‘A panino so distractingly good that I don’t notice the oil streaming onto my jumper’

One mouthful into my sandwich at Grazia D’Asporto, the new takeaway panini and pizza bar by – and next door to – Glen Iris Italian diner Grazia, it’s obvious this bread is built different. It’s so distractingly good that I don’t notice the oil streaming from my panino onto my jumper.

A sandwich shop baking its own bread isn’t unusual. And many of the city’s best sangers come from bakeries where the vessel is the business’ literal bread and butter.

But this house-baked schiacciata is an expertly executed flatbread, thinner and crispier than the focaccia enveloping every second Italian-style deli sandwich in Melbourne right now.

“What I wanted to get right most of all was the bread,” says executive chef Joe Di Cintio.

Already, the response has been “overwhelmingly beyond anything we could imagine”.

The schiacciata is a star in and of itself. But its role in the prosciutto panino – alongside a handful of inspired cheffy touches – has helped it catch the attention of Sandwich Watch, a column dedicated to the Melbourne sangers you need to know about.

Why is this schiacciata such a catch?

Despite tons of trial and error, the Grazia team couldn’t quite nail the quintessentially Tuscan flatbread on their own, so they recruited Italian “master baker” Emiliano Gandolfi to come to Melbourne for a fortnight to share his secrets. It was a costly investment, but it paid off.

Key to the dough’s success is 100 per cent hydration (equal parts flour and water), which makes it super sticky – and tricky – to work with, as it’s baked continually throughout the day in a Rome-imported Castelli pizza oven. The final product is slim but aerated, crunchy-crusted and satisfyingly chewy. A 72-hour ferment ensures it’s less heavy and easier to digest than focaccia.

The prosciutto panino’s flagship fillings are solid

Sliced-to-order San Daniele prosciutto is so paper-thin it melts in your mouth, and there’s no stringiness. Pucks of Floridia Cheese fior di latte are plump and bouncy. Rocket offers peppery freshness. And a herby kick comes from house-made basil pesto.

But the cheffy flourishes are stellar

Dryness can demote a prosciutto panino from primo to hard no. But it’s avoided by juicy flavour bombs hidden throughout. Halved red grapes are sweet and crisp. Tiny dried figs almost begin rehydrating in the dressing of oil and vincotto, a tangy condiment like balsamic vinegar, but made with grapes. And semi-dried tomatoes burst with a much more intense flavour than their fresh (but currently out-of-season) counterparts.

None is used too heavy-handedly, keeping things interesting but harmonious. “With quite a few ingredients, we’ve got to be careful of any overpowering,” says Di Cintio.

How do I get one?

The prosciutto panino ($18) is available at Grazia D’Asporto, 157 Burke Road, Glen Iris, daily.

What else is available?

By day, you can get Roman-style pizza al taglio (by the slice); focaccia di Recco, Ligurian-style focaccia filled with stracchino cheese; sides like carbonara suppli, similar to arancini; and desserts baked in-house. By night, there are whole pizzas to takeaway.

This is the latest instalment of Sandwich Watch, a column dedicated to the Melbourne sandwiches you need to know about.

Good Food reviews are booked anonymously and paid independently. A restaurant can’t pay for a review or inclusion in the Good Food Guide.