 VanDerWerff graded the episode "B-", commenting that she was uncertain whether she genuinely loved it, or was overlooking flaws because it handled the religious element acceptably.VanDerWerff stated that it would be easy to criticize "Glee", but while television as a whole does not do earnestness well, "Glee" at its best, as in "Grilled Cheesus", "revels in just how damn earnest it can be".James Poniewozik of "Time" wrote that the episode's premise was "absurdly ambitious", yet felt it was largely successful in being respectful to both atheism and religion.