Panini grills look like a big waste of money to me. Why not just use a
griddle or skillet with a weight on top. A plate will work. If you
want grid marks use a ridged skillet. I'm not sure what to think about
panini. The one commercial panino(?) I've had (on trendoid Robson St.
in Vancouver) was a stingy amount of filling between two cracker-like
slabs. Didn't come close to competing with Cuban sandwiches or
Biloxi-style po'boys. Anyway, give the low-tech method a try and see
how it works out.
D.M.