It’s important to note that American style grilled cheese absolutely requires the bread to be toasted in fat, not dry.

This is traditionally done by smearing one side of each bread slice in softened butter before grilling the assembled sandwich on a (ideally cast iron, in my opinion) pan with the buttered sides facing out. Some alternative fats include mayonnaise and (my favorite) bacon grease from American-style bacon.

The resulting toast shouldn’t look like it was made in a toaster, it should look something like this:

The sandwich should still be greasy enough to leave a thin film of butter on your fingers when picked up.

Also, if not using American “cheese” which has emulsifiers added to make it melt well, it’s important to include a cheese that melts well, typically paired with a second, slightly more flavorful cheese like cheddar.

Cut the toasted cheese into a triangle by cutting corner to corner, then dip it in the tomato soup directly before consuming. Much like chips and salsa.

Tomato basil soup, not the Campbell’s nonsense.