Midtown Lunch

Rumors of Pane Panelle‘s demise started swirling a couple of months ago after a comment that the restaurant on Church St. (at Walker) had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Well, it turns out they’re closed and the restaurant is already papered up and being transformed into something else. The sit-down restaurant Stuzzicheria had spawned the Pane Panelle sandwich and soup counter which mostly stuck to the $10 and under price cap but was a little lacking in the quantity/money spent ratio. Then the restaurant just changed its name to Pane Panelle and you had to go to the bar to order sandwiches which never got any larger or less expensive, although I did really like what they did with chickpeas and eggplant. Unless the new place has some sort of affordable lunch or sandwich options (doubtful), I guess we’ll have to settle for the less refined but no less delicious Italian sandwiches from Saluggi’s or Saluggi’s Sandwich Shoppe up the street.