Lawry’s Carvery makes the good its slogan

Jennifer K Mahal

With its stellar sandwiches and fresh salads, Lawry’s Carvery in

South Coast Plaza really is “a cut above,” as its slogan claims.

On a busy New Year’s Eve afternoon, members of the Daily Pilot

newsroom ordered take-out to get them through the last day of the

year. We didn’t try the soups or the Carvery Platter Meals, but after

the reactions the rest of the food got, I’d venture that they’re

probably worth tasting.

June Casagrande, the Pilot’s busy Newport Beach reporter, had a

good reaction to her Carvery Prime Rib Original ($8.99), a prime rib

sandwich with creamy horseradish and au jus, served with a side of

homemade potato chips.

“Why wasn’t I informed that you can put prime rib on bread? Why

have I been schlepping around with roast beef all these years?”

Casagrande asked after tasting her sandwich. “I know some people say

that prime rib is too fatty. Good for them. I say that’s why it makes

such a good sandwich.”

Casagrande, who enjoyed the horseradish sauce, said she plans to

say “bye, bye” to roast beef.

City Editor James Meier’s reaction to the Prime Rib Bleu ($8.99),

which had tomato, arugula and blue cheese spread, was not as extreme.

“I’m not a tomato fan -- nor a fan of many vegetables -- but both

the tomato and arugula help out the Prime Rib Bleu sandwich,” Meier

said. “I am a huge fan of blue cheese, though, and this definitely

makes the sandwich. There’s some great slices of beef, but the blue

cheese puts it over the top.”

Meier added that the potato chips were “an interesting touch,” but

he would have preferred steak fries. Overall, the sandwich is “worth

a whirl,” he said.

Lolita Harper, the Pilot’s Costa Mesa reporter, was stuffed and

smiling after partaking of her Maple Glazed Rotisserie Pork sandwich

($8.99). Bacon and apple chutney complement the pork, which is served

with roasted onion and arugula on a rosemary round.

“The pork was tender, the onions were perfectly grilled, and the

slight hint of rosemary in the roll gave it a perfect bittersweet

seasoning,” Harper said. “And unlike many places that need to hide

the flavor of the meat with condiments, the seasoned mayonnaise was

moderately spread, adding the perfect touch of flavor and texture.”

She deemed the sandwich “absolutely delicious.”

Deepa Bharath, our resident vegetarian and Public Safety reporter,

liked the Grilled Portobello Salad ($8.99). “The rich, meaty texture

of the mushrooms was placed on a bed of crisp greens with a light

sprinkle of goat cheese topped with crispy onions,” Bharath said.

“The roasted red peppers enhanced its visual appeal and the balsamic

vinaigrette went very well with the rest of the salad.”

She also tried the Cool Asparagus with Lemon Aioli ($2.99), which

earned a rating of “excellent.”

“The stalks were done just right and chilled to perfection,”

Bharath said.

I had the West Coast Special salad ($7.99), a good choice for

someone who wants a lighter meal. Romaine lettuce is tossed with

shaved Parmesan, pieces of bacon, tomato, garlic croutons and, in a

surprise twist, mint. The mint makes the salad, which otherwise would

have been boring. Lawry’s Westside salad dressing is served on the

side, a nice touch for those who don’t like their dressing

pre-poured.

On the sweeter side, Lawry’s Vanilla Bean Creme Brulee is worth

every penny of the $2.99 it costs. A tiny tin of custard-y delight is

covered with a crisp covering of browned sugar. It’s a good

pick-me-up after a day spent hard at work ... shopping.

The service at Lawry’s take-out counter is amazingly fast. It took

less than 15 minutes for the staff to have our order together.

Imagine how fast it would have been if we’d faxed our order in.

Lawry’s Carvery, on Level Two near Macy’s Men’s Store, is a good

place to go to get a quick meal in the hectic-ness of South Coast

Plaza.

* JENNIFER K MAHAL is features editor of the Daily Pilot. STEPHEN

SANTACROCE’s dining reviews appear every other Thursday. He is on

vacation.