ANYONE USING A SANDWICH PRESS?

Looking for any good or bad reports on using a sandwich press in there trailer or ? for grilled cheese etc. are they working okay or what? whats the time it takes to grill a cheese sandwich whats your voltage 115,208,220?? thanks in advance. Buck

I use a star ribbed 220 volt sandwich press for my sausages.  Hot dogs, spicy, polish, I love it for those items. But because it's ribbed sandwiches tend to stick to it. Or it's because I don't know what the hell I'm doing. I love grilled cheese I think they should be in the 5 of the best sandwich list.
Jack

This is what happens when you take the BBQ guy out of the BBQ pit, they can't walk and chew on Ribs at the same time..........A Little non stick cooking spray will do it, I think using the right bread may help also. In Italy they use a more hearty bread, so the bread doesn't go into the groves, you only get the grove marks....................pnwc

Hey I can cook a grilled cheese in a smoker....lol
I run my star way to hot is part of it. I turn in on full blast and leave it that way all day. It runs about 450 degrees and it'll mark (nicely) and heat my hot dogs and sausages in about 1 or 1 1/2 minutes. So that's a big part of the problem but the cooking spray is a good idea. I want another Star unit but with out the ribs, just for GC.

Hi Jack, I remember seeing the grill marks on the sausage you offer, it does a good job and looks great. Do you also use this method for the ribs ?????? and how does it work with the BBQ sauce. I think if Buck only used he Panini press for sandwiches it will stay a lot cleaner. ..........Take care, I hoe all is well.................Bill
Buck this will work great for you, if Jack says it good, case closed..............
Star Grill-Express / Panini Grill - Press 10" x 10" Cooking Surface / Cast Iron / Grooved & Smooth Surfaces / GX10IG / GX10IS / by Star - Commercial Electric Griddles - ZESCO.com

Ribs on my sandwich press .....NO WAY.
 
But your right if it's just being used for grilled cheese get a flat press and you'll love it after you figure out the heat setting. But for sausages the ribbed press is awesome.

 

Above DBL Char Dog  (split it and grill it)

 

A word of caution, buy a new one if you can. I bought my first unit on Ebay (used) and when I got it and heated it up grease ran out of the inner workings for 20 minutes until it cooled back down. I took it apart and it had 3 or 4 inches of grease caked inside. I tried to clean it but thru it away. And bought a 2nd one.

We have a flat press. We have used it to do a variation on the grilled ham and cheese. When set on high it only takes a couple of minutes to grill a sandwich. We have also have used it to grill hotdogs and buns, works great. If you are cooking a decent 100% beef hotdog it will give it a snap when you bite into it. We purchased a new Waring from Web Restaurant Supply; the cost new was cheaper than we could have purchased a used machine locally. We also plan on using it in the fall to heat apple fritters and maybe even do Cubans.

JodyP
We have a flat press. We have used it to do a variation on the grilled ham and cheese. When set on high it only takes a couple of minutes to grill a sandwich. We have also have used it to grill hotdogs and buns, works great. If you are cooking a decent 100% beef hotdog it will give it a snap when you bite into it. We purchased a new Waring from Web Restaurant Supply; the cost new was cheaper than we could have purchased a used machine locally. We also plan on using it in the fall to heat apple fritters and maybe even do Cubans.

 
Jody,
If you do decide to do Cubans please post a thred with pre grilling step by step, includeing pictures and then the temp and finally the produced product. That would be very cool and a thread that would come up often.
Jack

We want to do a classic Cuban sandwich. It’s made with a Cuban/French bread, Spanish pork, ham, mustard, Swiss cheese, and sliced pickles. The problem we have encountered is finding the Spanish pork. A company in Miami, Morrison Meat Packing, produces Spanish pork but we can’t find it here in Atlanta. We are going to experiment with slow cooked Boston Butts to see how it tastes.
 
Another option we are looking at is doing grilled sandwiches like a Rueben, Ham & Cheese, Grilled Cheese and Pastrami & Cheese. We really haven’t seen anyone on our circuit doing grilled sandwiches. This would require more components to make up the menu but should be worth it. Also the grilled sandwich concept would fit into the current Atlanta Food Truck craze and we may be able to start attending some of the local food truck events.
 
We are going to bring the sandwich press into our kitchen this week and start experimenting.