Panino Giusto (literally “right sandwich”) is a chain of restaurants specializing in Italian grilled sandwiches (“panini”). It was started in 1979 in Milan and now has stores in half dozen countries. I tried them first in Tokyo years ago. Now I eat from them time to time when I travel to Hong Kong (they have a store in the IFC mall that is also the terminus of the Airport Express train, so it is an easy stop; this review is based on my experience with this branch).
The visit
You order, are given a number and then wait. The place at IFC is usually packed on weekends and lunch hour, so prepare to wait. The seating area face the harbour, so it is quite nice.
Here’s a snapshot of the Washington panino: Parma ham, goat cheese, tomato and black olive pate (the pate flavor is quite distinct). This is a typical example of their style: two grilled buns filled with high-quality ingredients. They have many options.
However, personally, I prefer their toasts! They only have a few available, in the picture you can see a “farcito” including Prague ham, Edam cheese and some pickled vegetables. Delicious.
The check
Check for this visit was 248 HKD (or 31.6 USD). The toast or the sandwich alone cost 108 HKD (around 14 USD). Expensive by any stretch of the imagination, but a nice culinary luxury to have time to time.
Where in Hong Kong:
See their website for locations. At time of posting, they have a shop at IFC (third floor, just downstairs from Shake Shack) and one at Lee Garden mall in Causewaybay.
Check their Japanese website for locations in Japan.