Mary Jo Newhouse, editor

If there is one absolute truth in the practice of law, it is that good lunches make lunch meetings less painful. A dragging lunch meeting with co-workers or with that client who demands from you more than your first-born child, is almost always fixed by good food. We salute those who provide us nutritional support to make it through our day. The boxed lunch in the office setting is the unsung hero of a grueling day.

That said, depending on the number of in-house lunch meetings the average attorney attends, the selection for eating-in tends to get a little blasé. The inspiration for this column comes from one of our firm’s partners, who understands the value of the food brought to our offices for such meetings and the companies that bring it, but has become tired of the average fare.

“If I have to see another wrap, I am going to throw it out the window,” she began. “This is a big feat since our windows do not open.”

While not everyone feels such fury toward lunch wraps, we all agree that every now and then it’s a good idea to think outside the box when ordering food for lunch meetings. With the help of our firm’s guru for lunch ordering (our receptionist), we found some unusual boxed lunches to try. Some were a success, others less so.

There are not enough glowing compliments to provide to Metropolitan Market Catering (100 Mercer St.; 206-343-8646) for the caliber of its Ultimate Boxed Lunches selection. With options like “Prosciutto di Parma” with provolone, spinach and butter on a baguette, and the “Salumi Salami,” served on a fresh baguette with smoked provolone, “Mama’s Lil Peppers” and arugula, these boxed lunches are heavenly.

Each box comes with a bag of veggie chips, seasonal fruit, a “Big Bad Brownie” and bottled water. While the description “seasonal fruit” often suggests some grapes in a baggie, the seasonal fruit we received was a scrumptious and perfectly ripe nectarine.

The only complaint came from a review of “El Cubano” sandwich, advertised to be made with traditional Cuban sandwich ingredients — pork loin, ham, mustard, Swiss cheese and pickles. Our reviewer describes this sandwich as an attempt at the popular Cuban sandwich known as a medianoche. “Nice try,” a Cuban associate said, “but we’re far from the Caribbean.” While the sandwich was fresh, the one delivered was missing a key ingredient: the ham. Price: $12.95.

There are things we enjoy about Mama’s Brown Bag (770 N. 34th St.; 206-633-2247). The presentation is basic — brown paper bags in which items are appropriately packaged. The items are quite large: water, small apple, cookie, massive sandwich, bag of chips, piece of peppermint candy and a Hershey’s Kiss.

The condiments come with a quotation, which can sometimes be downright depressing (“The deeper my crisis, the clearer my choices”). The options are expansive. For instance, Mama’s offers meatloaf sandwiches and teriyaki chicken on a roll. There also are 14 low-carbohydrate selections; unfortunately, these selections “really felt like a ‘diet’ lunch,” according to one reviewer.

Another partner felt a brief flutter of anticipation when she reached for a bag marked “meatloaf” — the white bread, a perfect choice for a meatloaf sandwich, was soft and fresh. The lettuce was crisp. The thick slab of meatloaf had an undercurrent of spicy zing, but the sophisticated texture was closer to pâté than it was to the rustic meatloaf she had expected. Price: $11.95.

Fast Rabbits (206-906-9517), a locally owned, corporate catering company servicing the greater Seattle, Bellevue and surrounding areas, has some quirky options, but mainly nails its side dishes. As quirky goes, try the dry-spiced roasted beef, cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, caramelized onion and mayo on a Midwest pretzel roll. Our reviewer found it an interesting meal that exceeded expectations.

Generally the boxed lunches are weighty: picture a box containing sandwich, pasta salad side, Tim’s potato chips, chocolate chip cookie, bottled water, Puntini mint and the usual packaged utensils (napkin; salt and pepper packets). One reviewer tried the portabella mushroom sandwich: a sautéed portabella mushroom, onion (white, not red as in the description) and sun-dried tomatoes were satisfying, with the slightly sweet, cream cheese spread, spinach leaves and roll. While a filling vegetarian option, the carb count for the meal seemed high. A runner’s boxed lunch?

A reviewer trying the citrus garlic chicken wrap found it somewhat lacking in flavor. But, what flavor was missing in the wrap was made up in the delicious pasta salad. It had a red seasoning sauce, which contained sun-dried tomatoes and cheese. The pasta salad side dish alone made this wrap worth ordering again.

Another reviewer found the heavy sauce at the bottom of his smoked chicken “Barn Burner” to create a bit of a soggy mess that would be problematic at a lunch meeting, but loved the cookie, which he described as a “chocolate oatmeal mash-up of goodness.” Price: $12.25.

Stepping outside the boxed lunch, no catering column would be complete without recognizing the support provided by Specialty’s Café & Bakery (various locations). We see Specialty’s employees pushing their yellow carts through elevators and down the street. They keep our legal community well fed and some of the comfort-food options keep us from having “low-blood sugar” days and ripping off the heads of our opposing counsel.

Of all the many options at Specialty’s about which to rave, give us the finger sandwich platters any day. The platters come with 18 mini-versions of classic sandwiches. While they are all delectable, the Mediterranean sandwiches are irresistible. Also, if your office is anywhere near a Specialty’s location, the option to order ahead or to just grab any of the meals from the wire rack inside the doorway makes any of its choices a fast one.

We adore the “Peanut Butter & Stuff,” which comes on whole wheat, with peanut butter, cranberry sauce, banana and Granny Smith apple. Missed breakfast? Around noon, you can still get a ham, egg and cheese sandwich. Price: $25.99 to $29.99 for trays.

For anyone considering a change in career or who knows a catering service, there are a number of foods we would love to see available for lunch delivery. Our wallets would open for a good banh mi sandwich delivery operation downtown, rice paper spring roll delivery or delivery phö. Macaroni and cheese, burgers, and elaborate hot dogs like those served at Crif Dogs in New York would also be greatly appreciated.

Ethiopian delivery would also make us jump with joy: While we have never tested injera during a lunch meeting, we think it could improve anyone’s day. In a similar request, delivery vindalho would also make the world a better place.

Contact Mary Jo Newhouse with comments or for more information at mjnewhouse@schwabe.com.

Originally published in the September 2010 issue of the King County Bar Bulletin. Reprinted with permission of the King County Bar Association.