Smart Alec's Intelligent Food
Categories: Burgers, Sandwiches [Edit]
Neighborhoods: Telegraph Ave, UC Campus Area2355 Telegraph Ave
(between Channing Way & Durant Ave)
Berkeley, CA 94704 (510) 704-4000
- Price Range: $
- Accepts Credit Cards: No
- Parking: Street
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: Yes
- Takes Reservations: No
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: No
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: No
- Good for: Lunch
- Alcohol: None
21 reviews
Neighborhood: Downtown
""Nyummm nyummmm khmm khoooh, mfinally, shthankh godzhsh!!! llumnyum..." -me, this afternoon, upon realizing that Berkeley is FINALLY…" read more »
158 Reviews for Smart Alec's Intelligent Food
This place has a good feel to it. They have the BEST cornbread ever...moist sweet and fluffy! Have that with the soup...mmm. They have chicken,beef and a really good vegetarian burger. You can add bbq sauce or yummy pesto to any burger, create your own. there are other sauce as well. They have healthy fries.....watch out for the garlic fries unless you like or can handle very strong loads of fresh garlic chunks...wheew! Sometimes its packed so finding a seat might be an issue. Other that that give them a try its good food.
I frequented this place when I was a good, 'ol student at Cal. This is a great place to get a healthy, fast meal. Their menu consists of things like salads, soups, burgers, sandwiches, and smoothies. When I feel like a burger, I get their vegetarian burger meal, which comes with their famous, huge corn bread, their famous air-baked fries, and a drink. I absolutely love their CORN BREAD! SOOO GOOD! If I don't get a burger, I always settle with their vegetable soup and their corn bread! YUM YUM!
You have to got to eat here...Don't be intimidated by the long lines though...they go pretty fast, since many people already know what they want when they get there...
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Wow, I haven't had a healthy burger place in a long time. The fries have 0 trans fat and very little fat overall compared to other places. Sweet! Guitless fries.
I went with my co-worker for lunch, found parking pretty easily (amazing!) and got our food fast. I had the basil chicken burger, and wow, it was really good.
Fresh veges, and the fries are good. I need to try the smoothies next time.
Lots of college kids walking around, makes me miss college! I'll stop by there again sometime.
The best turkey sandwich with cranberry mayo ever. Thick slices whole wheat bread with hot turkey breast, lettuce, sweet onions, tomato and the cranberry mayo is so good I always order extra. The garlic fries are great too. They are always served hot and real garlicky so bring breath mints for later. The vegetable soup is real comfort food and comes with whole wheat bread or corn bread. Don't let the long lines scare you. The line moves very quickly.
TIPS: Pick up a frequent diner card. For every 10 meals you get a free hamburger or soup.
The corn bread is not sweet so if you are a Jiffy Cornbread fan like me skip the cornbread and go for wheat.
I'd say, S. Alec is C. Intermezzo's scrawny but not-yet-malnutritioned cousin.
good for grab-n-go lunches though! fast service, cheap prices, and close to campus--perfect for the dirt-poor college student who's starving and running late for class.
Tofu & avacado sandwich FTW.
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Full Disclosure: I was one of the sad souls in college who scraped extra money together by working at one of the on-campus cafeterias. Over-sized gray jersey, smelly black baseball cap, and stained maroon apron were de rigeur. Don't feel too bad for me though - I brass-knuckled my way into the coveted sandwich station post. People knew me as the "sandwich girl" and it proved to be a popular mating call at parties.
This job also gave some insight as to what happens in the kitchen of the mass eateries. With the exception of the sushi and wok stations, most of the food was made in bulk. And I gotta tell you, it was nasty.
As I found myself at Smart Alec's a few weeks ago eating some corn chowder and a caesar salad, I started to have flashbacks. The salad was drenched in dressing, making it more of a wilted lettuce caesar soup. The corn chowder was a bit better, but it had the taste of something that had been made 8 hours earlier in a big tub in the back. In other words, Smart Alec's is for that small portion of the overall population who miss dorm food.
They get plus points for stuffing their sandwiches with extra avocado and sprouts - any sandwich maker will tell you, that's the key to winning over the public's heart. Also, and I'm speaking from experience, inexpensive messy sandwiches posing as healthy = good looking patrons. Trust me on this - it's the only reason I was able to effectively stalk the university's water polo team without being a total creeper. Avocado is love, love is avocado.
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The burgers are pretty decent but the fries that they create all their own hype about? not so awesome.
All I'm gonna say is that every single time I eat here, no matter what I order, I undoubtedly provide the Tums company with a huge boost in sales.
TMI? Oh well, deal with it (and the inevitable gas you'll get if you eat here).
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Went here for lunch today. I ordered a tuna sandwich and fries. The sandwich was runny, way too much mayo and the tuna probably wasn't drained thoroughly. The bread however, was delicious, thick and flavorful.
The fries were decent. I wouldn't brag about them nor would I dis them. They were too salty, but its good to know that they aren't fried in oil.
The whole meal was ready in like five minutes and the woman who took my order was pleasant. Definitly a step above fast food quality but still ready quick and very inexpensive.
Intelligent? Smart? Really?
Since when did food/restaurants start getting rated on their intellectual prowess?! Oh wait, I forgot that I'm in mecca of infinite intellectual wisdom called Berkeley... snap!
Personally, I walked into Mr. A+ thinking that it would be modeled after Pluto's (http://www.yelp.com/bi...) but was rather disappointed by the whole fare. There are MUCH better places that I swear by in the the city that offer tastebud-tantalizing meals for the calorie-conscious eater.
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I think I ate here once a week because my boyfriend was absolutely obsessed with it. For one, no matter what you order make sure you get it with their cornbread. SO AMAZING!!! And everything really is made healthier there. Their garlic fries will for sure make you smell like garlic so don't go on a date or to an interview afterwards!!! Their avocado chicken burgers are a fav of mine and their corn chowder I have to learn how to make...mmmmmmm
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If Smart Alec's was really "intelligent" food, it would be healthy AND tasty. I've never been wowed by the food, esp. the sandwiches. The tofu and avocado was one of the worst things I've had, it was way too dry and bland. It also made me smell like onions until I got a chance to wash my hands. GROSS. I do enjoy the soups and wheat bread, which always make me full for hours.
I know the owner of this place, I used to make her intricate (160 degree, no foam, extra shot, 2 pump sugar-free vanilla) latte every week when she would come into the cafe I used to work at. Was that mean...? I don't think so, what's mean is she would always promise me free fries on my next visit and never be there to deliver! She's cool though. The point is: I'd rather spend my money elsewhere, or starve.
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I like Smart Alecs. I like how they give you a choice of cornbread or wheatbread with their salads. I've been going to Smart Alec's for about 5 years, but I just had their Chicken Sesame Salad which is really good. There was a little too much dressing, so next time I'll order dressing on the side (I don't like too much dressing in general).
I've had the Basil Chicken burger and I love their sauce in the chicken burger. I rate this place 4 stars because it's pretty decent. Considering the selection of food around the area (bad, greasy, or just heavy)- this place is pretty good if you want something lighter and with a few more vegetables. I'm sure people will redirect you to Intermezzo down the streets for salads, but I personally think the lines are a little too long and there's hardly any seating there. Smart Alec's has plenty of seating. They also have delicious cornbread (and what I believe to be?) brownies that are some sort of vegan? (could be wrong).
I will say, honestly, I don't like the eggplant sandwich thing. Although, I think for me it's more of a texture thing than a taste thing. It has this weird, kind of slimy consistency.
Oh and last thought- they give free fries away for A papers! Although, I go to UCB and that doesn't happen very often. Haha.
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We just stopped in for a quick snack but i'd have to say the air baked fries we had were the best that i've eaten in a long time. And it tasted super fatty but turns out they're really healthy! Looks like a lot of people got salads and burgers and those are probably really tasty and healthy too. I think i'll come back for more fries next time, they were really cheap too and much better than fast food places!
I really don't get why Smart Alec's is so popular. I have tried a few times to like it, but failed. Just walk a few more blocks to Intermezzo and you will be much happier. Particularly un-yummy is their eggplant sandwich - stay away from that one.
One day, I got the crazy idea of being a vegetarian for two weeks. You know what they say, walk in another man's shoes (or in this case, his Birkenstocks).
The first day of this endeavor, I ventured into Smart Alec's. They have these baked French fries that are really good! Also, I had a burger made out of...something...potato maybe? Anyway, it wasn't tofu, and I quite enjoyed it.
Alas, my two week quest to become a vegetarian was cut short by a week, when I contracted a cold with a 105 fever. Upon emerging from that illness, I had an unbelievable craving for salt and meat. I tried the chicken sandwich at Smart Alec's, but it was a bit too dry for me. So, I found myself going there less and less, and visiting Fat Slice more and more...
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I'm hungry...but I don't want to go to Fat slice...I kinda want a salad...a huge salad...a salad sooo big I won't be able to finish it.
Oh...thank god...Smart Alecs is across the street.
I loves grabbing a water, fries and a salad here. I have a punch card...and someday...SOMEDAY...I will get my free whatever it is.
I don't know about all you carnivore's saying the chicken is too dry and this and that...but the veggie food is amazing! I love the fact that all of their soup is vegetarian, so I can try a different delicious flavor every time. The Big A burger is also a winner, tastiest veggie burger I've had in a while!
Also, I can see some people have been complaining about the air baked fries....of course they don't taste like regular fries! They haven't been soaked in oil! It's the only place I've ever been to that air bakes their fries, and I think they taste great.
Whenever I don't have too much money to eat at all the crazy expensive places in Berkeley I go here and get a big A combo for less than $6. Or if I'm REALLY broke (as a college student I often am) I can get a soup and cornbread for about $3!
The people there are also really friendly. They always greet me kindly and wait patiently while I try to decide which soup to get. The cooks seem to enjoy their jobs as well since I can often hear them singing and laughing in the background. Good food comes from happy cooks!
You just can't go wrong with Smart Alec's.
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Healthy? Don't know about that.. but hey it's a good place to watch the interesting Bezerkeley people outside.
The basil chicken burger was really really good.. I must admit. I'd much rather go here than Mc Donalds or Del Taco.. on second thought I'd rather throw up in my mouth than eat Del Taco, but that's an entirely other topic.
Also don't even think about getting the garlic fries unless you want everyone you come in contact (within 4 feet of to be exact) with for the next 8 hours to hate you. TRUST ME you could run off a overweight, hairy, 50+ man at the POWER EXCHANGE with this kind of breath.. not that I'd know anything about that.. I'm just sayin..
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A well done, basics, menu makes this place another one I'd tack on to my frequent visits list!
Ordered a Special Burger combo w/ the fries and beef patty. Their hamburger is a very good, simple rendition that allows you to taste all the goodness of the meat of your choice. The wheat bun isn't too starchy, and the sun-dried tomato pesto really helped put this one into the excellent lunch category.
But far and above the thing to rave about is their air-popped fries! Talk about a healthy alternative to your oil-soaked goodness! These fries came out smoking hot, crispy on the outside, well seasoned and were just a pleasure! The weird thing was that although these fries were crispy, there wasn't any oil running around the bag. I got the garlic version, but on hindsight I should have gotten the plain fries for the sake of enjoying all the air-popped goodness! The garlic version essentially asks them to dump about 2 teaspoons of a chopped garlic/parsley mixture into the bag, and it isn't tossed so be prepared to do a little shaking yourself.
Overall, a great find for me. I'm glad I decided to just walk around and try something new. at $5.98 for a burger, fries, and a shake, this is a definite place I'm going to return to.
I love this place! The food is tasty- they use a lot of seasoning and I am very impressed with how fast it is served. probably the best location on Telegraph to people watch. I recommend the corn chowder soup and caesar 1/2 sald combo- and YUMMY corn bread!
My idea of a healthy diet is to only eat things that taste good, and not to waste calories on bad food. So I have absolutely no use for "air-baked" (what other substance would you bake in?) fries. Lower fat, yes, but the taste-to-calorie ratio approaches zero. Give me fried-fries any day. If you're worried about trans fats, fry 'em in lard.
Fortunately, there are menu choices that aren't particularly healthy. Burgers are good for the price point, probably better than Bongo (not that I've ordered burgers at Bongo for a long time). I also like the potato and leek soup, salty enough to raise your blood pressure a couple of points. Worth detouring a couple of blocks for.
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Ok, the fries aren't the best, and I was personally never a huge fan of hamburgers anyway. But compared to the dorm food...
Anyway, this four star review is for what I did come here for, and what I craved on cold nights I was studying my butt off: Corn Chowder with Corn Bread. Man, that was some good corn chowder.
The salads were huge too, with lots of good toppings (tomatoes, edamame, chicken, sunflower seeds, garbanzo beans...I love it when a place has garbanzo beans).
If I was still a student at Berkeley, I'd definitely be making my way down to Smart Alec's for some of that corn chowder right about now. Make sure you have cash though, because it's a no plastic cards type of place.
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Although this is probably one of the healthiest fast food joints I've ever been to, the food is forgettable in terms of taste. The fries are "air-baked," which seems to make them lose a lot of flavor. Also, they seem to close a little early.
However, if you pull an A on a paper or exam you can show it to them and get a free order of fries in return. The fries, as mentioned before, aren't great, but at least then they're free.
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I remember the best thing after a long day of studying at Moffit was the warm and creamy goodness of Smart Alec's corn chowder, complemented perfectly by the huge helping of sweet cornbread!
I discovered this place in my sophomore year, when a friend of mine urged me to try the vegetarian Big A burger. I was skeptical at first, since healthy food never really attracted me. But as soon as I had my frist bite, I was in love. Although I could tell that the Big A wasn't meat, I enjoyed its unique hearty taste, especially when you add the house sauce (a form of thousand island) on it.
I've probably tried everything on the menu, and haven't found one thing I dislike. My faves are the Big A, the corn chowder, the cornbread, the semi-sweet brownies, the turkey and cranberry sandwich, and the smoothies.
The current cold weather really makes me want the chowder even more! mmm
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The food here is pretty clean tasting.. your not going to find much grease or oil here, but you will find some pretty unfriendly employees. I do like their burgers and fries.... and I admit I would come here more often if the workers were nicer, but Id rather stroll on over and get myself a piece of Pizza at Fat Slice from nice workers... .then eat healthy were people treat you like scum. Never had a good impression with the employees here.....
Every time I ordered here it seemed like I ruined someones day.... I dont get this place.... You have a great selection healthy items (compared to those of other fast food places) ... which people looking for an alternative come to check out... and then get scared off by not so friendly staff.
it makes all the difference boys and girls...
I would give it a 2.5/5 but for the benefit of the doubt (and also cause yelp doesn't let you give half stars) it gets a Very Generous 3
Great Food, Poor Staff
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salads here bigger than your head ,great sesame dressing. The burgers and faux burgers are a little on the not so tasty side, but hit up those salads bigger than your head.. you won't be sorry
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The veggie burger and salads are good but they need to work on the garlic fries. Cashiers are always meanies and that usually makes me stray away from this place. I'm smart enough to go somewhere else like Intermezzo or Fat Slice.
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delicious and perfect for those times when you want a (vegan) burger fries and a soda, or just want to feel really fat
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In culinary terms, is "intelligent" synonymous with "bland"?
Smart Alec's makes a good argument for that case.
Air-baked fries. I didn't bother to find out why this method is preferable to the tried and true method of frying the shit out of them in oil (undoubtedly some notion of healthiness), but this method sure sucks out any flavor in the potato, as well as making it impossible to eat more than three fries without having to have a drink. I sat there forcing these bland silica sticks with a topping of garlic in my mouth vowing to never again eat fries if they aren't still dripping in oil.
Burgers. How does an "all-beef" patty taste like a vegan patty? Is this some subtle conditioning method used by Smart Alec's to convert me over to a cruelty-free cheeseburger? Again, I didn't have an answer. I was also kind of confused when my avocado burger came out as a guacamole burger.
Life lessons learned from Smart Alec's:
-Frying with oil and/or butter means flavor
-Not using oil or butter means no flavor
Eating bland food is stupid. So Smart Alec's must actually be stupid. Hah! I get it now! The name is ironic! Oh they sure got me. Good one, guys.
I only give this place 5 stars because it was the place I ate at seemingly a few times every week when I was at school. I think the food here is very good, healthier, and very filling for lunch. I ordered pretty much the same thing everytime I come here becuase I'm an extremely boring eater and can eat the same thing over and over again if I like it.
I basically always ordered a half soup/half sandwich/ or half salad combo. Their tossed salad with a vinagrette dressing is very good. It has this sweet tangy taste to it. I normally just go with plain ranch on house salad's but the vinagrette they have here is good. For soups, the potato leek is the best I think with the corn chowder a close second. They're very hearty and good for cold days. Their sandwiches are served on wheat bread, which I normally don't like but tastes good here. The sandwiches I like are the turkey with cranberry mayo sandwich, pesto chicken, tuna, and hummus. That's practically all their sandwiches. They also offer garlic fries which are good, but fail in comparison to the ones at Pac Bell! If you're a vegetarian or feel like eating beef, they have burgers and non meat burgers also. Their salads and sandwiches also come with a big ol' piece of corn bread and I love corn bread. Go try it, it's better than Intermezzo.
Oh man, the garlic fries were terrible! I was so disappointed. They just take regular fries and toss a mound of minced, probably uncooked garlic on top. The raw garlic flavor was so strong that every bite was truly painful for me. However, when I scraped off the garlic, the "baked" fries were actually pretty excellent.
My burger was decent, but I was sitting across from someone who got a salad, and sitting there looking at the salad, with all its edamame and chickpeas and tomatoes, I was actually really jealous of her. That probably says something. Not necessarily a bad thing, just that they make really awesome salads.
For an "intelligent food" place, I was really surprised that they only serve fountain beverages--nothing like Orangina or Izze. Coke is fine, but it's not exactly the most intelligent beverage choice you can make, and it kind of sticks out in a place offering a marinated tofu and avocado sandwich.
Cheap, reasonable portions, moderately tasty, moderately healthy. I'd go back for lunch, but it would never be my first choice.
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No doubt amazingly delicious. Employees are always nice and helpful. Always stoked about the vegan brownies.
smart alec's is cool if you ever get a craving for boring american food. veggie burgers that taste like burgers and really greasy fries. mr. pibb. potential heart burn risk. this all actually sounds good right now. maybe i like boring american food. maybe i'm a boring american! aaaAAGGGHHhhhhhhh!
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A less picky eater might be disturbed by the fact that the meat in the chili may or may not be meat. It sort of looks like meat, but it could also be some type of soy fako-meato product. I like it, and eat it pretty frequently considering I don't know what it is. They serve it with a big piece of cornbread. I like that too. Pretty good eats if you ask me.
I also tasted Britt's corn chowder...sooo good. It's definitely real corn and not soy fako-corno, so if you are into corn chowder get that.
(If you are into corny girls take Britt...skip the chowder)
I like this place.
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Smart Alecs is probably the only place on the planet where I feel safe eating "fast food." Most other places are frightening when it comes to ingredients, but these people have the right idea.
The food is simple, clean, and relatively healthy. Eating birdseed and other macrobiotic material may be good for me, but I'd prefer to eat something that I'm excited about. The burgers are great, the salads are enormous, and the fries are pretty darn good for not being fried. I really like the combination meals, I always leave feeling satisfied, not weighed down and bloated.
I find myself craving the strange dichotomy of "healthy fast food." I wish they were open LATE...
It's all about the hummus sandwich. The berry patch smoothie is also mighty fine.
Back when I lived on Telegraph I used to go here often, but honestly, if you're not in walking distance to Smart Alec's, it's not worth a special trip and the hassle of parking.
Everyone always talks about the salads at Intermezzo. But I'll go for a chef salad from Smart Alec's any day over the Intermezzo veggie delight. Both have heaps of lettuce, which I'd just as soon leave behind. It's all about the fillings. And here's what Smart Alec's has to offer: kidney beans, chick peas, edamame, wheat berries, egg, avocado, tomato, carrots, croutons, and in my case, juicy roast chicken bites. Intermezzo just does not deliver on all these fronts. Plus, the cornbread at Smart Alec's is way better than the weird wheat bread at Intermezzo. Smart Alec's also makes a mean eggplant melt. They fall short on their garlic fries, which smell amazing but are really just mediocre fries with a blob of garlic in the middle, and their burgers, which are kind of thin and soggy and just not satisfying. But I love that salad. Plus, sometimes I see mice at Intermezzo.
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Quite possibly one of the worst places I've ever eaten at. A lot of people really like it, and quite a few of my friends have recommended it, but maybe I never order the right thing. I love eating good food, and I'm health conscious about my food most of the time, but the food here was just not edible.
I've had the baked fries and the garlic fries. Honestly, I can "bake" my own fries and they will taste much better. The fries were pretty bad. The chili was totally gross. The "burgers" are inedible. The cornbread is okay, I guess. I have not tried the salads, but my friends seem to like them, so if I ever come back here (which I probably won't), I'll try a salad.
Maybe I'm a snob, but the place is really dirty and not suitable for dining in. It's basically the equivalent of the asian ghetto, but with bad food (b/c at least a couple of places at the asian ghetto have redeemable food despite the dirtiness of everything). Oh yea, and they don't take credit cards.
An excellent fast food choice on Telegraph Ave, which is very good for families too. Don't be stressed by the long line to order - they are quite popular - because the kitchen prepares most of the food very quickly.
As Cate D. said this is a great place for a vegan burger and fries. Add a vegan brownie too if you want a treat.
When they opened up years ago I think they wanted to be more of a vege restaurant. I guess that didn't pay the bills, but I really appreciate that they continue to maintain options for vegans and vegetarians.
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