"He has also created many good jobs that have enriched our state's economy and he serves as an outstanding example for aspiring small business owners," said SBA District Director Gil Goldberg.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Matt Fish, owner of eight Melt Bar & Grilled gourmet grilled cheese locations, is now also the 2015 SBA Ohio Small Business Person of the Year. He will receive his plaque at a ceremony on May 5 at Cuyahoga Community College, and has been invited to the White House on May 8, as one of 50 entrepreneurs and small business owners being honored during the U.S. Small Business Administration's National Small Business Week May 4-8.
"The SBA recognizes Mr. Fish because of his entrepreneurial accomplishments, leadership and contributions to the community," said SBA District Director Gil Goldberg, in a written announcement. As a business owner who took out five SBA loans worth more than $3 million from Huntington Bank to expand his restaurants, "he has also created many good jobs that have enriched our state's economy, and he serves as an outstanding example for aspiring small business owners."
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Melt's Parmageddon sandwich, stuffed with two potato and cheese pierogi, napa vodka kraut, grilled onions and cheddar cheese, with a side of fries, helped owner Matt Fish win 2015 Small Business Person of the Year. Fish beat out 10 to 12 business owners nominated from across Ohio for the title. The winner was chosen by a panel in the Atlanta area.
When Fish worked in another restaurant's kitchen, he used to end his shift by making himself an unconventional grilled cheese sandwich. Other restaurant workers caught on, and asked him to make grilled cheese sandwiches for them, too.
Fish said in a statement that "These past nine years working in Ohio and getting to know its awesome people have been remarkable. All of us at the Melt family look forward to many more years serving our guests amazing food and helping to build up our communities."
U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur will also participate in the ceremony, to be held as part of a program for small business owners, from 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Tri-C's Advanced Technology Training Center, 3409 Woodland Ave., in Cleveland. Registration for the ceremony begins at 2 p.m., and free parking is available behind the building.
Fish opened the first Melt Bar & Grilled in Lakewood in 2006 with nine employees. envisioning it as a craft beer joint that also happened to sell grilled-cheese sandwiches. But he quickly discovered that the generously portioned sandwiches and comfort food were more popular than the brews, Goldberg said.
Melt has now grown to nearly 400 employees and eight regional locations, including in Cleveland Heights, Independence, Mentor, University Circle, and a recently opened second Columbus restaurant at the Easton Gateway shopping center. He also has a commissary in Midtown Cleveland from which he makes the ingredients for his signature dishes, Goldberg said. "He's just a perfect example of someone who started small and now competes in six different cities," he said.
Small Business Person of the Year nominees are chosen based on these criteria: staying power, growth in the number of employees, increase in sales or unit volume, current and past financial performance, innovativeness of product or service offered, response to adversity, and contributions to community-oriented projects. Fish contributes to the Cleveland Foodbank, the Animal Protective League, and the communities in which his restaurants are located, Goldberg said.
Melt has become a cult favorite among grilled cheese lovers, with recognition from Zagat's America's Top Restaurants Survey; the USA TODAY/Zagat list of America's Best Sandwich Shops; Cleveland Magazine; The Cleveland Scene, which has dubbed Melt the "Best Restaurant" and "Best Sandwich"; PETA; "ESPN The Magazine"; buzzfeed.com; Esquire; the Akron Beacon Journal; and "Field and Stream" Magazine.
It has also been featured on The Food Network's Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, The Best Thing I Ever Ate, Food Paradise, USA Today, ESPN The Magazine, The Boston Globe, FOX News and The Travel Channel's Man v. Food.
Customers who are willing to get the Melt logo tattooed on their bodies can get a Melt Tattoo Family card which gets them 25 percent off for life. The restaurant has a gallery of those tattoos on its website and Facebook fan pages.