That’s a Wrap has been open in Mission Bay Plaza for a while now. We stopped in when they first opened but the music was so loud we left. That problem is long gone and we just had a nice lunch. It’s right in front of a Padrino’s between Office Max and Panera, an interesting location because the menu is fairly similar to Panera – mostly sandwiches and salads. That’s a Wrap cost us a few bucks more than our typical Panera outings, but we like both the food and ambience better. Panera feels a bit too corporate by comparison. As you enter there’s a specials board. It’s handwritten. We saw them writing it when we got there.
Inside there’s a large menu on the wall and you can custom order and watch it being made. Like Panera you can order and they will bring it out to you.
We each had a sandwich. The Italian combo had great quality meats and the soft mozzarella was a nice touch.
The meatball was also excellent. It was one of the daily specials and came with provolone.
Both had the same bread, which was thick with a light and airy texture inside. It’s a close call but we’d say it’s slightly better than at Panera. They also came with sides, in our case one with pasta salad and the other with fresh fruit. We still like Panera and will go to both places. But we may visit That’s a Wrap a bit more often.
We are approaching project completion and I wanted to email you and attach our Opening Dinner Menu and also our Sunday Brunch Menu offerings. FYI. If all goes well, we will be open the week of the 9th of February, in time for Valentine’s Day.
After receiving the message we stopped by and were invited in by John Iannotti, the General Manager. He has been on site for some time getting the final details ready for the opening. He also let us take some interior photos of the work in progress. Please note that we don’t claim to be professional photographers and we rely on a cell phone camera, so our pictures don’t do the place justice. But here we go: When you enter the restaurant there’s a small reception area at the front. There are two main areas, a main dining room and a second dining room with a bar. The picture below shows the area that will soon become the main dining room. They are in the process of installing a gorgeous carpet. Over that room hangs an attractive chandelier – this one really shows the limitations of our camera: The bar area and second dining room are shown here, with the furniture about to be put in place: We saw the plans and it looks like a very nice setup. Between the two larger rooms there’s a private dining room that will seat 6-8 people, and the restrooms. They have a tremendous attention to detail. We were also provided with advance copies of the menus for dinner and brunch. Prices are certainly not cheap, but they’re not as expensive as we feared they might be. Our favorite highlight is the 3-course brunch for $27: Dinner will also have a four-course prix fixe option with intermezzo, with prices for that ranging from $46 for a spicy Thai Basil chicken dish up to $73 for a combination of filet mignon and crab. A la carte, the entrees start at $21 at dinner. And there are a la carte options at lunch as well. We had to look up intermezzo. Sounds like intermission or “in the middle.” Apparently it’s a European style palate cleanser such as sorbet or a light beverage that is served between courses. Here’s the one we think might be the most interesting: a Scottish salmon soufflé. We should note that local food blogger Jeff Eats predicts that Bistro Gastronomie will not succeed in this location. The article has a lively set of comments filled with negativity. Jeff and his naysayers contend that the area demographics won’t support it. We tend to be optimists and disagree. There are a number of large and wealthy developments nearby, including Boca West, The Oaks, Woodfield, Stonebridge, St. Andrews, Long Lake Estates, Mizner Country Club, Saturnia Isles, The Bridges and more. Beyond that, there are plenty of middle class folks (like us) who occasionally drive into downtown Delray Beach or East Boca for a special dinner. This is a lot closer. And there’s plenty of parking, especially after Doris Market gets quiet in the evening and closes fairly early. You could easily spend more at The Melting Pot without the same quality food or experience. The unique menu and classy setting will even draw some people from East Boca. In our conversation Iannotti demonstrated a thorough familiarity with the community. We offered Jeff a bet but he declined. We understand the team includes co-owners Elaine Baker and Manuchehr Saman. Here’s our last picture of Bistro Gastronomie, until we actually eat there. Here’s the view from the exterior, on the side: Oh, and here’s the mailer they sent around to select communities. We didn’t get one in the mail. Did you?
We heard that Jamba Juice will be opening in Westwinds of Boca – the Home Depot and Publix plaza on the southeast corner of Glades and 441. We stopped by today and confirmed it. It’s going to be on the eastern end of the plaza next to Jimmy John’s, a few doors down from Dunkin’ Donuts. There are a couple of signs on the door. The signs appear designed to attract potential workers. Most important for anyone interested in working there, there will be an open house and hiring day on Saturday, January 11th from 10 am to 2 pm. We did a Facebook post a couple days ago that got some positive comments, so there may well be significant demand for a Jamba Juice in West Boca.
Le Macaron, in Boca Grove, has closed. A sign in the door indicates it will reopen as Tulipe Cafe, a French bakery with pastries. We aren’t sure exactly how it will be different but will report on it as soon as we know.
You’ve heard the horse with no name and the unnamed soldier. Well there’s this one shopping plaza we love in West Boca and it doesn’t seem to have a name. It’s on the northwest corner of Sandalfoot and 441. The image above is a panorama shot showing the whole plaza from the Cumberland Farms gas station south of them to Rental-Mart USA on the north end. This plaza is so different from typical Boca life. It’s not fancy. You don’t see Bentleys and Maseratis in the parking lot. The stores are definitely ethnic, especially Brazilian, Colombian, and even Israeli. Above is a closer look at the northernmost end of the plaza. On the far left of the picture, and in the middle of this building, you see the new Pita-n-Go, a Glatt Kosher restaurant we hope to visit soon for a full review. That location used to be Sagi’s Grill, which was also a Kosher restaurant. Moving to the right there’s a Benjamin Moore paint store, Santos Seguros insurance agency, a Metro PCS cell phone store, the Rental-Mart USA, a Spanish/Latino financial storefront, and an empty spot at the end that looks like it used to be office space. Here’s the front of Pita-n-Go: Next up, below, is the southern end of the same building. You can see a cleaner, a jewelry store that advertises Cash for Gold, the China Spring II restaurant, Sergio’s Americas Bakery (Colombian restaurant), a barber, a tattoo parlor, and a Papa John’s pizza. In the south building there’s (from left again) A B Tile & Marble, a Brazilian Jewelry store, Bijou Bijou (a small boutique), Casa do Pao (a Brazilian bakery), a check cashing place, a Brazilian “supermarket”, a Dunkin Donuts, and the Picanha Brazil steakhouse buffet. The two “bakeries” are also restaurants with reasonably priced meals and pretty good food. English might not be the first language in the Latin stores, but they speak well enough for English-only customers to get by. While the store workers could always improve their English by seeking language support from somewhere like AJ’s website, they speak good enough English for a comfortable shopping experience. The “supermarket” has an interesting variety of items you will not find in Publix or Walmart. As for names, we did find one reference to the north building as West Boca North Center and another reference to the two buildings as Hillsboro I & II, but neither of those seems solid. The two buildings are owned by Hillsboro Office Building LLC, along with other owners. The addresses per the county appraiser are 22749 and 22797 South State Road 7. We might suggest Northwest Sandalfoot Plaza, but we doubt the owners are interested in our opinion. We should note also that the gas station is making good progress, but it’s not open yet.
