You Gotta Try This: Jalapeño popper grilled cheese at Ernie’s Midtown Pub in Rockford

By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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You Gotta Try This is the Rock River Current’s weekly dining feature focused on signature dishes at your favorite local restaurants. You’ll find it each Wednesday at rockrivercurrent.com. Want to see one of your favorites here? Email us at news@rockrivercurrent.com to suggest a local staple.
Where: Ernie’s Midtown Pub
Address: 1025 Fifth Ave., Rockford
Opened: Sept. 1, 2021
Owner: Andrew Vowles
Hours: 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday (kitchen open 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.); 11 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday (kitchen hours 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.); closed on Sunday and Monday.
You have to try: Jalapeño popper grilled cheese
What’s in it: American cheese, cream cheese, roasted jalapeño, bacon, chipotle mayo
Related: Rockford nostalgia is abundant in this new Midtown pub
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Why you should try it: The jalapeño popper grilled cheese has been the most popular sandwich among customers since the restaurant opened Sept. 1, Ernie’s Midtown Pub owner Andrew Vowles said. The jalapeño poppers are rolled fresh every day at the restaurant.
“People crave it,” Vowles said. “I think it’s been the most popular item because it’s unique compared to any other grilled cheese in town … We make all the ingredients fresh in house and I think that really separates us a little bit because of the freshness of the sandwich.”
Pro tip: There is an option to get the jalapeño poppers fried before you get them on the sandwich. “We also dip it in our house breading and fry them in house as well, so nothing is frozen or prepackaged or anything like that,” Vowels said. “We make pretty much everything fresh in-house here. The only thing frozen is our waffle fries, tater tots and mozzarella sticks.”
For more information: erniesmidtownpub.com; 815-977-4365; instagram.com/erniesmidtownpub; facebook.com/ErniesMidtownPub
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This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on Twitter @KevinMHaas or on Instagram at @thekevinhaas.