Let us show you our puccia

Lecce is Puglia’s glamour girl – all golden stone and Rococo glitz melded with urbane residents and upscale tourists flocking its medieval streets.

St. Oronzo beholds it all from atop a column in the bustling public square named for him, although the man who once smashed idols might frown upon the temples to commerce that ring the piazza.

The town is famed for hosting Basilica di Santa Croce, one of the most ornate churches in Italy, covered stem to stern in goblins, sea creatures, bare-breasted women, serpents, vegetables and just to gild the lily, an enormous rose window set in even more elaborate carving. In Lecce, more is always more.

That said, should you want a fast and simple lunch, (the better to enjoy an expansive dinner), as we did, Lecce can accommodate that, too. La Prelibatezza (the delicacy) appears at first glance to be a humble café on Lecce’s main pedestrian street. But your first bite of Giuseppe and Christina Giannone’s puccia – looks like pita, tastes like focaccia – and you realize their shop deserves its name.

The vegetarian version was stuffed with innumerable vegetables, many marinated, such as peppers, beets, mushrooms and zucchini and topped with fresh tomatoes, spicy pepperoncini and salty anchovies. The puccia itself was slathered with a local soft cheese similar to gorgonzola, which added a mellow richness to the sandwich once it was put under the press.

The meat-eaters delight included ham and prosciutto, mozzarella and vegetables of your choosing, also heated in the traditional panini maker. While not as noteworthy as the vegetarian puccia, the warmed traditional Pugliese bread added a unique touch to a ham and cheese sandwich. The Giannone’s offered beer on tap and in bottles, plus water and sodas and the odd bag of potato chips at the register.

But most special was the warm welcome they gave us, asking where we were from, happily explaining the ingredients and proudly acknowledging their family’s history in the puccia business. That and a tasty sandwich – you can’t ask for more from a simple lunch.