Creativity oozes at L.A.'s Grilled Cheese Invitational

More than mac 'n' cheese, meatloaf, burgers or cupcakes, the grilled cheese sandwich is the ultimate comfort food. A staple of bachelor kitchens everywhere, it's the first meal many of us learn to cook. But unlike most gentrified comfort foods, elevating this pinnacle of pragmatic American cooking into the realm of haute cuisine doesn't require a culinary degree. That's the appeal of the Grilled Cheese Invitational: It allows amateur cooks to unleash their inner "Iron Chef."

By Elina Shatkin

April 23, 2009