No Wrap Crap for Me but, "Holy Moley! I Love ROLY POLY"
Written: Sep 19 '06
|
Product Rating:
|
|
| Food and Presentation: |
 |
|
| Ambiance and Decor: |
 |
|
| Quality of Service: |
|
|
|
Pros: Excellent taste
Cons: Too long a wait. Couldn't see the preparation area.
The Bottom Line: Roly Poly has fresh and healthy selections. They have good tasting product too. It's the wait I don't like and the atmosphere is as blah as you can get.
|
|
|
| popsrocks's Full Review: Roly Polys Rolled Sandwiches |
I'm a big guy lookin' for a hungry-man sandwich. None of this wrap crap for me.
Mmm, Well maybe Roly Poly changed my mind.
While in State College, PA a couple of weeks back, having some free time, I wandered into a sandwich shop not knowing anything about it. The only thing that struck me on the way in was a sign that stated, "We are on a roll!" This meant they now make sandwiches on a roll. That was a bit odd to me. Why wouldn't they be doing so in the first place?
No Breads, Just a Wrap
After checking out the menu that was posted on a large three piece colourful board, using their red, white, blue and yellow color scheme, I noticed that all the offerings were to be served on a wrap of tortilla. I was just about to walk out the door. As I stated earlier I'm a big guy lookin' for a hungry man sandwich. Wraps never appealed to me when lookin' to EAT.
As I turned an item on the menu caught my eye. It was the Texas Tuna Melt I happen to like tuna sandwiches with a slice of tomato. They did have a Classic Tuna Melt that was served with that tomato along with a few extras but the ingredients on the Texas Melt sounded like something I should try.
Texas Tuna Melt
Tuna salad
Melted Jalopeno Jack cheese
BarBQ Sauce - Onion - Bacon - Avocado
Grilled Golden Brown with a side of Ranch dressing
That did it, I walked over and ordered the sandwich...or roll... wrap...or rather POLY. I still wasn't expecting too much. While I waited I looked around.
Atmosphere
Now this is a college town and it seemed to me that decor was not a priority. This was empty space with a few tables and chairs thrown in. After reading a bit about the company I found out that simplicity is what they are looking for anyway. This place was quite simple, almost stark. I couldn't call it a warm place at all. I mean it was a step down from a Denny's which is one of the simplest chains around. One TV hung from a corner at a volume that no one could hear. This location happened to have dual levels. It looked like it was designed as a coffee shop. I could almost see a college student rock band playing in the corner on Saturday Night or perhaps some people reading poetry on a Tuesday Night evening. I did look at their web site that had a photo gallery and it seems that each Roly Poly fits into its own space and decor but, all were pretty simply set. Most are 800-1200 square ft.
They use just a small counter area and the "kitchen" area in the State College restaurant was separate from the counter. I happen to like being able to see the preparation area. It didn't please me that I couldn't see the cleanliness and process. These places don't actually do any cooking, they do heat up items though, like my particular wrap.
Menu
On the menu are numbers for each item. Some are in a plain circle and others within a flame. That flame designates the particular sandwich as being heated.
They did have a large selection of Rolys or is it Rolies, 50 or more?
It is that choice that makes this place popular. Here are a few of the Chicken Choices
Santa Fe Chicken
Chicken Fijata
Chicken Cordon Bleu
Hickory Chicken
Chicken Popper
Pesto Chicken
Buffalo Chicken Melt
Those were the hot offerings. On the chicken cold side they had
Cob Salad Roll
Chicken Caesar
Catalina Chicken
Basil Cashew Chicken
Delhi Chicken
Oriental Chicken
All these selections had much more than the usual tomato and lettuce. Items like mushrooms, avocado, sprouts, nuts, sundried tomatoes, assorted cheeses, Mango chutney, fresh basil mayo and many others spice up the menu.
Variations on these chicken sandwiches and one of a kind selections are also done with seafood, steak and roast beef, turkey, baked ham and roast pork and veggie and cheese selections.
Soups were available too. They serve Frito-Lay brand bagged chips and Coca Cola Products including Snapple a favorite of mine.
My Experience
I ordered the Texas Tuna Melt. A full Poly went for $5.95. You can get half orders. Most items are priced in the $5-$7 range for a full. Drinks are separate.
One thing for sure is that you do have to wait a bit. You won't find items rolled up and ready to be picked by the server and put in a bag or on a tray. Each item is done custom upon order. There is lag time between placing the order and being served. Though the staff was quite friendly and professional, I waited almost ten minutes. I wasn't happy at that point. I sat and watched the TV, couldn't hear it. Luckily, this being a college town, I was able to do a good amount of people watching through the large plate glass windows with view of the street. That's always entertaining to me when I have free time.
Just as I was about to go up to the counter to be sure my order wasn't "lost", a server brought it out to me. I looked at it. The tortilla was a golden brown colour and quite warm, almost hot on the outside. I bit into it. Man was it good!! The tortilla was crisp and didn't have that flowery taste that so many wraps have that are made with pita bread. This was good stuff!
The light taste of the tortilla also allowed the flavour of the spices to come through. This thing was darn good! Unfortunately after a few good bites, the big man was finished. I was going to order another, but I knew I didn't have the time to wait. You aren't getting a lot of filler (breads) with these sandwiches so the immediate gratification for a big guy like me wasn't totally fulfilled. I believe most people would find the full Poly just right. I suppose a Roly Poly lookin' guy like me needs a few Roly Poly sandwiches to sustain him.
I was going home a few hours later and thought I would purchase a couple for the five hour ride home. I did. I ordered a Philly Melt that was served hot and was awesome. I knew I would want something else down the road so I also picked up a Tuscan Turkey It was served wrapped in that same tortilla, so was the Philly Melt, and had Spinach, Tomato, Artichoke Hearts, Roasted Red Pepper, Onion and Fat Free, did ya hear that! Fat Free Sundried Tomato Dressing. That too was a good sandwich. Prices for both were $5.95 each.
Final Thoughts
These are very fresh foods though I would like to see them actually making it like in a Subway sandwich place. Like these other sandwich eateries, there is a labor intensive element that takes time to prepare. The taste is excellent and the prices were fair, certainly no bargain. There is no presentation. A simple paper plate holds the item.
I can see vegetarians and Vegans ordering some of the food choices here. It even had good choices for meat eaters like me.
As of now there are none in New York. The map on their site shows them in most of the midwest and eastern states, barring a few states in New England. I saw some in California and Oregon too. Looks to me like a count of perhaps thirty-five states have a Roly Poly.
My final thoughts on the eatery state, I love the product. It tastes great and there are healthy selections but, it was much too long a wait and the place was not crowded. I can't say I will be looking for one of these eateries by name but I would stop in one if at a convenient location.
These people advertise heavily that they cater.
The food gets 5 stars
presentation a generous 2 stars
wait time 1/2 star
I give the restaurant an overall 3 stars.
Blimpies / Quizno's / Subway / Roasty's Original This is now my favorite.
Recommended:
Yes
Vegetarian Friendly: Yes
|
|
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.