Shrafft’s Center Café

Convenient but pricey, it could be the fact that your in an area where, you could out to eat by leaving the building but upon return it requires you getting a parking spot when you come back to the office. Especially if your a visitor.

The Shrafft’s Center is a really cool building. It has a very interesting history having been the site of a candy factory back in the day. It stops there however because The Shrafft’s Café is terrible. In short the prices are too high, and the food is below average. They don’t understand value as I don’t think lunch should be over $ 10. Really it’s ridiculous, I’m not exaggerating.
The sandwiches are poorly made with no love whatsoever and the ratio is totally off. Who puts pickles in the middle of a sandwich and not on top? This makes me sad because we all know how easy it is to make a sandwich with pride that tastes awesome.
Their Mexican food is embarrassing! How easy is it to get a good burrito in this country? Very easy, they are everywhere! But not at the Shrafft’s Caté! Oh no, it tastes like reheated, fried rat.
The pizzas are plainer than plain! I think a pizza made from play-​doh (which is edible) would probably taste better.
Do you like soup? How about soup that comes from a huge bag? Well come on down, because they have that too. Oh sweet, the stale bread comes free!
Also I think they should call it «The Shraffeteria» such a better name.

This café has a few good things going for it, but needs some vast improvements.
First off, the prices. In an office building where it’s the most convenient and closest (read:only) place to eat, the prices are absurd. A pre-​made WRAP is $ 7.50. I can get TWO italian subs at a local sandwich shop for less. A pre-​made salad, some greens, and 2 oz of chicken is also $ 7.50. Ridiculous.
The salad bar is also vastly overpriced. Throw some lettuce, chicken, and dressing in there and you’re easily paying upwards of $ 10 for a basic salad. For a day-​to-​day meal, this can easily bust your budget without much value.
Next is quality. Their food lacks care and a lot of it is made to sell in large quantities. I’ve never tried a burger, but their entrees are generally uninspired and bland. Sometimes they make some good stuff, but most of the time the quality is lacking. The salad bar (which is my go-​to, since I try to stay healthy) lacks variety and has THE SAME INGREDIENTS every day. And it only offers 1 kind of meat, chicken. Some turkey, ham, salami, bacon, different kinds of cheeses, would be a great improvement (they have feta cheese and parmesan, but I’m thinking regular cheese cubes so we can make a chef salad or something)
That being said, the taqueria section is decent, and the sandwiches/​soups can be decent if you know what to get and use common sense. But for being a place that many people rely on for lunch without any other options it needs some changes to really be a place I look forward to going

WHERE’S THE BEEF?
Out of desparation, I got lunch here today. I got a cheeseburger — how can you screw up a cheeseburger? The grill «chef» pulled out a brown and red patty from the fridge, squashed it flat, and put it on the grill. That should’ve been my first red flag. By the time that thing was cooked it was a quarter of the size it was when we started. And it tasted fishy and gross. On a happier note, I got green beans (that were marked for the entrée, but I don’t eat fries) on the side and they were garlicky and delicious.
I hope that cheeseburger doesn’t make me sick.
I hadn’t eaten lunch here since my first day at my job which is located in the Schrafft’s center, and I never will again. I do get breakfast here — oatmeal bar — how can you screw that up? But once I made the mistake of getting scrambled eggs and I had the runs all day. Plus it was over $ 5, so the other guy who wrote the only other review for this place must have been … er… mistaken.
OMG, I already have heartburn!

Gourmet food at McDonalds prices! That’s what makes the Unidine Shrafft’s Center Café the BEST cafeteria in all the world!!!
The Schrafft’s Building is located at at 529 Main Street in Charlestown (right near Orange line Sullivan station) and was formerly the manufacturing site of the famous Schrafft’s Candy Factory (the spirit of good food still lingers in the building). It was purchased and renovated by The Flatley Company in 1984. The building is considered a Boston landmark with its distinctive neon sign and BEAUTIFULL water views from the upper floors (like from my new office)
The Shrafft’s Center Café is located on the first floor and (the best part) is open to the public!!!
Here is what makes it great:
1. Super Fresh everything!!! Fresh fruit, fresh vegetables. A Salad bar. A Fruit bar. And not one, not two, not three but four cooking areas where they can custum make food for you!
2. AMAZING breakfasts (that’s what I come here every day for!) You can get a delicious break feast with coffee for under 5 Dollars!!! You can choose from a fruit bar, Hot cereal sections, Prepared breakfast sandwiches, a cornucopia of fresh baked goods! BUT the best part is Carlo! The Omelets man (though He also makes anything else you could desire for breakfast) which he makes Custom to order with the absolute best choices of ingredients.
3. Really Great staff. From the preparer Greg to the cashier Dina everyone here provides world class service with none of the that Boston «attitude» you will get at every other cafeteria in boston!
4. Healthy choices!!! You can choose healthy food any time of the week actually, But on Wednesday they have special healthy fare selections: Like egg white omelets with fresh mushrooms and spin age.
5. Hands on Management! And I mean REALLY hands on! When ever I ask for a cup of water the Manager is usually the one who hands it to me. He is always on site to deal with any questions or issues that arise.
6. Culturally diverse food for lunches!!! You can choose from authentic Mexican food (with a special chef for this) or Italian Pasta dishes or fresh sushi or more standard American faire.
7. Amazing Desserts!!! (Now you know why all State employees are so fat!) They make it all fresh on site: wonderful cakes, and Brownies, and puddings and Chocolates, and cookies, and candies! It is just like being the fat kid in «Charley and the Chocolate Factory».
8. Great sitting area! (see photos!) Wonderfully comfortable couches, and nice chairs and 2 big screen TV’s that play porn all day long (Okay…I was kidding about the Porn) But it is REALLY great place to hang out when you are supposed to be at work resolving issues in the rolling calamity known as «America’s Health Care system» AND THERE IS FREE WIFI!
Tip: There is also free parking near by but you have to be very careful where you park because Charlestown has been taken over by roving packs of biker gangs just like in the Movie «Road Warrior» (the good one, NOT the bad sequel with Tina Turner) Just KIDDING! Totally safe to park here!