Sandwich appears on the menu as $16.95. Fine print at the bottom of the menu says they’ll add a 15% “service fee” instead of just honestly pricing their menu.
The service fee is actually charged as 18%, taking it from dishonesty to straight up illegal.
What was even more criminal is the terrible example of an Italian beef sandwich. Awful.
Food: 1
CJ Liu
Ordered a to-go sandwich (The Wrigley) from Torino Panino at the Italy Festival in San Jose.
The menu said $18.95, but I was charged $24.46. When I asked, the cashier said they AUTOMATICALLY added an 18% gratuity — no notice, no heads-up, nothing.
There was ZERO MENTION of this anywhere — not on the menu, not at the booth, and no one said a word before charging it. And this was a solo to-go order, not dine-in or a big group.
I always tip at least 18% when I’m actually being served — that’s just common courtesy. But FORCING an automatic gratuity on a TAKEOUT ORDER without telling the customer is shady and unacceptable.
Really disappointing experience. BE CAREFUL if you ever order from them.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 2
Service: 1
George DeShong
(Hidden fees) Solid sandwich, but don't add an 18% automatic surcharge for a to-go order, pre-tax.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 3
Andrew Walker
Holy mercy... This place popped up twice today, once when my wife was browsing TikTok (😒) but again in The Downtowner newsletter I receive, so we went for a late lunch. We didn't realize that it was a shared space, so we also got to try a slice of pizza and some fries, both of which came out quickly and very fresh, and I had an Old Fashioned, just because. By the time we finished the pizza and the fries, we didn't even get a chance to try the sandwich, so we took it to-go, a bit disappointed that we didn't try it hot and fresh.
Well. I just tried a bite a bit ago, and even cold and a bit soggy, it. Was. Incredible. My only real reference to an Italian beef sandwich is the few times I've tried Portillo's in the Midwest, and this was head and shoulders above their offerings. My bite turned into me finishing half of the sandwich without even realizing it. Their herb/spice blend is amazing, and I am now counting down the days until we have an excuse to get back out to Little Italy--we don't live far, so hopefully it won't be too long!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Dennis Rahe
Excellent Chicago Italian Beef. Very authentic and super huge! Garlicand peppers were perfect!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Brooke Gentry-Strohm
The ambiance, food, and service are impeccable! Such a fun dining experience and everything was delicious 😋
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
jasen west
One of my favorite sandwiches is an Italian beef sandwich. When I saw the sign stating that they made those there, I was really excited to try it.
When I walked into that part of the restaurant or store, pour a combination of both. It was kind of confusing, but there was nobody behind the counter, so I had to walk through the store part to the other restaurant pizza spot in order to order my sandwich.
It seemed like the store was mostly a wine spot and yeah, they offer some other italian staples as far as food goes in the restaurant.
I was kind of disappointed in the sandwich. I asked them to make it wet, and they didn't dip the bread, they just gave me a dry sandwich with a little side of au. Ju Kind of reminding me of a French dip. Don't get me wrong. I like french dip sandwiches, but I was there to have an italian beef and I guess the experience was just different than what I was expecting.
While the herb juice that they gave me for the sandwich was good, there was not nearly enough of it. And the rest of the sandwich was just kind of dry. It definitely did not remind me of a chicago italian beef.
It'll probably be a while before I try that again.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 4
David Pitton
Terrible sandwich, The Godfather. Surly service. Won't go there again
G Lee
Woah! I’ve lived in San Jose a long time. How did I not know about Torino Panino? I’d never even heard of, let alone eaten an Italian beef sandwich before! But I really enjoyed it!
There were so many choices and I had zero context so I tried the Chicago Way because it was smack dab in the middle of the menu sign. I like French dip so I got it wet; figured it was similar. Delicious sandwich. Really it the spot.
We also purchased sardines from their little pantry of canned and jarred goodies. We enjoyed those later at home.
I love the little courtyard seating area in the back. They had a tv playing one of the football games (it was Sunday). Just a really nice atmosphere. Looking forward to enjoying it all again.
I had the Chicago way, which was beefy, moist, and not overpowered by the Giardineira. Extra side of the sauce to moisten it up when I got home. Only thing that I get miffed about is an automatic “service charge” of 18%. Just include it in the price guys.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Italian Beef the Chicago Way
Scott Snow
Ordered pickup at lunch. As others have mentioned, the price is quite high for a sandwich. However you do get quite a bit of food. I got the Chicken Cacciatore sandwich, "make it hot", with provolone.For lunch, I ate half. The provolone was completely unmelted, chicken was pretty average (drier than I'd hoped for), and it was chicken cutlets, which was a bit disappointing since the website looked liked braised/pulled chicken. "Make it hot" is a joke, there's no heat to be found whatsoever. Not even sriracha level of heat. Not bad, but I didn't find the flavors to really come through all that well.Reheated the other half for dinner. Convection ~325f, ~10 mins wrapped, then opened the sandwich and cooked another ~10 mins unwrapped. Then added some freshly grated parmiggiano along with some hot sauce from a Mediterranean restaurant. The extra salt from the parmiggiano really got the flavors of the base sandwich to shine through, and the hot sauce actually added some heat. Far superior to what I had at lunch.Truffle chips were good. Bread was also quite good.Lunch was like a 6/10, dinner was 8.5/10. The base sandwich is definitely there. But just needs a bit more to tip it past average.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Jason
I always say that the bread is what separates a good sandwich from a great sandwich. Torino Panino understands this all too well. I was walking by and noticed this place that I hadn't seen before. decided I would give it try. man, was I lucky to discover this place. I ordered up the "true romance" (some people say that I resemble Christian Slater from the movie - figured that was right move for this sandwhich)
the sausage and them sweet peppers, perfectly grilled onions all tucked into that incredible Italian roll. forget about it! great food, and service was on point. the surroundings were clean and well kept. prices were fair and reasonable for the portion size. you can tell that the owners really care about this place. from the menu to the arrangement of the patio area - lots of room to spread out and get your eat on.
I'll be back downtown in a couple of weeks, and this is my new spot. I'm eyeballing the 'like mike' meatball sub for my next visit. go sharks!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: True Romance
Jason Scott
I always say that the bread is what separates a good sandwich from a great sandwich. Torino Panino understands this all too well. I was walking by and noticed this place that I hadn't seen before. decided I would give it try. man, was I lucky to discover this place. I ordered up the "true romance" (some people say that I resemble Christian Slater from the movie - figured that was right move for this sandwhich)the sausage and them sweet peppers, perfectly grilled onions all tucked into that incredible Italian roll. forget about it! great food, and service was on point. the surroundings were clean and well kept. prices were fair and reasonable for the portion size. you can tell that the owners really care about this place. from the menu to the arrangement of the patio area - lots of room to spread out and get your eat on.I'll be back downtown in a couple of weeks, and this is my new spot. I'm eyeballing the 'like mike' meatball sub for my next visit. go sharks!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: True Romance
Michael Achach
The new sandwich shop and italian goods retail here is amazing. I've tried a few different sandwiches as well as the items from the full menu. Everything is delicious. Service is great.
Sandwich appears on the menu as $16.95. Fine print at the bottom of the menu says they’ll add a 15% “service fee” instead of just honestly pricing their menu.
The service fee is actually charged as 18%, taking it from dishonesty to straight up illegal.
What was even more criminal is the terrible example of an Italian beef sandwich. Awful.
Food: 1
Ordered a to-go sandwich (The Wrigley) from Torino Panino at the Italy Festival in San Jose.
The menu said $18.95, but I was charged $24.46. When I asked, the cashier said they AUTOMATICALLY added an 18% gratuity — no notice, no heads-up, nothing.
There was ZERO MENTION of this anywhere — not on the menu, not at the booth, and no one said a word before charging it. And this was a solo to-go order, not dine-in or a big group.
I always tip at least 18% when I’m actually being served — that’s just common courtesy. But FORCING an automatic gratuity on a TAKEOUT ORDER without telling the customer is shady and unacceptable.
Really disappointing experience. BE CAREFUL if you ever order from them.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 2
Service: 1
(Hidden fees) Solid sandwich, but don't add an 18% automatic surcharge for a to-go order, pre-tax.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 3
Holy mercy... This place popped up twice today, once when my wife was browsing TikTok (😒) but again in The Downtowner newsletter I receive, so we went for a late lunch. We didn't realize that it was a shared space, so we also got to try a slice of pizza and some fries, both of which came out quickly and very fresh, and I had an Old Fashioned, just because. By the time we finished the pizza and the fries, we didn't even get a chance to try the sandwich, so we took it to-go, a bit disappointed that we didn't try it hot and fresh.
Well. I just tried a bite a bit ago, and even cold and a bit soggy, it. Was. Incredible. My only real reference to an Italian beef sandwich is the few times I've tried Portillo's in the Midwest, and this was head and shoulders above their offerings. My bite turned into me finishing half of the sandwich without even realizing it. Their herb/spice blend is amazing, and I am now counting down the days until we have an excuse to get back out to Little Italy--we don't live far, so hopefully it won't be too long!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Excellent Chicago Italian Beef. Very authentic and super huge! Garlicand peppers were perfect!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
The ambiance, food, and service are impeccable! Such a fun dining experience and everything was delicious 😋
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
One of my favorite sandwiches is an Italian beef sandwich. When I saw the sign stating that they made those there, I was really excited to try it.
When I walked into that part of the restaurant or store, pour a combination of both. It was kind of confusing, but there was nobody behind the counter, so I had to walk through the store part to the other restaurant pizza spot in order to order my sandwich.
It seemed like the store was mostly a wine spot and yeah, they offer some other italian staples as far as food goes in the restaurant.
I was kind of disappointed in the sandwich. I asked them to make it wet, and they didn't dip the bread, they just gave me a dry sandwich with a little side of au. Ju
Kind of reminding me of a French dip. Don't get me wrong. I like french dip sandwiches, but I was there to have an italian beef and I guess the experience was just different than what I was expecting.
While the herb juice that they gave me for the sandwich was good, there was not nearly enough of it. And the rest of the sandwich was just kind of dry. It definitely did not remind me of a chicago italian beef.
It'll probably be a while before I try that again.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 4
Terrible sandwich, The Godfather. Surly service. Won't go there again
Woah! I’ve lived in San Jose a long time. How did I not know about Torino Panino? I’d never even heard of, let alone eaten an Italian beef sandwich before! But I really enjoyed it!
There were so many choices and I had zero context so I tried the Chicago Way because it was smack dab in the middle of the menu sign. I like French dip so I got it wet; figured it was similar. Delicious sandwich. Really it the spot.
We also purchased sardines from their little pantry of canned and jarred goodies. We enjoyed those later at home.
I love the little courtyard seating area in the back. They had a tv playing one of the football games (it was Sunday). Just a really nice atmosphere. Looking forward to enjoying it all again.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Cool place with really good food.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
I had the Chicago way, which was beefy, moist, and not overpowered by the Giardineira. Extra side of the sauce to moisten it up when I got home. Only thing that I get miffed about is an automatic “service charge” of 18%. Just include it in the price guys.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Italian Beef the Chicago Way
Ordered pickup at lunch. As others have mentioned, the price is quite high for a sandwich. However you do get quite a bit of food. I got the Chicken Cacciatore sandwich, "make it hot", with provolone.For lunch, I ate half. The provolone was completely unmelted, chicken was pretty average (drier than I'd hoped for), and it was chicken cutlets, which was a bit disappointing since the website looked liked braised/pulled chicken. "Make it hot" is a joke, there's no heat to be found whatsoever. Not even sriracha level of heat. Not bad, but I didn't find the flavors to really come through all that well.Reheated the other half for dinner. Convection ~325f, ~10 mins wrapped, then opened the sandwich and cooked another ~10 mins unwrapped. Then added some freshly grated parmiggiano along with some hot sauce from a Mediterranean restaurant. The extra salt from the parmiggiano really got the flavors of the base sandwich to shine through, and the hot sauce actually added some heat. Far superior to what I had at lunch.Truffle chips were good. Bread was also quite good.Lunch was like a 6/10, dinner was 8.5/10. The base sandwich is definitely there. But just needs a bit more to tip it past average.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
I always say that the bread is what separates a good sandwich from a great sandwich. Torino Panino understands this all too well. I was walking by and noticed this place that I hadn't seen before. decided I would give it try. man, was I lucky to discover this place. I ordered up the "true romance" (some people say that I resemble Christian Slater from the movie - figured that was right move for this sandwhich)
the sausage and them sweet peppers, perfectly grilled onions all tucked into that incredible Italian roll. forget about it! great food, and service was on point. the surroundings were clean and well kept. prices were fair and reasonable for the portion size. you can tell that the owners really care about this place. from the menu to the arrangement of the patio area - lots of room to spread out and get your eat on.
I'll be back downtown in a couple of weeks, and this is my new spot. I'm eyeballing the 'like mike' meatball sub for my next visit. go sharks!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: True Romance
I always say that the bread is what separates a good sandwich from a great sandwich. Torino Panino understands this all too well. I was walking by and noticed this place that I hadn't seen before. decided I would give it try. man, was I lucky to discover this place. I ordered up the "true romance" (some people say that I resemble Christian Slater from the movie - figured that was right move for this sandwhich)the sausage and them sweet peppers, perfectly grilled onions all tucked into that incredible Italian roll. forget about it! great food, and service was on point. the surroundings were clean and well kept. prices were fair and reasonable for the portion size. you can tell that the owners really care about this place. from the menu to the arrangement of the patio area - lots of room to spread out and get your eat on.I'll be back downtown in a couple of weeks, and this is my new spot. I'm eyeballing the 'like mike' meatball sub for my next visit. go sharks!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: True Romance
The new sandwich shop and italian goods retail here is amazing. I've tried a few different sandwiches as well as the items from the full menu. Everything is delicious. Service is great.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Italian Beef the Chicago Way
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