Native Foods Cafe

Great food that is well seasoned and very well presented..

I am not a vegetarian but probably could be with this food! Me like very much!

Dining at this place always makes me feel better about my foodie adventures since everything here is not only vegan, but also gluten-free! *

I highly recommend coming here for their specials. My favorite is their Portobello and Sausage burger, which comes with caramelized onions, pomodoro, sweet roasted garlic, creamy pumpkin pesto and mayo! It's under $10, and if you come here on Saturdays, they have this selection as their special which means it comes with a free side!

I've tried their seasoned fries and sweet potato fries. Both are great! They also use organic ketchup, which is also another great thing. As for drinks, I highly recommend that you get their lavender lemonade. (it's their trademark drink!) It's refreshing and fragrant. They also serve iced tea, watermelon fresca, and hibiscus tea, but I thought those were just okay.

But other than that, this is a great place for those who want to have healthier options for meals. Be sure to register for a free membership card so you can rack up points for either free desserts, appetizers, etc! =)

I came here with Denise K. I am the friend who got the portobello & sausage burger and she the thursday special (cause I remember that day was thursday). We both had out burgers with sweet potato fries. And two drinks.

We came on a really good day cause they were passing out free samples like crazy. While we were waiting for our food to come out, we got our drinks (refer to her review for more details). We found a table and they came by offering us a free sample of their cheesecake. Unfortunately I am not a fan. After one taste, I pushed it aside and continued waiting for my food.

When my food came, I thought it was good. However I just felt a bit disappointed since I expected more from this place. Since I am a mushroom lover, I was comparing Veggie Grill with Native Foods, using their mushroom burgers for comparison. Veggie grill's burger was by far more satisfying. I felt as though this burger was good and all, but I wouldnt go out of my way for it...

The service continues to amaze me and the nice waitresses came by again asking us if we would like to try their cupcakes. We excited said yes, and my friend selected the vanilla cupcake. In my opinion it was a dryer, less favorable version of corncake.. .. .. We didnt really LOVE it.. .. But we kept picking at it until we figured out what the taste resembled.

Overall, the service was amazing and the food was okay. I would definitely try some of their other burgers, given that it is really really convenient for me.

This is one of the few vegetarian places with 100% vegan yummy food! The vast majority of the menu is flavorful yet super healthy. Yes some of the items are lighter in flavor but that's the whole idea. The menu also changes seasonally so always check back for new items!

Must have items include the strawberry shortcake parfait for dessert, and definitely try out all the super yummy teas/juice from water melon with mint, to lavender lemonade. For entrees you can't go wrong with the Chicken ranch burger with a side of sweet potato fries, or portabello mushroom burger.

This place also has super friendly servers that bring you your food with a smile. They'll even bring you dessert after your meal or help refill your drinks even though its mostly a self service place. Note it does get pretty busy during peak lunch and dinner hours so be prepared to wait awhile for your food or even just to find a table. They do have outdoor seating though if its a nice day out.

Ambiance: This place feels clean and is decorated beautifully.

Price: Under $15 per plate

Service: Friendly.

Location: Ample parking all around the district, it just depends on the time you go.

Food & Drinks:
~mama mia pizza (amazing flavors blended nicely together!)http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/hk3q9kZAoKuq_dY1PYgPaw?select=VZbaHqJFKkMRYIU-ArolNg
~chimichurri burger labor day weekend special (this was just okay...) http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/hk3q9kZAoKuq_dY1PYgPaw?select=WBQYd64DbhL9rGsIl59txQ
~barbeque flavored burger (sorry forgot the name! it was pretty good) http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/hk3q9kZAoKuq_dY1PYgPaw?select=HlH7qduHZxzQia6oyMTVvQ
~crispy sweet potato fries (crispy and amazing)
~garlic fries (mmmmmm!)
~agua frescas and tea

Story: Delicious healthy vegan meals are found here! Stop and look no further! I immediately fell in love with their mama mia pizza, which was so flavorful and fantastic. We love to mix their three drinks they have on hand, especially watermelon and lemonade together. Lemonade is also great by itself. Their tea and watermelon are just okay.


Tips:
~They have a rewards program. Not sure of what the rewards are exactly...ask them!

I was hesitant about trying this with my friends. I mean...I'm a meat kind of guy. I was pleasantly surprised that their faux meat was able to fill me up and not force me to go across the parking lot to Innout.

My first dish I've had there was their tacos. It was a Tuesday. I needed some tacos:

http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/hk3q9kZAoKuq_dY1PYgPaw?select=-o9GfFGhn4qr9nHJ57sxsQ

I liked them. The guac was on the limey side, but that's cool. I didn't like the fact that the corn tortillas kept breaking and falling apart. This dish was difficult to eat with the hands, so I had to resort to utensils. =(


My next visit I enjoyed the gyros:

http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/hk3q9kZAoKuq_dY1PYgPaw?select=pc6KBBOVIrF96m5NIEq8Jw

The faux gyro meat sat on top of delicious vegetables. The cool part of the dish was the super large cracker bread. It added a nice crisp texture to the rest of the dish. I would definitely get this again.

Native Foods has my vote for all things non meat.

Why are you closing locations when you should be OPENING locations? Veggie Grill is kicking butt and taking names but Native Foods (who've been around much longer) just can't seem to get it together. There is a HUGE demand for healthy vegetarian and vegan food in South OC, yet we have to drive 30 minutes north to Costa Mesa or drive to LA just to go to NF? Why not San Clemente or Laguna Niguel or Mission Viejo?

It seems like they are more interested in franchising out of state than serving the loyal customers who have been with them for over a decade. C'mon guys, get it together!

We called at 9:57 (3 minutes to closing) to place a To-go order and they accommodated us!! Most places would tell us the kitchen's closed or something.

We dined in the day before. I'm not vegan nor vegetarian but I love this place! Their chicken ranch run burger is better than most "real" chicken burgers out there! They offer a lot of side items. We tried their sweet potato fries, regular fries, and steamed kale. Great drink selection too. They were serving lavender lemonade and watermelon aqua fresca the two days we visited.

The kids loved their Mac n cheese here.

The staff here were friendly and nice. The restaurant was clean and well-maintained.

Don't forget to sign up with their rewards / frequent diner program.

How sad that this location closed before I got to finish my review!
We had a really great time here, service was nice and the reason to get us through the door.
I was with my husband who enjoys meat with every meal and they talked him into giving Native Foods a chance and he loved it!
He had the chicken club and I stole a bite, so tasty!
Love the breading they use!
Prices and portions are fair as well.
I had the gyros and loved it as well.
We had a side salad and fries, both very tasty.
I love that all sauces are made from scratch as well, makes SUCH a difference!
Glad that there are still a few locations around, but I will miss this one as I shop in the area all the time!

I am a person who loves bacon, hamburgers, and tasty Asian dishes. But any chance there is to try a good vegetarian restaurant, I'm on it! This time, my husband was out of town and I jumped on the chance, because I wouldn't want to hear him say again (and again) that vegetarian food is just gross.

I would've heard an 'I told you so'.

I ordered the Greek Gyro bowl. It LOOKED like gyro, I was impressed, but it did not taste like it at all. The bowl was tasteless with quinoa and tons of veggies, and the seitan gyro was just meh. If not for the lemon-garlic dressing, which was excellent, it would've been inedible for me. Too bad there was only one small container of lemon-garlic dressing, the other was apparently hummus, but had the consistency of a salad dressing. It did not taste like hummus, and I barely used it.

Halfway through my salad, the lemon-garlic dressing was gone, and I had no choice but to stop eating. I almost wished I had gotten another entree.

The best thing was actually the Watermelon Fresca. It was SO refreshing, I had another refill while waiting for my take-out order! Bordering on too sweet, I just added more ice.

Because of the good reviews on the Blueberry Lavender Lemonade, I sneaked a bit in between refills, and did not like it as much. It tasted like flowers. Not a fan.

Albeit, the so-so meal, the staff was nice, and the restaurant appeared clean.

Better than Rutabegorz and The Green Tomato Grill, but not enough for me to eat vegetarian food regularly.