‘Stella Newman seeks out the best cheese toastie – so you don’t have to…’
It’s Saturday morning, the weather has taken a turn for the worst and all you can think about is hibernating under some blankets. But if you feel like braving the cold weather for a lunchtime treat, Stella Newman has found some of the best cheese toasties in London.
‘When I first start planning a book I think about the characters – who are they, what do they look like, what do they want in life, and why? But one of the key things I also consider is, what are they going to eat?
My first book, Pear-Shaped, featured a heroine who loved desserts; my second, Leftovers, a girl obsessed with pasta (and leftovers); in book three, The Foodies Guide To Falling In Love, Laura is on a mission to get her hands on a world-class custard doughnut – and my new book, Seven Steps to Happiness features two friends intent on creating the perfect cheese toastie.
I’m pretty methodical in my work – if a character eats something, I like to have eaten it too, in order to describe it accurately. (Also, I really do love eating.) Researching Seven Steps was a wonderful, fattening adventure into the world of toasties – taking me all over London in the quest for perfection. Fortunately I was spared any bad toasties – I think it’s quite hard to mess up a melted cheese sandwich if I’m honest – but I was lucky enough to taste three of the greatest examples London has to offer. The three toastie-makers listed below all use exceptional raw materials: the most beautiful home-made breads, signature cheese blends, and a selection of other fillings to create that magical combination of crisp, buttery bread, luscious melting cheese – and that special extra something… If you are carb or dairy free or on a diet, look away now:
This fantastic bakery in East Dulwich is famous for their breads, including the wonderful Peckham Rye – but they also serve a supremely delicious toastie made with their perfect sourdough (see photo for details) and their signature blend of three cheeses from Neal’s Yard Dairy. My stomach is rumbling just thinking about it.
Brick House, 1 Zenora Street, East Dulwich, London SE22 8HP
@brickhousebread
Home of the best challah bread in the UK, along with lots of other delicious treats – the Karma Bread toastie is a melting, oozing, triple cheese, triple onion triumph. It’s served on their light wholemeal sourdough, sliced the day after baking – all the better to work in sweet harmony with the filling. I once tried to eat one in the street and had to rush home to change my top. I suggest you stay and eat yours in their gorgeous cosy coffee shop.
Karma Bread, 13 South End Road, London NW3 2PT
@karmabread
This phenomenal food stall mostly based in Leather Lane, though check twitter for other locations – is home to several different variations on the theme, including the world-famous Baby Got Mac – a toastie stuffed with macaroni cheese. If a cheese sandwich filled with pasta is not the key to happiness, then I don’t know what is.
Grill My Cheese, Leather Lane, London EC1N 7YH
@grill_my_cheese
I apologise to readers outside of London, I don’t get out of town much – but if you have any amazing cheese toasties you rate, I’d love to hear about them – so tweet me, please @stellanewman.
Stella Newman’s latest novel SEVEN STEPS TO HAPPINESS is a funny and moving novel of friendship, heartbreak, and the restorative power of melted cheese.
