Lisa’s Lunchbox

The food at Lisa’s is always great. Try the daily specials or their salads. They even have frozen dinners that you can take home to cook yourself. Their BLT is the Best. This is a favorite place of mine for lunch. I would give them five stars except for they do need to clean up the place a little.

This was a cute place with good prices and tasty food. I got the pimento cheese sandwich. They pile it on. I didn’t get my lettuce and tomato on it even after they verified that while making it but I didn’t check before I left. Overall I would totally go again and support their business!

My miniature dining companion and I were out running errands when he began clamoring for sustenance. Based on the mewling from the back seat, I don’t think he’d ever eaten before and was likely to wither up and die in a matter of minutes. I knew food was an immediate priority. As we were in the vicinity AND it was before 2 PM, I was excited to pop in to Lisa’s for a bite. But we’ll get to that in a moment.
For those unfamiliar with Lisa’s, GPS will get you close, but you have to know what you’re looking for once you arrive. A friend once yelled at me for sending her on a wild goose chase in an office park. There is no «X Marks the Spot», just a nondescript glass and steel office building at the back of a parking lot. Lisa’s is just through the front door to the left. So if you can’t find it, you have been warned.
Now for the food, which is the reason we’re all here anyway. First off, Lisa’s Lunchbox is a lunch joint. They do soups, salads, sammies and wraps. And they do them really well. On this particular excursion, I ordered the baked potato soup and the portabella mushroom wrap. The soup is fairly heavy and more of fall/​winter dish for me, but my son loves it and I can never deny him. It comes out chock full of potato chunks and covered in cheddar cheese and crumbled bacon. And not that imitation crap, but real, honest-​to-​goodness bacony chunks. I was only allowed a couple of bites before I was rebuffed with «no daddy, not yours» by my starving child. That said, the soup was as good as always: the potato chunks were tender, but not overcooked, and the roux was just the right consistency. There are two general criticisms I typically have with potato soup. The first is a thin, watery roux. I prefer a thicker roux, something that has a bit of substance to it. Potato soup is hearty, and the mouth feel has to be right to carry the ingredients. The second is over-​salting. I don’t know why, but I’ve had far too many potato soups and stews that were just overly salty. Lisa’s has neither problem, which is a huge bonus for me. If you can do something I love well, then you’ve gained an immediate fan.
But enough about the soup. The portabella mushroom wrap was the whole reason I was excited to dine at Lisa’s in the first place. I’m not a vegetarian, but I absolutely love mushrooms. These are first marinated and then grilled, giving them a wonderful flavor and texture. Then they are wrapped up with feta, onions, cucumbers, tomatoes and black olives. Then, they are lovingly squashed in a press, giving the wrap a bit of texture. I like the contrast of the cool center and the warm exterior, and the flavors marry perfectly. I’ve had this particular wrap a number of times, and it is by far my favorite. If you’re in the neighborhood, you should definitely check it out. That said, you’ll not go wrong with any of the wraps or sammies on the menu.
So go. Eat. Support local business. And stop eating at the local AppleMcChainoBell.

Let me tell you about my first visit to this small sorta hole in the wall lunch place. When you walk in you know they aren’t trying to impress you with the décor. They prefer their food to make the impression. I ordered the blt on wheat bread. Pretty standard for a lunch counter and I thought I knew what I was ordering. The smiling younger lady making my sandwich had a question for me. She asked me if I knew what was wrong with most blts and I said no. Her answer was not enough bacon and she put what looked like a half pound of crispy thick bacon on my sandwich. She was more correct than you know. When I ate the sandwich there was the standard green and red parts but the bacon made the thing special. They serve other things but I can’t get past a blt. Sometimes I order it with a scoop of spicy pimento cheese on it. You want a blt you have to go to this place. I have been told the rest of the menu is pretty good but I can’t imagine it is as good as the blt. Oh and the prices are way below the quality of their food.

Lisa’s Lunchbox is right by work from me but for some reason I waited 2 years to give it a try – boy was that i terrible decision. Lisa’s is absolutely perfect for a quick, non-​fussy lunch. They have everything you could possibly need: sandwiches, paninis, wraps, soups, etc.
My favorite is the Turkey Club wrap-​which is pressed on the panini grill – so the cheese gets all «melty» and delicious. Their soups are top-​notch as well especially the red pepper bisque, chili, and enchilada soup.
There’s not a whole lot of seating and probably can’t accommodate big groups – so call in your order and pick it up to go.

Despite being difficult to find, Lisa’s Lunchbox is nearly perfect in every other way.
They’ve got an impressive selection of sandwiches, salads, wraps and desserts. I ordered half of a chicken salad sandwich and a cup of potato soup. The chicken salad was nice and simple — just chicken, eggs, celery, mayo, and a tiny bit of relish. The soup was loaded with potato chunks, bacon bits and carrots.
The vibe at Lisa’s is a little corporate, largely because it’s in an office building. Most of the people there were office staffers in business casual dress. It’s super friendly, though. There is actually a Lisa, and she was working behind the counter, making sandwiches, bantering with regulars and greeting everyone that came in by name.
Lisa’s Lunchbox is open Monday — Friday, 8 a.m. — 2 p.m. According to their website, they also deliver.

Lisa and Co. make a great sandwich! More or less hidden in the Ridgeway Loop (it;s on the first floor of the office building immediately to the east of Malco’s Ridgeway Four), Lisa’s Lunchbox does brisk business due to fantastic word of mouth (it’s how I learned about it). Sandwich offerings vary daily, but standbys include the pimento cheese (best I’ve had!), egg and olive (my lunch yesterday and also quite tasty), and various ham and turkey sandwiches. They also make soups from scratch – particularly welcome here in January; try the tomato bisque with the pimento cheese sandwich! And come a second time to see just how sharp the folks behind the counter are – they remembered what I ate during my previous visit, even though a couple of months had passed.