The Cheese Melt Seeks Its Own Little Slice of Warwood | News, Sports, Jobs

Photo by Eric Ayres – Thomas Gilson, owner of The Cheese Melt food truck, is looking to establish a permanent location in Wheeling at 1913 Warwood Ave., where he intends to open The Cheese Melt Grill & Bar later this year.

One of the Ohio Valley’s most popular eateries on wheels is ready to put the food truck in park and open up shop in a permanent brick-and-mortar location.

The Cheese Melt has been serving the Wheeling area for eight years, and owner Thomas Gilson said the time has come for his business to take root as a neighborhood sandwich shop.

“We’ve been around since 2014,” Gilson said. “We have a pretty large following and a good reputation, and it’s been a long time coming to get indoors. So it would be really nice to stop being nomadic around the Ohio Valley.”

Gilson appeared before the Wheeling Planning Commission last week during a public hearing on a request for a special use permit for 1913 Warwood Ave., where he intends to open The Cheese Melt Grill & Bar later this spring.

The property is a business location in a C1 Commercial zone. The building itself has three units, two of which are already occupied by a flower shop and a tattoo parlor. Gilson is putting the ingredients together to open the new restaurant and lounge in the northernmost unit, and he said he hoped to bring additional foot traffic to the area that could also benefit the neighboring businesses.

In fact, he already has been doing business there with the food truck while working on bringing the new, permanent establishment to fruition.

“We’ve been running the truck for about the past three weeks now in front of the building, with a pretty good response,” he said, noting that they have been cooking up lunches and dinners from the truck for the local crowd. “People have been saying that they’re excited that we’re going in.”

Gilson said there’s not a lot of competition in the area as far as locally owned and operated small-business restaurants go. There are fast food chains in the area, but not a lot of mom-and-pop food options like The Cheese Melt.

“It’s our little neighborhood,” Gilson said, noting that his family lives above Warwood, and his children attend school there. “It’s close to home, and it’s got what we want, as far as parking and everything else. There’s not a lot of competition there — we’re competing basically against the big chains. To bring a neighborhood sandwich shop to Warwood, I think, would be welcome to the folks there.”

Wheeling Building and Planning Director Tom Connelly said the planning commission had received a similar request for another business for this location a number of years ago, but the applicant withdrew their request after opting for a different location. It has remained vacant ever since.

The fading sign on the building still promotes Annie’s Avenue Bar & Grill. However, Gilson said he hopes to change that in the coming months and be able to open by May 1.

“Hopefully we can make it happen, not only for the business but also for the community,” Gilson said.

The proposed menu for the restaurant includes breakfast, lunch and dinner items. Favorite selections include specialty grilled cheese sandwiches, gourmet smash burgers, wings, breakfast sandwiches, breakfast burritos and more, in addition to domestic and craft beers.

Proposed business hours are 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and closed Sunday. Gilson said there may not be room for bar stools, so customers will likely dine and sip from seats at tables. They plan to accommodate smaller crowds because of limited space, with probably a maximum capacity of 20 to 30 people, and a staff of between three to eventually four.

There will be a video lottery room with four machines, an ATM, a small sofa and some other accommodations.

And once the restaurant opens, what will happen to the food truck?

“I’m going to keep it for now,” Gilson said. “The idea is — if I have enough staff, I’ll do some additional catering and special events like we’ve done in the past. But right now, I’m not expecting to have enough people to run both, so our main focus will be the restaurant.”

No one spoke during the public hearing last week, and the planning commission unanimously approved the request for a special use permit. Gilson is expected to appear before the Development Committee of Wheeling City Council on Tuesday to seek necessary approval to designate the property as a redevelopment site.

Gilson said customers can follow The Cheese Melt on its official social media pages to stay up to date with progress of the venture.