Melt hits the big time-again

LAKEWOOD, Ohio - Adam Richman host of the Travel Channel's Man V. Food, came to Lakewood's Melt Bar and Grilled to take on the Melt Challenge.

The gourmet grilled cheese sandwich weighs in at a hefty 5 pounds and is concocted with 14 different kinds of cheese and three slices of one-inch thick bread. The challenge includes having to eat Melt's hand-cut fries and homemade cole slaw.

"Working with the production company was fantastic, meeting Adam Richman and I love the show," said Melt Bar & Grilled chef/owner Matt Fish.

The show was shot last February in Lakewood and other Cleveland landmarks including the West Side Market and Hot Sauce Williams.

Fish said there are rules to beating the Melt Challenge.

"You have to finish the entire thing with no help from anybody else. You have no time limit and you can't leave the table at all to go to the bathroom."

And for winning the challenge? Notoriety, your picture on the website, a tee-shirt or pint glass and a $10 gift card toward a 'normal' sandwich on another visit.

One Melt Challenge winner got a different kind of prize. Alex Kniceley of Lorain conquered the sandwich not once, but twice. He ate the entire sandwich and then did it again two days later. The prize he chose and received was a job at Melt.

Did Adam Richman tame the sandwich and sides? Yes, in about 45 minutes.