We tried Starbucks' new grilled cheese sandwich

The cheese world has been through a lot recently, what with the FDA declaring war on it and then quickly losing said war. But things got interesting when a new challenger decided to foray into uncharted cheese territory -- Starbucks recently announced that it would start serving up grilled cheese sandwiches (for $5.25 a pop). We got our hands on one of these "Old-Fashioned" sandwiches to see whether it truly brings the melty goodness. Here's what we discovered:

starbucks grilled cheese
Adam Lapetina

Service

I ordered my sandwich without a hitch, and it was served in a La Boulange bag with my name correctly spelled. Not sure whether or not it was technically "grilled" (they put it in this fancy contraption I couldn't see inside), but I did get it in about two minutes, or approximately one game of Bejeweled Blitz.
 

Bread + Cheese

Well-toasted and crunchy, with a decently even char (even if the bottom of the sandwich was a tad on the soggy side... but what the hell -- it's a grilled cheese sandwich!) and a multigrain nuttiness. 8/10

Supposedly there are three types of cheese on here, but I only see two -- a plain, translucent white cheddar and a bright orange cheddar; there's a promise of mozzarella, but if it's there, it's barely recognizable. The cheeses are tangy and a bit on the grainy side, but definitely sufficiently melted for my tastes. There's a distinctly buttery aftertaste. 6/10
 

Conclusion

This is a solid sandwich. I found myself using a lot of napkins. It could definitely be improved by adding a stronger cheese, but then again, it would probably become more of a niche sandwich if they did that (they've got millions of mouths to feed!).

As it is now, it's one of the more authentic-feeling "fast-food" grilled cheeses out there, and it's got a kind of rustic appeal. $5.25 is a bit steep for some bread, butter, and cheese, but... 
7/10 - WOULD RECOMMEND TRYING

Adam Lapetina is a food/drink staff writer at Thrillist, and will probably see if he can make his own grilled cheese later. Read his musings on Twitter at @adamlapetina.