{"id":673961,"date":"2026-01-13T12:32:17","date_gmt":"2026-01-13T12:32:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/673961\/"},"modified":"2026-01-13T12:32:17","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T12:32:17","slug":"bears-fans-come-together-with-the-help-of-cheese-graters-both-real-and-fake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/673961\/","title":{"rendered":"Bears fans come together with the help of cheese graters, both real and fake"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Chicago Bears\u2019 Saturday night victory over the Green Bay Packers had fans \u2014 and even Bears players \u2014 celebrating with some shredded cheese.<\/p>\n

Bears quarterback Caleb Williams was grating cheese during his post-game interview on Amazon Prime, while sporting a large foam grater hat. But he wasn\u2019t alone in the cheeky celebration.<\/p>\n

The content creators behind the popular Instagram account Explore Chicago took to the streets on Saturday, asking Bears fans to grate cheese for a video<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe went through two blocks of cheese,\u201d Leen Alqaissi, 24, said, who runs the account with her sister, Yasmeen. The video got over 8,000 likes, including a comment from Chicago-based Kraft Heinz<\/a> saying, \u201cWe approve this message!! … Shred that cheese!!!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had seen the way the cheese grater idea had completely blown up,\u201d she said. \u201cWe were thinking how we could take that and include the Bears fans themselves because we just wanted to bring community to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yasmeen Alqaissi said people \u201cloved being in the video. We had some people follow us to see the next person grate the cheese and say, \u2018Go Bears,\u2019 and stuff like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

The sisters didn\u2019t see others outside with a cheese grater, but at least one fan inside Soldier Field was spotted grating some celebratory cheese<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Soldier Field representatives didn\u2019t respond to a request for comment regarding any grater confiscations made at the game. <\/p>\n

Several Jewel-Osco locations said they hadn\u2019t seen a noticeable spike in grater sales. The grocer\u2019s parent company, Albertson\u2019s, didn\u2019t return a request for comment.<\/p>\n

While sales of graters in Chicago may not have spiked, Houston-based Foam Party Hats has experienced a whirlwind few weeks selling the foam version.<\/p>\n

Founder and Venezuela native Manuel Rojas was never really a football fan, but now counts himself as a Bears fan.<\/p>\n

The team\u2019s fanbase and it\u2019s longstanding rivalry against the Packers have created a 10,000-person waitlist for the family-run business.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a Cinderella story,\u201d Rojas said. \u201cIt\u2019s like something made out of a movie. Not only is it satisfying for us but also because of how the rivalry has played out this year, and how the Bears have beaten the Packers after so many years.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thousands of shoppers have forked over $39.99 for the oversized \u201cgraterhead hat,\u201d which went viral on social media after Bears receiver DJ Moore was spotted wearing the hat after the team\u2019s dramatic win against the Packers on Dec. 20. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Foam<\/p>\n

Foam Party Hats\u2019 popular \u201cgraterhead hats\u201d have a 10,000-person waitlist.<\/p>\n

Provided by Foam Party Hats<\/p>\n

That game overwhelmed the small-business. Since then, it\u2019s received 8,500 orders. The company hired four more workers, bringing its staff count to 24, and during the Christmas season, employees worked weekends and overnight shifts. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe say that it ruined our Christmas vacation,\u201d Rojas said. \u201cBut we\u2019re not complaining about it. We\u2019re just trying to manage it as fast as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

Founded in 2017 by Rojas and his mother, Grace, the company had seen steady growth after securing an investment during their 2020 appearance on ABC\u2019s \u201cShark Tank.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2023, the company was making cheese wedge hats that brought in about $30,000 in monthly sales through retailers like Amazon, Rojas said. But soon the Packers, which sells \u201ccheesehead\u201d hats, sent Foam Party Hats a cease-and-desist letter, effectively halting their cheese hat sales.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe consulted with our lawyers and they said you can probably fight it \u2026 but it\u2019s gonna cost a lot of money; money that we didn\u2019t have,\u201d Manuel Rojas said. \u201cSo we had to try really hard to find something to counteract that missing revenue.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thus, the graterhead hat was born. Out of over 800 products on its website, the graterhead hat has brought in the most business, Rojas said.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Employees<\/p>\n

Employees assemble graterhead hats at Foam Party Hats\u2019 facility in Houston.<\/p>\n

Provided by Foam Party Hats<\/p>\n

\u201cEven before this year, [it] was one of our best sellers, especially during the football season. But it never went viral like [it did] in the last couple weeks,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

A similar version of the grater hat was once sold by Bears fan Jeran Dahlquist in 2013, the Chicago Tribune reported at the time. The company, Graterhead, has since shuttered.<\/p>\n

The Bears\u2019 31-27 comeback Saturday led to more orders for Foam Party Hats.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause of the huge demand, we had to backlog [some] orders all the way to March,\u201d Rojas said.<\/p>\n

Orders through sellers like Amazon, Target and Etsy had to be temporarily shut down. Chicago area retailers the company supplies \u2014 like Clark Street Sports and Jewel-Osco \u2014 have also run out of its graterhead hats, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis entire thing happening with the graterheads is going to open a lot of new doors,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re really excited to try and partner with the NFL, get the license for the NFL and open a new line of revenue for [other] teams and sports.\u201d<\/p>\n

When asked whether there are plans to create new merchandise for the Bears\u2019 game against the Los Angeles Rams, Rojas said their first priority is fulfilling existing orders for graterhead hats. The company is discussing plans to expand into a larger production facility.<\/p>\n

The company\u2019s loyalty lies with the Bears, he said. The team even sent the family a care package with Bears merchandise.<\/p>\n

\u201c[We want to develop new products] specifically for the Bears,\u201d he said. \u201cBecause that\u2019s the fanbase that got us to this point.\u201d<\/p>\n