Can you explain the appeal of this sandwich to me?

Your “topics” say it all.

Kinda sounds gross to me. I just want the bacon part of it.

Topics are “bacon” and “grilled cheese.” I like a bit of bacon, now and then, 2 pieces, maybe 3, once a month. A BLT now and again, with 2 or 3 pieces of bacon.
Grilled cheese is OK too, once in a while. But a whole POUND of bacon wrapped around the sandwich, @janbb? Does that really sound appealing to you?

It sounds gross to me too, @Apparently_Im_The_Grumpy_One. Rebels against everything that I’ve trained myself into, to keep my BMI at the “Excellent” mark (according to the machine thingy at Walmart.) I just think of all that bacon grease, soaked into the bread, instead of cooked out, like it would if you fried it, then put it on a paper towel to get rid of most of the rest. Oh, gag.

You asked what the appeal of the sandwich is, not whether it appeals to me. Many people love bacon and grilled cheese so that’s why I said your topics explain its appeal. But yes, it would be far too gross for me.

I’m pretty much laying off bread, cheese and especially bacon these days, but despite that—or maybe because of it—I’d try it (though maybe less bacon). When I do want a grilled cheese sandwich, I make it in my Foreman grill, adding nothing more than a couple of thin tomato slices. Mmmm, it’s almost lunchtime here…

I just recently started using “Lose It” to track calories (and I know calorie counting isn’t the way of the future or anything) and it is keeping me away from a lot of bad foods. This bacon wrapped deathwich would be one that would ruin my calorie max for the entire day in about two bites.

So far, the calories counting has worked and I’m down to 200lbs from 215. Had I eaten one of these monstrosities I might weigh 399lbs on principal alone.

Just one of those is an express ticket to the ER. I think it is more about the bacon craze in pop culture than anything else.

Way to go @Apparently_Im_The_Grumpy_One! And calorie counting IS the only way to go, although others will disagree with me, in favor of much more complicated answers. As you’ve noticed, it automatically keeps you away from the bad foods (like bacon!)

@Inara27 I agree. It’s like a mass hysteria thing. I bet the bacon companies are loving it. They may have even started it. Bacon is probably the worst thing you could add to a sandwich, of any kind, as far as nutrition. Why do we allow ourselves to be manipulated like that?

What @janbb said.

My dietician (and every one I’ve ever talked to) assures me it’s okay to splurge a bit once in a while.

I would never eat foods day after day that I know are bad for me, like bacon, which I used to do. But these days I’m eating healthier than I have for years, and I do occasionally cheat (a burger, a bit of ice cream, and yes, even two strips of crisp bacon), and not only do I not feel guilty about that, I can tell you that despite that, my cholesterol is normal and my weight is the lowest it’s been in years.

Of course, that’s just me. Everyone has a different situation. I’m NOT advising YOU to do what I’m doing. Just saying…

Sounds good to me, @Pachy. I eat bacon now and then. I just had a piece of lemon bread that I didn’t really need. My BMI is “excellent,” and my cholesterol is amazingly low. My Dr. said he’d never seen anything like it.

I just wondered about the absolute excess of the sandwich mentioned. I’m trying to understand the appeal of such over load.

Well, I guess the short answer is, there’s no accounting for taste (buds).

I like bacon as well as the next guy, but I really wish this idiotic hipster bacon fad would fucking die already.

I wonder if they have to work themselves up gradually to such excess?

The only bacon fad thing I love are jalapeno poppers. Jalepeno’s with the seeds scraped out so it’s barely hot, filled with creme cheese and wrapped with one piece of bacon. Grilled till the bacon is almost burned. I think I could eat those forever!

Sounds like a sandwich Elvis Presley would have liked.

I think the basic visual appeal is over the top, and not just a little. Put all of that bacon between the bread with the cheese and it would still taste the same. I suppose it’s chef artistry in action, for whatever it’s worth.

I saw this or similar on TV cooking show recently. I did think ‘heart attack on a plate’ but it did look yummy though

Why do you think it looks yummy, @Stinley? (Not being sarcastic…I really want to know.)

I like all the ingredients. I think I would probably only manage a quarter of it though.

What don’t you like about it @Dutchess_III?

@Stinley Well, most of it is a few decades of telling myself that fattening food like that is gross. It’s a “diet “trick.” It’s a bit of healthy brainwashing, and for the most part, it does work. I get grossed out by mounds of fatty pork and stuff, that other people seemed to enjoy.

I like bacon, OK, a couple of slices here or there, but the sheer, overwhelming magnitude of all that fat on the one sandwich leaves me actually sickened, because of my self training.
And to stick some gooey (what looks like American Cheese) in the middle of it all? No!

Also, the second layer of bacon won’t get browned, or grilled, so you’d just basically be eating raw bacon that warmed up enough to soak the bread with bacon fat.

That’s what I see.

BACON!!!

You say you like a couple of strips, but I’m good for a couple of pounds at a sitting. When it comes to bacon, you’re a lightweight. I think that is why you don’t get the appeal.

Relatedly, how much cheese do you eat? I’m good for ¼ to ½ pound a day easily. Fortunately I have a high metabolism so I don’t swell up like a balloon. Could you walk into Beth’s Cafe and put away a 6-egg “Triple bypass” omelet with double ham, double bacon, double sausage, and 2 types of cheese, would you have to take some home, or would you not even want a bite?

I was quite shocked by it. Me and Mr Stinley were open mouthed at the decadence of it. I would like to try it. The one I saw just had one layer of bacon that went crispy. I’m with you when it comes to underdone bacon.

I like your psychological mind trick though

I learned from a pro…my sister, who, in my opinion, is still a bit over board with the skinny thing. I remember when I first started this journey to change my eating habits, were were in a grocery store. They were offering some samples of something…fried okra, or something. I reached for one and my sister snatched me away and said, “Fried worms! How disgusting! How could they even offer them?!” It has served me well for about the last 26 years!

I love cheese, @jerv. American, not so much, but other cheeses, I love love love. Swiss cheese, cheddar cheese. I love cheese. CREAM CHEESE!! Certainly not ¼ or ½ pound a day. I don’t think I could physically eat that much. My favorite sandwich is a tomato sandwich with Swiss on grilled French bread. Yum!

As far as your omelet question, I’m faced with that every Saturday, because Rick and I go out for breakfast every Saturday. However, they only offer 3 egg omlets. I would not even want a bite of yours All that pork would just gross me out.
Now a veggie omelet, with extra cheese, and maybe some bacon, I would consider, and I sometimes order. I end up only eating about half of it, though. Also, I would prefer my veggies to be grilled, not raw and crunchy.

Usually, though, I just have 2 eggs over easy, a piece of toast and some milk. Sometimes I have a pancake, but can only eat ¼ of it. ½ if I’m super hungry, which I am usually not in the morning.

I read once that your stomach size, when it’s normal, is about the size of your fist. That’s all you should really need at one sitting, and that’s pretty much all I eat, even before I heard that.

It is like the double down from KFC. Heart attack in a small package.

Oh God. Is that the chicken sandwich between two pieces of chicken, instead of bread? I don’t know about heart attack, but sure as hell calorie over load! Why? WHY??!

@Dutchess_lll The bread is too much like filler.

Of course it’s a filler. Nothing wrong with that. I’m having 3 pieces of peel and eat shrimp with a piece of toasted French bread because I’ll probably still be hungry after I eat the shrimp, and I don’t want to be. I want to be done eating for the day.

@Dutchess_III Beth’s has vegetarian options even for burgers, but their omelets only come in 6-egg and 12-egg. I only eat as much as it takes to stop feeling hungry, but I’m not exactly small and I digest fast so it’s no surprise that I probably eat more than you.

Well, I’m not a vegetarian so….anyway, I just wouldn’t order an omelet.

Many places around here serve similar portions, like Gordito’s “Baby sized” burrito that’s as big as an actual baby (plenty of side-by-side pictures on the wall), so you might have issues eating out around here.

I might. Or not. Often just an appetizer is often enough for me. Do they have appetizers?

Yes, but unless you eat at a national chain, the appetizers are often larger than many entrees back East. The wife and I have been known to order multiple appetizers and make a meal out of them. For instance, we’ve gone to our local gaming bar, the AFK Tavern, and had an order of Bacon of Eternity (chicken-fried thick-sliced bacon), a plate of +2 Tots (spent the extra dollar for bacon crumbles), and Mozzarella joysticks (which they would’ve wrapped in bacon for a nominal surcharge).

I think any one of those would’ve been more than you would even think of, but we managed all three. However, the Gordito’s burritos are enough for me to take half home for later, and I have yet to finish a 12-egger from Beth’s in a single sitting. Still, getting two meals for $10 is a good deal.

@jerv I used to eat at Beth’s in the seventies. Usually it was a post-midnight munchies run. I never did finish a 6 egger, but my buddy did sometimes. It’s hard to find a quality greasy spoon these days.

I can’t explain why, but I always remember the commercial size roll of aluminum foil that they left out for customers to wrap up their own leftovers. It was so cool, if for no other reason that nobody else did it. They knew nearly everyone would be taking home leftovers.

@bossob In a town of college students and artists, it only makes sense to offer mass quantities for reasonable prices. It beats Ramen noodle and bread sandwiches!

because people are obviously not fat enough already.
#fatabomination

“Are they serious?”

Don’t ever underestimate the taste buds of baconaters..