Il Pannino

The staff is incredibly friendly and the sandwiches are delicious. I plan on eventually trying them all, but it’ll take a while — so many options! I hope they consider taking cards but for now its cash only. It’s worth the effort

Il Pannino is the best place to go for lunch or a light dinner in Cullowhee since Hippy Alan closed The Blue Squirrel 15 years ago. It’s located next to the wonderful Mexican restaurant Sazon’s, whose motto is «If you are looking for traditional Tex-​Mex, don’t eat here.» Both places are owned by chef Alex Rodriquez.
The menu at Il Pannino is simple — grilled hot panini sandwiches, salads, a few pitas, and soup. However, this belies the creativity and quality of the food. There are, for example 24 types of paninis — Cuban, Italian, veggie, spicy, roasted poblano pepper, shrimp, pork, portabella mushroom, black bean paste and peppers, BLT — the list goes on.
I had «The Porquetta» — a moist combination of spicy shredded pork, Muenster cheese, and baby arugula. Bad bread can ruin the best of sandwiches. This bread was perfect — crispy on the outside, soft and tasty on the inside. I was the best sandwich I’ve had in years.
Most of the paninis are eight or nine bucks. However, mine was big enough to feed two for lunch.
I eat at a lot of Asheville restaurants, including at some of the much-​touted sandwich joints. Il Pannino is every bit as good. In fact, it is better.
It’s open from 12 to 9 pm, everyday but Sunday.