Grilled cheese melts hearts in South loggia

On the night of Friday, Sept. 6, the first major on-campus party of the year in Main Hall’s Gardner Lounge brought heavy foot traffic to the South Campus loggia. Here, partygoers and residents alike were met with the mouthwatering scent of fresh, gooey grilled cheese sandwiches. The clever culprits of this alluring aroma are none other than Jack Broadmoore `27 and AJ Trimble `27, the current ringleaders of a side-hustle-quickly-turned-institutional-staple known as “Loose grilled cheese.”  

On Friday night — the busiest night yet for the startup, filling a whopping 102 orders between the hours of 10 p.m. and 2:30 a.m. — The S&B infiltrated the crowd of customers and spoke to some of them, hoping to learn more about what attracts the operation’s success. 

“It’s a good student-run business, they’re working hard. You know, students get hungry at nighttime, so they’re serving for the community out here,” said Nick Lundy `27. “You get hungry, you want to give money to your fellow students, so you come over, you grab a grilled cheese, and they’re pretty good too.”

“I feel both excitement and I feel whole at that same time,” said Julia Ghorai `27, reflecting on the ambience. “This is definitely the best Loose grilled cheese I’ve ever had,” she said later as she took a bite.

“It’s an awesome experience. You’re walking back from High Street, and you’re just like, ‘I want a snack,’ but the Grill isn’t open and D-Hall isn’t open,” said Natasha Zettler `27. “You know what’s open? Loose grilled cheese. It’s the perfect option.”

It all started on February 16, 2024, when Lucas Friedman-Spring, who since transferred to Brown University, had the idea to sell freshly made grilled cheese sandwiches out of Loose Hall’s loggia-facing kitchen. Before fully committing to this new business venture, Friedman-Spring decided to have a test run, so he gave out the grilled cheeses for free. That night, word spread quickly. “‘He’s making them in the Loose kitchen,’ and the whole frisbee team ended up coming over there and we just had a party. It was great,” said Broadmoore. The resounding success of the trial run made clear that Friedman-Spring was onto something.

Broadmoore said that he relished the energy of that night and wanted to help this new, exciting opportunity grow to its full potential. “After that night, I went up to Lucas, and I asked him if we could start doing it together. I started doing it as the cashier — I do the music, and I do the social media and stuff. We just settled into those roles pretty quickly.” The two of them started slinging grilled cheeses out of the Loose kitchen sliding window every Friday to famished passersby.  

When Friedman-Spring decided to transfer, he turned an eye to the future, realizing that the enterprise would need a new cook if it was to continue successfully. Trimble was brought aboard, said Broadmoore, mentioning his gratitude for his new partner-in-crime and chef. Since Friedman-Spring left the business, Broadmoore and Trimble have taken up the reins of Loose grilled cheese with appetite, honoring his legacy with a real passion for the craft, entrepreneurial ingenuity and an unwavering sense of dedication to the community that has lovingly absorbed them. 

As Trimble and Broadmoore returned to campus, however, they were greeted with a predicament –– the renovations to Loose Hall had begun and thus, they could no longer use the loggia-accessible kitchen that had become their home base. Feeling that this nook on campus had become so intertwined with their commercial identity and success, they decided to maintain their Southern roots and stay in the South loggia. “Grinnell has such a unique community for it, I think, just because of South — and I love the South community — that’s really what made it possible,” Broadmoore said. “Honestly, I thought we might have trouble with it, with Loose being renovated … but it’s proven that people just congregate in the South loggia, and I love it.”

The commitment to staying in the South loggia was a risky decision for the grilled cheese duo, as it required an upfront investment in a portable setup. “We had to buy all the elements, so the portable griddle, the table, a bunch of spatulas, cutting boards, knives,” said Trimble.

“We had no idea if we were going to make the money back. That was really stressful,” added Broadmoore. 

The change also brought Trimble out of his comfort zone. “The biggest change for me wasn’t going from cooking on a stovetop to a griddle — that change was minor — it’s how much people watch the actions I’m doing now. When I was in Loose, I was kind of the chef behind the scenes … but now that I’m out there, I kind of feel like a hibachi chef,” Trimble said.

While there were difficulties with the changes in venue and form, they have also unlocked new possibilities. They were already able to bring their portable setup to an off-campus party on High Street this year, partially due to their astute entrepreneurship.

“We cold called,” said Trimble. “We just walked in the backyard of the High Street houses until we found a group of guys out there and said, ‘Hey, we’d love to come and cook, if you guys are hosting anytime.’”

Despite receiving hundreds of orders and ever-increasing campus fame, Broadmoore and Trimble have attested, however, that the business is not terribly profitable because of their decision to keep prices low –– a classic grilled cheese will set you back $3.75, with extra toppings adding small price increases. “We probably make minimum wage on a good night,” said Trimble. Despite this, the business has already donated some of its profits. Last spring, they partnered with Grinnell College’s chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), giving all the profit and donations from an event they catered, totaling $210, to humanitarian support in Gaza. They also catered Almost Always Improv’s annual 24-hour improv show and donated 24 percent of those profits to Iowa Safe Schools.  

As Broadmoore and Trimble look forward, they intend to continue growing the operation. They love doing the work and meeting new people through it, and they believe that they are providing an important service to the campus community, both for students’ amusement but also their safety. “We’re getting some visibility in the loggia. No one is walking home truly alone when we’re there. And people definitely appreciate the food when they’re drunk,” said Trimble.  

Loose grilled cheese is operational in the South Campus loggia every Friday night starting at 10 p.m., and they plan to get involved in different events this year. If you would like to keep an eye (and a nose) out for future grilled cheese shenanigans, their Instagram is @loose_grilled_cheese.