Co-owners Heidi Gibson and Nate Pollak are the undaunted, bread-grilling engineers behind the adventurous menu at THE AMERICAN Grilled Cheese Kitchen.

Heidi Gibson, Commander in Cheese
A seven-time National Grilled Cheese Invitational award winner, Heidi dreamt up the concept of a gourmet grilled cheese restaurant after numerous fans, rival grilled cheese chefs, sandwich judges, family, and friends encouraged her to do so. Her culinary creativity also stems from a scientific approach to sandwich-making as she holds bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in engineering from MIT.

Nate Pollak, The Big Cheese
After assisting Heidi at grilled cheese competitions, Nate made it his mission to pair Heidi’s culinary talents with a grilled cheese-deprived world. Nate helped pay his way though UCLA as an economics and classics scholar through multiple foodservice positions. Nate draws on his restaurant experiences as a host, server, bartender, and bar manager to create the inviting atmosphere at THE AMERICAN.