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Interesting article. I never heard of them, but the original CEO blames real estate as being the cause of failure. He overlooks the fact that their sandwiches w
by AmVess 9y ago
Interesting article. I never heard of them, but the original CEO blames real estate as being the cause of failure. He overlooks the fact that their sandwiches were MICROWAVED. Who in heck microwaves a GRILLED cheese sandwich?
$6 for a tiny, soggy microwaved cheese sandwich.
$3 for a tiny bowl of soup.
Real estate wasn't the source of their failure.
- godot 9y agoTo each their own maybe? I thoroughly enjoy grilled cheeses at The Melt and still visit it regularly. I don't really care how they run their businesses, what tech they use, whether the CEO came from tech or food. I like the grilled cheese there better than most places. There are only a couple of other places in SF/bay area with better/comparable grilled cheeses to me. (American Grilled Cheese Kitchen, Boudin SF) Also, you said you haven't heard of them, but you made the claim that it's a microwaved soggy grilled cheese sandwich. I've never had a soggy grilled cheese at The Melt.
- webkike 9y agoGrilled cheese is so low maintenance that I don't understand why you would pay a premium for something you can make way better yourself for practically pennies. No matter how good they make the grill cheese, I feel confident that I will be able to make a grill cheese that tastes better for cheaper every single time and I believe this sentiment is shared by most people.
- megy 9y agoExactly. It is like going to a restaurant and ordering an Apple.
- Angostura 9y ago... or a cup of coffee
- wpietri 9y agoThis is true for pretty much any sandwich, though. The peak for sandwich shops is the lunch hour, when people are often not at home.
- webkike 9y agoA lot of sandwiches that I would want on a whim I do not have the groceries for. I almost always have the ingredients for a grilled cheese. Not only that, sandwiches you could buy from delis all over Palo Alto are substantially cheaper that sandwiches from the melt.
- AmVess 9y agoI didn't make the claim, the article did. Also, I read reviews of them online, and read many complaints of soggy sandwiches.
- wpietri 9y agoThat's a weird thing for the CEO blame. Commercial real estate for restaurants is a very well understood marketplace. Why would you go into that business without understanding one of the most important components to both your budget and your availability to customers?
- thaumasiotes 9y agoThis is specifically called out in the article: > while yes, the headaches of real estate in the Bay Area—where The Melt first set roots—are well established, fingering real estate is a bit like pointing out that it gets cold every winter
- rosege 9y agoExactly! Everyone knows the correct way to make a grilled cheese sandwich is to turn your toaster on the side and grill it that way. Like this: https://grilledcheesesocial.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/b5bb7-img_2145.jpg https://grilledcheesesocial.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/b...
- sli 9y agoI know this is a joke but just for safety's sake, I want to mention that this would be a bad idea in a modern toaster. The grates close, covering them in melted cheese, and now you have either a ruined toaster or a fire hazard on your hands. I remember when this image was making the internet rounds a couple years ago and I was surprised how many people hadn't thought about the issues with it. Luckily, I know no one that had tried it for real.