Milan / Panino Giusto: a childhood memory

The first time I traveled to Milan with my family, we stayed at a hotel just behind the Duomo, in a very central area, crossroad between the working heart of the city – bank, insurance, consulting buildings – and its more glamorous side, made of dozens of shop windows with the latest fashion trends.

We landed around lunch time, checked in and walked around looking for a bite. Few steps away from Duomo, my father pointed at the dark green curtains of Panino Giusto, a place where he used to go for a quick break from time to time when his job was bringing him to Milan.

As a kid, I still remember that panini exploding with such generous sliced-to-order portions of Parma, Prague, San Daniele ham… Biting them was a real and pleasant challenge!

Many years later, for work, I found myself staying in the same beautiful hotel, this time ready to leave Milan. Short in time, I thought about the green logo of the panini place who hosted our first family lunch in the Lombardy capital.

The list of panini has become even longer, generous in Prosciutto crudo selection, bresaola, salmon, vegetarian options and a few signature panini, signed by local Michelin starred chefs.

I chose one of those, a bresaola filled sandwich of the 2** chef Claudio Sadler named Tra i due (in-between the two), a playful reference to north and south of Italy: the bun is made of corn (used for polenta) and grano arso (burnt wheat from Puglia), the filling is dominated by the Valtellinese bresaola and the Pugliese burrata and enriched by taggiasche olives (west coast of Liguria) and zucchini flowers…

The first bite, a full and rich bite, brought back the pleasant and carefree memories of a child….