Wrap (sandwich)

“Wraps” became popularized in California in the mid-1990s, with restaurants such as San Francisco’s World Wrapps (trademarked July 10, 1994), The Daily Wrap and Wrap Works. A flatbread is used (such as a wheat-flour tortilla, lavash or pita) as the wrapping, and many various fillings are included. Technically, a “wrap” is not a “sandwich,” although it has been called a “wrap sandwich” or “sandwich wrap” (not to be confused with “sandwich wrap” paper, aluminum foil and other materials used to wrap sandwiches).
 
Wraps were made much before the “wrap” name was popularized. The Mexican burrito is essentially a “wrap.” Moo Shoo pork, also called a “Chinese burrito,” might also be called a “wrap.”
 
“Sausage Wrap” and “Sausage Wrap-Ups” have been cited in print since at least April 1966, but this is simply a sausage wrapped in a biscuit or other bread and is usually not considered a “wrap” sandwich. The Oxford English Dictionary lists “Halibut Bacon Wraps” from January 1969, but it is not clear that this can be considered a “wrap” sandwich.
 
“Roll-Ups” can be considered “wrap” sandwiches. The “Tortilla Roll-Ups” cited in print in April 1966 (see below) are essentially “wraps.”
 
Restaurants under the name “Gyro Wrap” (now “Great Wraps”) have been trademarked since 1974 and are mostly located in Georgia. Pita bread is used for the wraps, and other ingredients are offered besides gyro meat. These are clearly “wrap” sandwiches.
 
Baseball manager Bobby Valentine is often credited with inventing the “wrap” at his Stamford (CT) restaurant, Bobby Valentine’s Sports Gallery Café, in 1980. The dish, however, was officially called a “Club Mex.” Because “tortilla roll-ups” were made in the 1960s and “gyro wrap” was trademarked in the 1970s, Bobby Valentine’s 1980 “Club Mex” was clearly not the invention of the “wrap.”
   
   
Wikipedia: Sandwich wrap
A wrap is a sort of sandwich made of a soft flatbread rolled around a filling. The usual flatbreads are wheat-flour tortillas, lavash, or pita; the filling usually consists of cold sliced meat, poultry, or fish accompanied by shredded lettuce, diced tomato or pico de gallo, guacamole, sauteed mushrooms, bacon, grilled onions, cheese, and a sauce, such as ranch or honey mustard.
 
History
Mexicans and Greeks have been eating wraps since before the 1900’s. They refer to them as tacos, and they come in different ingredient varieties, such as corn, flour and wheat.
 
The wrap probably comes from California, as a generalization of the Tex-Mex burrito, and became popular in the 1990s. It may have been invented and named at a southern California chain called “I Love Juicy” in the early 1980s. The Bobby Valentine Sports Gallery Cafe in Stamford, Connecticut is sometimes claimed to have invented the wrap at about the same time, but Valentine himself is rather diffident about it: “Well, that’s legend and folklore, but until somebody disputes me or comes up with a better story, I’ll say I invented the wrap.” Beth Dolan of Stamford, Connecticut is the waitress credited for serving the first wrap after the restaurant had ran out of bread. Moreover, Valentine’s own story dates his use of the name ‘wrap’ to the mid-1990’s, after it is documented in California.
 
A wrap and a sandwich are different. A sandwich has two distinct layers, which are the top and bottom buns or pieces of bread. A wrap, on the other hand, is one piece that completely surrounds the content of the wrap.
 
(Oxford English Dictionary)
wrap, n.
orig. U.S. An item of food consisting of an edible outer layer wrapped around a filling; esp. a tortilla or other flatbread wrapped around a sandwich-style filling.
1969 Frederick (Maryland) News-Post 29 Jan. b1/7   Fun-to-eat Halibut Bacon Wraps bring a warm fresh-broiled goodness with them. Prepare halibut ahead‥, wrap with bacon and broil.
1989 Los Angeles Times (Nexis) 12 Oct. h1   The Juicy Wrap, a whole-wheat lavash (tortilla-type) sandwich‥is popular at I Love Juicy in West Hollywood.
1994 P. Permenter & J. Bigley Texas Barbecue 47   We ordered a sausage wrap, with a generous length of sausage wrapped in a flour tortilla.
2001 N.Y. Times 13 June f3/5   Asians eat lettuce wraps year round. But these crisply packaged finger foods seem especially appropriate in summer. Wraps are also fun to make.
 
19 April 1966, Western Kansas Press (Great Bend, KS), pg. 3, col. 1:
Sausage Wrap-Ups
Make Tasty Snack
Easy to eat is a tasty description of brown ‘n serve sausage biscuit wrap-ups served piping hot to those gathered around the record player.
   
23 April 1966, Racine (WI) Journal-News, pg. 7, col. 7:   
TORTILLA ROLL-UPS
Leftover tortillas steam quickly and make yummy roll-ups. Stuff them with leftover roast or chicken. Provide hickory or pizza flavor catsup as a sauce to dip them in. They will help keep the youngsters going until dinner.
 
26 May 1977, Augusta (GA) Chronicle, “Salad goes Mexican,” food section, pg. 11, cols. 1-2:
The “Burrito Wrap-Around Salad” can, of course, be served without its tortilla cover, but it wouldn’t be half the fun, nor quite so filling and tasty.
(...)
BURRITO WRAP
AROUND SALAD
(Recipe follows—ed.)
   
10 November 1978, Marietta (GA) Journal, Legal Notices, pg. 6D, col. 3:
Said business to be known as Shipfeifer Gyro Wrap.
     
31 July 1979, Omaha (NE) World-Herald, “Daily Recipe,” pg. 9, col. 3:
Backpacker’s Chili Roll-Ups
(...)
Spoon chili into open flour tortillas; top each portion with avocado slices, cheese and onion. Roll burrito style: Roll half-way, tuck in ends and complete rolling. Eat with hands.
 
13 September 1981, Marietta (GA) Journal, “If It’s Chinese Food You Crave, Try Smyrna’s Peking Gardens” by Dawn Charles-Gray, pg. 23E, col. 2:
One item, not found on many menus, is Moo Shu Pork. This is a Chinese-style pancake, rolled up burrito style with a stuffing of shredded pork, egg, green onion, served with a soy and plum sauce.
 
Google News Archive
10 April 1983, Albany (GA) Herald, “Gyro Wrap Set To Open Soon” by Bill Strickland, pg. 2B, cols. 1-2:
But he already had a job lined up back in Atlanta with the fairly young Shipfeifer’s Company, which originated the Gyro Wrap restaurants in 1974.
(...)
The gyro contains a blend of beef and lamb, mounted on a rotating vertical spit and slowly seared from the outside. As the meat sears, thin slices are cut for the sandwiches.
 
Other wraps include steak and cheese, vegetarian cheese and other choices, and each is wrapped with lettuce, onions and something called zazeeki dressing.
   
Google News Archive
17 July 1983, Albany (GA) Herald, pg. 9D, col. 3 ad:
What
Is A
GYRO WRAP? (A registered trademark symbol is used—ed.)
A gyro wrap is a hot sandwich made of a circular, crepe-like bread (called pita) wrapped around a marinated and herbed blend of beef and lamb, fresh vegetables and a creamy, yogurt based sauce. It’s eaten with both hands, is unbelievably delicious and uniquely satisfying—a true meal in itself.
 
The wrap can be filled with a variety of other items, including marinated chicken, beef kabobs, cheese, sauteed mushrooms, or other similar fillings, The original gyro wrap, however, remains the overwhelming favorite.
(Shipfeifer’s Gyro Wrap at the Albany Mall—ed.)
 
Google News Archive
6 June 1993, Portsmouth (OH) Daily Times, Food Stuffs ‘n Style, pg. 1, col. 3:
Turkey and Cheddar Roll-Up
(...)
To wrap burrito-style, fold bottom and sides of wrap over tortilla. Roll tortilla toward corner of wrap. Place tortilla roll-ups seam-side-down in spoke fashion on microwave-safe plate.
     
21 April 1994, The Times-Picayune (New Orleans, LA), “Stars in his eyes: Al Copeland is back, with a California flair and a taste for the trendy” by Jeffrey Meitrodt, pg. C1:
...basil pesto chicken wrap (sort of like an oversized pita sandwich) ...
 
16 May 1994, Nation’s Restaurant News, “Copeland group debuts Straya” by Jack Hayes, pg. 7:
Metairie, La.—My Favorite Year Inc., the group owned by Al Copeland that operates eight-unit Copeland’s of New Orleans, has launched Straya, a high-grossing casual concept showcasing Creole-interpreted California-style dishes.
(...)
The restaurant also features “California wrap” sandwiches, including the Basil Pesto Chicken Wrap and the Crescent City Chicken Wrap. Pastas include quatro fromage, crawfish Napoleon and pesto marinara fresco.
       
8 March 1995, San Francisco (CA) Chronicle, “What’s New,” pg. ZZ1:
World Wrapps, 2257 Chestnut Street (near Scott), (415) 563-9727; opens 8 a.m. daily, closes 10 p.m. Sun.-Wed.; 11 p.m. Thur.-Sat.
 
12 December 1996, Florida Times Union (Jacksonville, FL),” It’s a Wrap Sandwiches encased in flat bread are newest California food fad” by Wendy Lin, pg. E1:
It looks like a giant egg roll and weighs about a pound and a half. It’s usually made with a tortilla, but it’s not Mexican food.
 
It’s called a wrap, or a twister, or a high roller, and it’s the latest food craze from California.
 
These sandwiches are made with tortillas or other flat breads, such as pita and lahvosh. They’re filled with hip food like ginger coleslaw, roasted vegetables, couscous and sun-dried tomatoes. And they’re bundled on one end with foil or paper to make them easier to hold.
 
“What it is is a new way of packaging,” said Sean Connolly, owner of Wrapp Factory, the first wrap-sandwich shop in New York City. “The wrap is another name for burrito. These are gourmet burritos.”
 
13 December 1996, San Antonio (TX) Express-News, “Wrap this! - Trendy Left Coast fare invades fast-food scene” by Karen Haram, Weekender:       
No need to keep it under wraps.
 
The trendy wrap sandwich, which got its start in California restaurants such as The Daily Wrap and Wrap Works, is now taking the fast-food scene in San Antonio by storm.
 
And guess what? The hand-held, burrito-style sandwiches are pretty good. They’re also filling and reasonably priced.
 
New York (NY) Times
Eating Well
By Marian Burros
Published: July 02, 1997
THE popularity of the ‘‘wrap,’’ that clever marketer’s marriage of the burrito and the sandwich, seems to be based on the idea that it is portable, multicultural and, in some unexplained way, healthy.
 
New York (NY) Times
September 23, 1998
That’s a Wrap: A Fad’s Fade-Out
By JENNIFER STEINHAUER
(...)
Indeed wraps, like so many start-up concepts, were in many ways victims of their own success, signaling a cautionary tale for other future restaurateurs and food purveyors. Not unlike crepes in the 70’s, frozen yogurt in the 80’s and juice bars in this decade, wraps have been co-opted, and in many cases, defeated.
(...)
The genesis of the wrap has become part of entreprenurial lore. Four supereducated pals, Matthew Blair, Keith Cox, Eduardo Rallo Verdugo and Will Weisman, were vacationing in Mexico in 1994, trying to think of a joint business venture. Recalling their love of burritos, they came up with the wrap. The first store, World Wrapps, in San Francisco, was capitalized with a small investment from friends.
 
Wall Street Journal
DECEMBER 2, 2011
Did This Man Really Invent the Wrap?
New Red Sox Manager Plants His Toothpick on the Trendy Tortilla Treat; ‘a Revolution in Sandwiches’.
By DANIEL BARBARISI
Even among the stranger tidbits on new Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine’s resume—champion ballroom dancer, director of public safety in Stamford, Conn.—one stands out: inventor of the wrap sandwich.
(...)
It’s a story that Valentine has told for years. That in 1980, he was crafting a club sandwich at his Stamford restaurant, Bobby Valentine’s Sports Gallery Café, when the toaster broke. At a loss, Valentine wrapped the sandwich components in a tortilla. The former big leaguer called it a Club Mex, but others took to calling it by a different name, and voilà: The wrap was born.
(...)
The origins of the wrap are shrouded in mystery. Some version of a tortilla or pita wrapped around meat, beans, rice or vegetables has long been a fixture in Mexican and Middle Eastern diets. But only in the late 1980s did sandwich fillings inside a wrapped tortilla start to appear in America, becoming a virtually overnight food sensation called the “wrap.”
 
“Shifting it from a burrito, which would be typically beans and rice, to sandwich fillings, is unique. That sparks a whole revolution in sandwiches,” said culinary historian Andrew Smith, author of the upcoming book “Fast Food and Junk Food: an Encyclopedia of What We Love To Eat.”
(...)
COMMENTS
1 day ago.
Lori Narlock wrote:
As the co-author of Wraps (Chronicle Books, 1998) I am surprised to hear someone claim the origins of the wrap as CT. I would put my money on California and it wasn’t the Juicy franchise mentioned in the article that gave rise to this delicious concoction, but World Wrapps and other San Francisco-based eateries.
 
(Trademark)
Word Mark GYRO WRAP
Goods and Services IC 030. US 046. G & S: sandwiches, more specifically, a crepe-like pita bread wrapped around spicy beef and lamb with lettuce and yogurt-based sauce. FIRST USE: 19740500. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19780600
IC 042. US 100 101. G & S: restaurant services. FIRST USE: 19740500. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19780600
Mark Drawing Code (1) TYPED DRAWING
Serial Number 75108669
Filing Date May 23, 1996
Current Filing Basis 1A
Original Filing Basis 1A
Published for Opposition June 2, 1998
Registration Number 2183288
Registration Date August 25, 1998
Owner (REGISTRANT) GYRO WRAP, INC. CORPORATION GEORGIA 57 Executive Park South, Suite 440 Atlanta GEORGIA 303292213
(LAST LISTED OWNER) GREAT WRAPS, INC. CORPORATION GEORGIA 4 EXECUTIVE PARK EAST SUITE 315 ATLANTA GEORGIA 30329
Assignment Recorded ASSIGNMENT RECORDED
Attorney of Record STEPHEN M DORVEE
Prior Registrations 1170663;1888730;1888731;1896380;1920462;AND OTHERS
Disclaimer NO CLAIM IS MADE TO THE EXCLUSIVE RIGHT TO USE “GYRO” APART FROM THE MARK AS SHOWN
Type of Mark TRADEMARK. SERVICE MARK
Register PRINCIPAL-2(F)
Affidavit Text SECT 15. SECT 8 (6-YR). SECTION 8(10-YR) 20080908.
Renewal 1ST RENEWAL 20080908
Live/Dead Indicator LIVE
 
(Trademark)
Word Mark SHIPFEIFER GYRO WRAP
Goods and Services (CANCELLED) IC 042. US 100. G & S: FAST FOOD RESTAURANT SERVICES. FIRST USE: 19780600. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19780600
Mark Drawing Code (3) DESIGN PLUS WORDS, LETTERS, AND/OR NUMBERS
Design Search Code 24.07.04 - Medals
Serial Number 73218327
Filing Date June 4, 1979
Current Filing Basis 1A
Original Filing Basis 1A
Published for Opposition June 30, 1981
Registration Number 1170663
Registration Date September 22, 1981
Owner (REGISTRANT) SHIPFEIFER, INC. CORPORATION GEORGIA 1814 PEACHTREE RD. ATLANTA GEORGIA 30328
Assignment Recorded ASSIGNMENT RECORDED
Attorney of Record CHARLES N. CENTER
Disclaimer NO CLAIM IS MADE TO EXCLUSIVE USE OF THEWORD “GYRO” APART FROM THE MARK AS SHOWN.
Type of Mark SERVICE MARK
Register PRINCIPAL
Affidavit Text SECT 15. SECT 8 (6-YR).
Live/Dead Indicator DEAD
Cancellation Date July 20, 2002
 
(Trademark)
Word Mark GREAT WRAPS!
Goods and Services IC 042. US 100. G & S: restaurant services. FIRST USE: 19920800. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19920800
Mark Drawing Code (1) TYPED DRAWING
Serial Number 74561896
Filing Date August 17, 1994
Current Filing Basis 1A
Original Filing Basis 1A
Published for Opposition June 27, 1995
Registration Number 1920462
Registration Date September 19, 1995
Owner (REGISTRANT) GYRO WRAP, INC. CORPORATION GEORGIA 4 EXECUTIVE PARK EAST, STE 315 ATLANTA GEORGIA 30329
(LAST LISTED OWNER) GREAT WRAPS, INC. CORPORATION GEORGIA 4 EXECUTIVE PARK EAST SUITE 315 ATLANTA GEORGIA 30329
Assignment Recorded ASSIGNMENT RECORDED
Attorney of Record STEPHEN M. DORVEE
Type of Mark SERVICE MARK
Register PRINCIPAL
Affidavit Text SECT 15. SECT 8 (6-YR). SECTION 8(10-YR) 20051208.
Renewal 1ST RENEWAL 20051208
Live/Dead Indicator LIVE
 
(Trademark)
Word Mark WORLD WRAPPS
Goods and Services IC 042. US 100 101. G & S: restaurant services. FIRST USE: 19940710. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19950212
Mark Drawing Code (1) TYPED DRAWING
Serial Number 75060140
Filing Date February 20, 1996
Current Filing Basis 1A
Original Filing Basis 1A
Published for Opposition February 18, 1997
Registration Number 2060835
Registration Date May 13, 1997
Owner (REGISTRANT) World Wrapps Inc. CORPORATION CALIFORNIA 825 Van Ness Avenue, Suite 604 San Francisco CALIFORNIA 94109
(LAST LISTED OWNER) WORLD WRAPPS INTERNATIONAL LLC CORPORATION BY ASSIGNMENT DELAWARE 825 VAN NESS AVENUE, SUITE 501 SAN FRANCISCO CALIFORNIA 94109
Assignment Recorded ASSIGNMENT RECORDED
Attorney of Record BETH M. GOLDMAN
Prior Registrations 1997980
Disclaimer NO CLAIM IS MADE TO THE EXCLUSIVE RIGHT TO USE “WRAPS” APART FROM THE MARK AS SHOWN
Type of Mark SERVICE MARK
Register PRINCIPAL
Affidavit Text SECT 15. SECT 8 (6-YR). SECTION 8(10-YR) 20070529.
Renewal 1ST RENEWAL 20070529
Live/Dead Indicator LIVE