Locations in Battery Park and Brooklyn; 646-499-4331 or littlemuenster.com

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6. The Maefred At Noorman's Kil

At this Williamsburg spot, the game is whiskey and grilled cheese. Pair your Maefred--double-cream Brie, local mushrooms, diced onions pressed oh-so-perfectly between two slices of ciabatta--with whatever the bartender recommends. We're too busy stuffing our faces to look at the whiskey menu.

609 Grand St. (at Leonard St.), Brooklyn; 347-384-2526 or noormanskil.com

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Meltkraft

5. The Melter Skelter From Meltkraft

There’s watercress in this one, so it’s just like eating a salad, right? We’re obsessed with this tasty sammy, which is also packed with raclette-style raw cow’s-milk cheese, green tomatoes, jalapeño and BBQ potato chips.

Midtown East, the West Village and Park Slope; 212-380-1275 or meltkraft.com

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Melt Shop

4. Fried Chicken Sandwich From Melt Shop

What do you get when you stick fried chicken, pepperjack, red cabbage slaw and tangy “melt” sauce between two pieces of bread? Magic, that’s what. (Pro tip: Get a side of tots.)

Four locations in Manhattan; 212-447-6358 or meltshop.com

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Murray's Cheese Shop

3. The Spaniard From Murray's Cheese Shop

This legendary cheese shop is an NYC institution--the Greenwich Village location serves a variety of its cheeses on homemade bread from Blue Ribbon Bakery, but our absolute fave is this beauty with Idiazabal (a smoky sheep’s-milk cheese), chorizo, roasted red pepper, Serrano ham and romesco sauce.

254 Bleecker St. (at Sixth Ave.); 212-243-3289 or murrayscheese.com

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The Wall Street Journal

2. The Cheddar & Mozzarella At The Queens Kickshaw

This buttery, toasted brioche with cheddar and mozz oozing out comes with a bonus: An equally delicious tomato soup for dipping. You win, Queens. You win.

40-17 Broadway (at 41st St.), Astoria; 718-777-0913 or thequeenskickshaw.com

1. The Grilled Cheese From Beecher's Handmade Cheese

Ready for the coolest thing about eating the best grilled cheese in the city? If you order it in Beecher's Flatiron shop-slash-fromagerie, you can actually watch the signature flagship cheddar (aka the cheese you’re eating) being made from curds and whey. Yep, NYC is the best place ever.

900 Broadway (at 20th St.); 212-466-3340 or beechershandmadecheese.com


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Freelance Editor

From 2015-2020 Lindsay Champion held the role of Food and Wellness Director. She continues to write for PureWow as a Freelance Editor.