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La Tua Piadina, Bologna, Italy, tasted on March 22, 2004 — In a tiny stuffed space, with sparse decoration (mostly of cans of Campbell's soup), no smoking, and an "L" shaped marble bar crowded with locals, and inundated with the smell of warm flatbread is La Tua Piadina. The Piadina is yet another specialty of the region of Emilia Romagna, a region that's already rich with culinary specialties. The piadina is a grilled flatbread wrapped around various meats, cheeses, and vegetables. It's simple. It's fresh. And it's delightful.

Nothing fancy, but variety is the spice of life at La Tua Piadina. Four different choices of bread and twenty different things to put inside. Any combination you want is yours. The veggie piadina was delicious. The grilled flavor permeated throughout the sandwich, and the olive oil was excellent throughout. On some of the other sandwiches we got the spicy. And it wasn't just heat, but more of a subtle building effect that crept up on you and then got very complex. We also tried the head cheese. Despite the appearance (or maybe because of it) it was surprisingly delicious. It had a deep meaty flavor, almost like a roast beef ham.

La Tua Piadina is just the kind of place you'd love to have around the corner from where you work. Quick, fresh, delicious sandwiches. Warm freshly made bread, filled with delicious meat, cheese, and veggies. Such a simple formula, I'm not sure why more people can't figure this out. If you want this particular combination, you'll have to go to Bologna.