Sprout Cafe

In a nutshell, fresh food, decent price, but the service is always on the slower side. Normally about a 3.5 star place. My one star rating today is due to my experience today using the website to pre-​order my meal… details below:
I was in a hurry today, so I decided to use the OrderAhead option on the Sprout website to order my lunch. I placed my order at 10AM for an 11:20AM pickup, and all I ordered was 1 large chicken noodle soup. I arrived at 11:15, to see a huge mob of angry people waiting for their food. Since all I ordered was a soup, I thought my order would be ready. Wrong. I waited for 45 minutes, all the while being told my order would be out soon. I checked one last time at 12PM, a whole 40 minutes after my order was promised, and I was told to wait another 10 minutes. ALL THEY HAD TO DO WAS LADLE SOME SOUP INTO A BOWL FOR ME!
I work on University and like the healthy options here, but there is something seriously wrong with this setup. I truly hope the owner/​manager sees this post and does something to improve the service. Primarily, there needs to be an orders per minute cap on orders done through the orderahead/​door dash apps. The staff was completely overwhelmed, and a dozen other people were in the same situation as me, hungry and upset. For the record, I left without receiving my food, ended up grabbing a slice of pizza next door, and was still late to my meeting.
From the other reviews on here, I can see people had similar experiences. AVOID THIS PLACE IF YOU DON’T HAVE OVER AN HOUR FOR LUNCH.

I had the grill cheese and tomato soup. Best grill Cheese I ever had!!! The tomato soup on the other hand was a little acidic. I couldn’t even finish it. The stars are for the grill cheese

My go-​to for a quick and healthy meal in Palo Alto. You fill out a paper with your order, which you hand to the cashier who will ring you up and give you a number. The ingredients here are all super fresh and the dressings are delicious. I always opt for the balsamic vinaigrette which is so well made here – just the right amount of tangy sweetness and the perfect consistency. I usually customize my order and I like that the ingredients are displayed in front of you. The chicken and tuna are both really solid options for protein. The salads come in two sizes and each order of salad comes with a piece of bread. Sprout also offers sandwiches, soups and appetizers!
Beware: it’s better to come here at slightly off hours because 1. parking downtown sucks and 2. they aren’t the best at quickly dealing with high volume.

Nope. I’m sorry. I gave these guys another chance. Then they:
— Didn’t see any orders placed online in half an hour, apparently, because when I waited half an hour and came by to pick it up they said they hadn’t even seen the order and shuffled the electronics to get it.
— I saw them drop someone else’s salmon on the counter (not the floor, but not the part where they prepare food) and just pick it up and put it back in.
— Finally, last night, gave me food poisoning.
I really wanted to like them. I used to like them. It’s hard for me to face facts, but they just are not the same.
Extra credit for humor, though: they gave me watermelon in my salad by accident because one of their options was «watermelon radish».

I always get the Davy because it’s genius. Salmon with aged white cheddar? Never would have put the two together, but it works. Along with creamy avocado, spicy arugula, refreshing corn, and sweet candied walnuts? Perfection.
Salad portions are enough for 2 people, but I can easily finish the entire thing if I’m hungry :).

They cannot handle lunch time volume. They don’t limit the number of orders and can’t scale to handle them. The whole point of Order Ahead is that you show up and your food is ready to go. Sprout Café cannot make any delivery guarantees for lunch during the week. It’s hit or miss.
Case in point: I ordered at 11AM for pickup at 11:55. I arrived at 12:05 and my order had not even been started. There was a huge line of pickup customers, stressed out staff, and no organization. You’re supposed to just wait there until your name is called. The environment is extremely noisy. The salad was ready at 12:25, only half an hour late.
The salads are fine, but I will never again order from them at lunch time.

I love love this place. 1 is very nice quiet n clean
2 the food is amazing good .
My favorite to ored is the Chipotle chicken sandwich, is not spicy but I always ask for a side of hit sause. And I love it.

After taking a friend to her weigh-​in at Weight Watchers, I realized that maybe I could occasionally avoid eating 10,000 calories in a single meal, you know, just to mix it up. Enter Sprout Café, which now serves as a constant reminder that «green stuff» can be both delicious and filling!
My friend and I both built our own salads, where you choose a green, a dressing, and up to six standard ingredients. Items dubbed «premium», like apple-​wood smoked bacon, avocado, and fresh mozzarella are an additional $ 1 each, and adding a protein will also incur an extra fee.
So yes, your custom salad will not be cheap. However, the ingredients are fresh and the portions are generous. My appetite is somewhat reminiscent of a blue whale (fun fact: a blue whale can eat 8,000 pounds of food a day!), and I will begrudgingly admit, I could barely finish my full-​sized salad.

Ordered Ahead at 10 AM, got 11:20 pick up time, been waiting it’s 12:09 and food is still not ready

They have good selection and good food.
Beware of long lines and remember to order early enough if you intend to take out.
‘Rocky’ is one of my fav salad here. Their pulled pork sandwich is also good.
Overall it’s healthy and keeps me coming back since it’s consistent.

Favorite salad place.
They have a wonderful selection. You can create your own salad (with plenty of options). Or you can order one of their salads off the menu. I’ve done both, and it always comes out delicious. When you create your own salad, they give you so many options: size, fruits, greens, dressing mixed in/​on the side/​light/​etc, nuts, seeds, and the list goes on. If you’re indecisive, the salads on the menu are also delicious combinations.
They also have other options like sandwiches and soups, if salads aren’t your thing.
But I will drive 20+ minutes just for the salad here. The salads are fresh and after eating here, I always feel healthy and refreshed. Ingredients are high quality. Also, the optional chicken that you can add to your salad is flavorful, cooked well, and delicious!
Portion size is on the larger size. And it always leaves me feeling full and satisfied, and not overly full/​bloated. Also, salads come with a piece of bread.
Service is always fast and efficient. Even during the lunch rush! During busy hours, there’s almost always a line, but it goes very quickly.
Also price is very reasonable. If you compare it to the restaurants nearby, it’s a much cheaper option!

I actually really like the concept of building your own salad but this place needs some improvement. They are not generous with adding the ingredients into your salad. A dollar for literally a fourth of an avocado? Not worth it. And only four croutons in my salad? Okay, not cool. I’m also giving a bad review because the lady who rung me up was so rude I probably won’t ever come back. I asked her for a lemonade three times while she was ringing me up and she completely ignored me, while she was socializing with another customer she knew in line. Okay, normally it wouldn’t bother me if you’re talking to someone else while ringing me up but at least get the order I want down correctly, I asked her THREE times. How incompetent can you be at taking orders??? It shouldn’t be that hard. Looking back, I regret tipping her because she really didn’t deserve one.
Also, I wouldn’t advise coming here if you have any allergies to nuts or anything they include on their menu because I always find ingredients I didn’t choose mixed in randomly with my salad as well. Be cautious.

This place was pretty mediocre. I made my own salad, the option with the three ingredients. I like the variety of choices, but they don’t add too much of any of the ingredients in.
My salad: buttercup lettuce, watermelon, onion, noodles. Maybe it was my combination, but after it was mixed, the salad turned out pretty soggy. The taste itself was also pretty bland. Not a fan.

My favorite place to eat in Palo Alto.
To die for — the sesame tofu, potstickers, Kyoto salad, chicken noodle soup, tomato bisque. And the spring rolls with shiitake mushroom? Don’t get me started. I can’t leave Palo Alto without ordering some!
During prime lunch and dinner hours it can get a little crazy, but I think it is well worth the wait. The management is very friendly and cares about customers.

This is a more expensive plutos. I can get the same salad for $ 7 there but here it is close to 10. They do have quite a selection and a nicer layout. You don’t feel rushed here because you order and get seated. This seems more Palo Alto than plutos haha. Overall a good salad place with a variety of choices for salads. I got the chicken soup that was sorta Asian fusion. The small is $ 5 and it is nothing special. I would pass.

I’ve never had a good experience with this place. A sandwich takes 20 minutes to make, and when you actually get it, it’s the sandwich-​ification of disappointment.
After 8 months I thought to myself maybe they got better. Nope. I ordered the pastrami sandwich and was not surprised to find that it tasted like a hot dog flavored dog toy. I got three bites in before my jaw gave out from fatigue. Three, because there is no way you can decide after two. I should have given up sooner.
I would never recommend that anyone, ever, go to Sprout. For any reason. A coworker found a caterpillar in his salad.

20 minute wait for a salad!
Are you serious? you’re making me wait 20 minutes for salad there’s nobody in line place is empty
I’m not waiting 20 minutes for a salad
You just lost a lunch customer!
I wish I could give zero stars!

I went for a light and quick dinner date. Our food was reasonable for Palo Alto, but nothing stand out.
Salad
Leafy greens were fresh, but not crisp. Chicken in the salad was dried out and a little overcooked. They were out of kale for our second salad and accommodating to offer an alternative. I got the Greek chicken sandwich.
Greek chicken sandwich
The chicken was cooked and seasoned perfectly. The sandwich had good balance of flavor and bread ratio, chew, and crisp.
The more you know
— The table at the front entrance has menus for custom salad selection. It’s easy to see the custom menus and not notice the preconfigured menu items above listed above the register
— They offer free flavored spa waters that are cool and refreshing
— The tables on the sidewalk in front of the restaurant offer a prime location for people watching

I thoroughly enjoy this place. I do the customs salad and it always comes out satisfying and filling. Their chocolate chip cookies are really tasty too. My girlfriend had a day-​old one and loved it, and trust me, that’s quite the testament to their quality. My one qualm, as it is with most Palo Alto restaurants, is the price. It’s a little pricey for my liking. Other than that, definitely worth a try.
Tip: Come before or after the lunch rush. The lunch rush is crazy packed.

Gotta love that steak sandwich with sautéed corn and crispy potatoes!
Sprout has a variety of health-​oriented sandwiches and salads, always fresh. You can build your own (well they build it, you just check off boxes) salad from a wide variety of ingredients. Think salad bar but higher class and much more expensive. The sweet potato fries are quite tasty.
Downsides include the aforementioned prices, typically slow service, and the bathrooms always smell.
All in all this is a nice place to stop for lunch if you’re in the area and require some real greens.