The 9 Best Ways To Customize Your Culver's Grilled Cheese

Culver's is known for its iconic Butterburgers, though it actually offers a bunch of other menu items, from sandwiches to seafood. And there's one menu item that customers have always deemed the best version of its kind: the Culver's grilled cheese. The sandwich is nothing more than sourdough, lots of butter, and a few slices of good-quality American cheese. It's pretty basic, which means you can essentially jazz it up any way you want.

There are countless ways to make a Culver's grilled cheese even better and truly tailor it to your taste buds; you can add almost anything that's available on the Culver's menu. In some cases, the employee will add it right to the sandwich, though other additions might require you to open the sandwich and do it yourself. Whether you're craving more cheese, a tangy dressing, or a classic add-on like pickles, here are nine easy ways to take that Culver's grilled cheese to the next level.

Some would say the cheesier, the better. For a little extra crunch and savory, cheesy flavor, use this cheese curd hack: ask for a side of cheese curds with your grilled cheese. Then, open the sandwich, dump the cheese curds right on top, close the sandwich, and dig in. The result is maximum cheesiness with a little more texture. You can try asking for the cheese curds directly on the sandwich before they make it, too.

Cheese is rich, and sometimes you need acidity and a little sweetness to balance that richness. Culver's grilled onions are good enough to eat with a spoon, and adding them to your grilled cheese takes your sandwich to the next level. The slight caramelization of the grilled onions yields the perfect lightly sweet flavor to round out the cheese's rich notes.

Chili cheese hot dogs are a thing, so why not a chili grilled cheese? You can do this one of two ways. Go to Culver's and ask for a side of chili, then open the sandwich and add a few spoonfuls of chili on the grilled cheese. You can also just dip the grilled cheese right into the chili. This second method might be easier, especially if you picked up your food on the go.

The pickle lovers will enjoy this one: add pickles to your grilled cheese. Culver's offers them as a side, but you can also just request the addition when you order the sandwich through the app. The briny, savory pickle flavor will pair well with rich cheese, and the pickles add some crunch, too. For something spicy, you can also add pickled jalapeños.

If you're looking to get a serious meal out of your Culver's grilled cheese, the chain offers Buffalo-style or regular chicken tenders that you can add to give it a crispy twist. To do this, you'll likely have to order the tenders separately and manually add them. It's worth the trouble, though.

There's no need to stick to regular bread. If you prefer a bun or just want the sandwich to be a little more bread-forward and fluffy, order it on a bun instead. While you can't make the switch in the app, ordering it at the restaurant should be no issue.

Get saucy with the addition of Culver's signature sauce. It's not quite spicy, but it does have a zesty, somewhat acidic and tangy flavor punch that contrasts nicely with the rich cheese and bread. Culver's also offers Ken's Boom Boom sauce as a side, which has a little more of a kick. One of these would be a great addition on the chicken tender version of the grilled cheese, too.

Barbecue sauce is a sweet, tangy condiment that actually makes a perfect addition to grilled cheese. It's a good alternative dipping sauce to ketchup, or you can ask a Culver's employee to add the barbecue sauce directly onto your sandwich so that it fully blends in with the cheese, offering the perfect delicious balance.

Culver's sells a Reuben, but if you want the sandwich without the meat, order a grilled cheese, swap the cheddar cheese for Swiss, and add thousand island dressing. (Ask for sauerkraut, too, if you want.) This request should be done in person because these changes aren't available on the app, and there's another bonus to this trick: it's much cheaper than ordering a Reuben without the meat.