Dining Review -- Jennifer K Mahal

When I started at the Daily Pilot more than four years ago, I worked

the night shift as a page designer. Because we worked so late, there was

always someone ordering dinner out, the way 9-to-5’ers order lunch. My

favorite place to go for takeout was The Culinary Wrap, 250 E. 17th St.

in Costa Mesa.

It had been a few years since I’d been there, but when faced with

writing a dining review, I decided that treating the office to lunch --

with the caveat that they tell me how they liked the food -- was a tasty

idea sure to get me more points toward being the office goody two shoes.

From the smiles on the faces of reporters, photographers and editors, I’d

say my plan worked.

The Culinary Wrap is located in a smallish space next door to a pet

store in Hillgren Square. Though it has a nice patio and a funny cartoon

painting in its main dining area, it is the kind of place where you order

food to go, rather than sit and eat.

The menu is inexpensive, healthy and pretty diverse. There are wraps

of all kinds, steaming bowls filled with yummy stuff and a good mix of

salads.

The words repeated over and over again from journalist to journalist

were “fresh” and “tender.” Whether it was a Southwestern salmon bowl or a

spicy chicken wrap, those words cropped up in almost everyone’s review --

including mine.

Editor in Chief Tony Dodero gave the All-American bowl ($5.75) a

thumbs up, even though the kitchen substituted chicken for the normal

steak.

“An American bowl is not quite as red-blooded without steak,” he said,

“but the chicken actually was pretty good. Solid chunks of breast meat

cooked nicely.

“The whole thing tastes just like I remember it,” Dodero said. “You

get the whole smorgasbord of food groups -- meat, potatoes, broccoli and

cheese -- with a healthy sprinkling of red onions for taste. Speaking of

taste, the mashed potatoes have just the right amount of garlic, the

broccoli is lightly steamed and crispy fresh, and the cheese is a hearty

cheddar. Mmmmm.”

Managing Editor S.J. Cahn had similar happy things to say about the

Greek wrap ($5.50), roasted red peppers and eggplant, tomatoes, red

onion, cucumbers, lettuce and low-fat feta cheese tossed in a balsamic

vinaigrette.

“The Greek wrap packs a rich taste for anyone wanting a meatless

choice,” he said. “The vegetables are grilled up and served in a

full-flavored sauce that leaves a little spicy aftertaste but doesn’t

mask the veggies (the red pepper remains particularly sweet and vibrant).

It also balances nicely with the sharpness of the feta cheese.

“While the Greek wrap isn’t particularly Greek in taste, aside from

the feta, it is heavy and satisfying, which often isn’t the case with

vegetable sandwiches that are all cucumbers and tomatoes,” Cahn said. “A

good pick for even nonvegetarians, as a result.”

City Editor James Meier had the Baja wrap ($5.25), a flat roll wrapped

around chicken, red beans, onions, cilantro, salsa and melted jack and

cheddar cheeses.

“The Baja wrap was filling, had great chunks of white meat chicken,

the right amount of spices and a nice sauce to provide it a great

taste,,” Meier said. “But don’t expect to eat it in the car because it

does leave a trail of peppers, tomatoes, beans and sauce behind. However,

it’s definitely worth the purchase if you have a few extra minutes to

spend eating.”

His was a common, if minor, complaint. Reporter Lolita Harper loved

the taste of her spicy chicken wrap ($5.75) -- roast chicken, buffalo

sauce, lettuce, tomatoes and red onions, covered in ranch sauce -- but

said it was “very messy” and definitely not “date food.”

It “was delicious with a tantalizing blend of tangy buffalo sauce and

zesty ranch dressing, wrapped in fresh flat bread,” Harper said. “The

chicken was tender and plentiful.”

The club wrap ($5.75), filled with chicken, bacon, lettuce, tomatoes,

avocado, alfalfa, sprouts and Swiss cheese tossed with Dijon, found favor

with Kent Treptow of the photo department. He called it “glorious” and

“zesty,” before admitting it could have been twice as big. To be fair, it

was the size of a large burrito.

Photographer Greg Fry said the BBQ chicken wrap ($5.75) had an

“interesting” blend of ingredients, which included corn, spinach, red

beans and rice.

“It had a nice, sweet barbecue sauce,” Fry said.

The Southwestern salmon bowl ($6.25) -- a bowl of blackened salmon,

red peppers, black beans, corn, slaw, onions and chipotle chiles, served

with salsa over rice -- was deemed “tasty” by Photographer Don Leach.

“It had a lot of good vegetables,” he said. “Very Southwest style. The

salmon was good, not overdone.”

The veggie wrap ($5.25) did not fare as well with Reporter June

Casagrande, who said it was “too runny” and “missing something.” While

she liked the flat bread and vegetables, she could not taste the cheeses

that were supposed to be in the wrap -- smoked Gouda and Swiss.

“It was just a little too light,” she said.

I had the Thai chicken salad ($4.75 half, $7 whole), a nice blend of

mixed lettuce, carrots, cucumbers and sprouts topped with chicken and a

slightly spicy peanut vinaigrette. A half salad was more than enough for

lunch. Say it with me, the chicken was “tender.” But a lighter hand with

the sweet dressing would have been nice.

Personally, I recommend the Cubano bowl ($5.25), chicken and grilled

bananas (yes, you read that right) over black beans and rice with salsa

on top. I lived in Key West, Fla., for three years, and the Cubano bowl

is as close as I have been able to get to true Cuban food since moving

back to California.

If you want a good, fast, cheap place to get a meal that satisfies --

even if it’s a little messy -- The Culinary Wrap is the place to go. It’s

nice to know that some things really do remain the same.

* JENNIFER K MAHAL is features editor of the Daily Pilot. She can be

reached at jennifer.mahal@latimes. com. Dining reviewer Kathy Mader is on

vacation. Her column normally appears every other Thursday.

FYI

* What: The Culinary Wrap

* Where: 250 E. 17th St., Costa Mesa

* Hours: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Saturday, closed Sundays. Hours subject to change in the summer.

* Cost: Inexpensive

* Call: (949) 548-4403