Good morning! I hope the world is being good to you and you’re being good to it.

Grab your coffee or beverage of choice and share a thought with me.

What is your philosophy on wrap construction?

Do you like the wrap’s contents to remain flush against the wrap as it folds, pinwheeling into a secure structure? (Option 1)

Or, do you like the wrap to simply be a container, with the wrap fully on the outside and the contents stuffed inside with the freedom to go where they may? (Option 2)

You know, prior to last week, I don’t think I would’ve given the question any thought, and you’re probably thinking you don’t want to give it any thought now. My wife and I went for lunch at a local spot that I wouldn’t say we frequent, but given there are few options in our town, we know the menu and what to expect. Said restaurant is under new ownership, which naturally will bring changes. Aside from the place’s name change, the most noticeable for us was the wrap construction.

We are creatures of habit, typically both ordering the club wrap. I strayed this time, but my wife did not. When her wrap arrived and she took her first bite, lo, the wrap had changed from the expected “Option 1” to the chaotic “Option 2”. I suspect Option 2 is more the standard among wraps, but again, this is not something I ever gave additional thought to. In that moment, however, I realized how much I appreciated Option 1 and will miss its even distribution of wrap, sauce, and contents in each bite.

Upon further contemplation, this change is partially the result of, what I guess the new ownership would call, “better ingredients”. Rather than using slices/cold cuts of turkey or chicken or ham, they are now using chunks. While better ingredients are in play, they also tend to be uncontrollable, shifting around all nimbly bimbly. The first bite may be okay, but with the second bite, wrap integrity is compromised and you may begin losing a piece of meat here and some shreds of lettuce there. Each bite exacerbates this until you’re stuck asking for a fork to handle the pile of contents on your plate and the dilapidated wrap that you brush to the side. Additionally, if the ingredients are not properly tossed as a mixture prior to going into the wrap, the sauce-to-ingredient coating ratio will be insufficient, leaving one bite with a bounty of flavor while the next could be barren.

You see, my eyes are open now and I didn’t even know they needed opening. To me, Option 1 is the far superior way to construct a wrap but probably considered a rarity in the dining world. For anyone who’s found themselves eating too many pinwheels (aka “Midwest sushi”), this should’ve been obvious.

Where do you stand? Are you an Option 1, Option 2, or “wraps are the worst” person?