Marco took us to this little gourmet grocery that his father does some business with as apparently they make good, inexpensive panini.

First, let me explain that panini is the plural, panino is the singular. So when you go to get a sandwich you are getting a panino, not a panini like they say in the U.S.  Also, panini can be either hot or cold in Italy.

So we are in the shop milling about the counter as other people are being served. It is a typical long deli counter where there are meats, salads, olives, cheese, etc. We didn’t realize that we had to pull a ticket for our turn in line until the guy behind the counter snapped at us! Marco pulled his number first as he knew what he wanted, but when I went to place my order I got a sharp “I panini sono finiti”! The panini are finished! The guy even pointed at the empty bread bin as proof. The delivery was just so funny that Jenny and I just started laughing uncontrollably!

Finally, the guy told us that we could get bread from elsewhere in the shop with which he would make the panini. So that’s what we did but I wasn’t allowed have mozzarella. “No mozzarella!”.  OK!?

What’s more, Jenny and my panini ended up being about half the price of Marco’s as we got our bread from off the shelf?!

Anyway, it was a good lunch with a good laugh and there is now an official Panini Nazi of Siena!