By Derrick Warren, News Correspondent
April means the end of classes, the beginning of spring – and grilled cheese.
As National Grilled Cheese Month, April is dedicated to the classic sandwich, and Boston-area cooks are serving up remixes using everything from short ribs to guacamole.
Aly Newton, a sophomore history major, said she plans to celebrate the food holiday, which she read about on the Internet.
“I eat grilled cheese almost every week, so if a place has an interesting grilled cheese I’ll try it,” Newton said.
Cheeseboy, a grilled cheese eatery in the Prudential Center, is marking the food holiday by giving out free gooey sandwiches to customers.
The vendor will hold its second annual Free Grilled Cheese Day April 22 from 1 to 6 p.m. Cheeseboy will give out the classic version of the sandwich – white American cheese on Italian bread. Customers can add vegetable toppings for 49 cents or meat toppings for 99 cents per addition.
Latia Talbert, a shift manager at Cheeseboy, said about 400 people went to last year’s Free Grilled Cheese Day – more than organizers expected. Two additional hours will be added to Free Grilled Cheese Day this year to accommodate guests.
“The lines were so long last year that we extended the hours to 6 p.m.,” Talbert said. “Last year we ended at 4 p.m.”
Cheeseboy also serves a variety of other formaggio-filled sandwiches, including the Cheddar Delight. This sandwich is made with rye bread, sharp cheddar, smoked ham and dill pickles.
For a sandwich closer to campus, students can try Roxy’s Grilled Cheese, a food truck that parks at the corner of Hemenway and Forsyth streets Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Roxy’s offers five signature sandwiches for less than $8, including the Mighty Rib Melt, which features braised short ribs, fontina cheese and caramelized onions. The sandwiches can be paired with sides like hand-cut truffle fries or sausage gravy poutine.
Michael DiSabatino, co-owner and manager of Roxy’s, said he does not plan to do anything special for the food holiday, but he will have some new menu items for spring.
“We plan on doing something outside of the box,” DiSabatino said. “We are adding two to three new sandwiches and one new side. There’s even going to be a veggie option.”
DiSabatino said he could not provide more details about the new items.
Anziya Bundu, a freshman economics major, said she goes to Roxy’s whenever she has the chance to pick up her favorite grilled cheese, the Green Muenster Melt. This sandwich is made with homemade guacamole, applewood-smoked bacon and muenster cheese.
“If it wasn’t for the money, I would go there all the time,” Bundu said. “They take grilled cheese to another level, and their sandwiches have a lot more flavor than most grilled cheese.”
Mitchell Brown, a freshman chemistry major, said although he is a fan of grilled cheese, he hadn’t heard of the food holiday.
“Grilled cheese sandwiches are good and cheap, so I just might celebrate if there are any deals,” Brown said.
To celebrate inexpensively, students can head to Restaurant Dante at 40 Edwin H. Land Blvd. in Cambridge. Every Tuesday after 5:30 p.m., the restaurant serves a new version of the classic sandwich for $2 in the bar and lounge. Previous twists have included broccoli rabe, sun-dried tomatoes and fontina, and spinach, onion marmalade and semi-soft Italian cheese.
If students want to pair their sandwich with an upscale atmosphere, check out Eastern Standard at 528 Commonwealth Ave. in Kenmore Square. The grilled cheese sandwich is popular among guests, said Iza Feyeux, a waitress at the restaurant.
“Our grilled cheese is great because the rye bread is made in-house, and the owner uses a secret recipe using Vermont cheddar,” Feyeux said.
The grilled cheese, $9 with fries, is served 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until midnight Fridays and Saturdays.
