Common Roots Cafe

Average coffee shop for vegans. They nicely label what is vegan, but there are not a ton of options. Black bean empanades are good during happy hour. For my dollar, I prefer namaste or french meadow.

If all restaurants were like this there's no doubt the world would be a better place, but Common Roots still has a lot of room for improvement. They do a great job using local, organic and fair-trade ingredients. As a vegetarian you'll do fine here but there are few vegan items on the menu. Frustratingly, they offer bison sausage, turkey sausage, chicken sausage but no veggie sausage.

I could overlook these things if they labeled the vegetarian and vegan items on the menu. I find it easiest to navigate a menu that uses a green leaf to indicate the vegetarian items and a "v" with a circle around it to indicate the vegan items. At a minimum, it would be helpful for them to indicate which items can be made vegan upon request.

I went here with my friend from Minneapolis after eating a huge meal elsewhere; I was in dire need of coffee, so he took me here. Unfortunately I only had coffee (soy latte - they use some good soy milk too!) here and had to drool over the Vegan items in front of me - I was beyond stuffed from lunch - the pastries that were pointed out to me looked very good. I also saw that they had several Vegan options food-wise.

I believe that all of their to-go containers were made from 100% corn, so they're 100% compostable...I like that! If I lived in Minneapolis, this would be the go-to coffee shop for me; it's comfortable, quiet, and offers Vegan items.

The Common Roots Cafe has coffee drinks, beer/wine, bagels and spreads (there is always a vegan option for a spread - "beet hummus" etc.), a variety of salads, soups (almost always a vegan option), entree options, and desserts (usually at least 1 vegan option - "vegan chocolate hazelnut tart" etc.). The ambiance is an interesting mix of hipsters, people with their laptops, activist-ee types, and families. You order at the counter, grab your beverages/soups/bagels, and they will bring entrees to your table. They make most things from scratch, use many local ingredients, and their offerings (desserts, salads, soups) change daily. It's a casual place with brick walls, a clean and inviting atmosphere, large windows, wooden floors, and lots of tables. I recommend their mimosa (made with sparkling white wine and orange juice), bagels with spreads, and soup. Their soups, served with home made bagel chips, are amazing and offereings change daily. Give it a try! (There is parking on the side of the building by the vet clinic next door. There is usually at least one open spot. It's very easy to bike to if you're close to the Greenway! If you need handicap access you could park in the lot and use a ramp to get to the side door or go around to the front entrance - which is probably easier!)

At first I was not impressed with Common Roots, but their service and menu have both become more vegan-friendly in the last few months. First and foremost, they use fresh, local, organic produce which makes their food taste better, period. The flavors burst, because they're natural and earthy. Their tempeh sandwich with vegan rosemary bread is light, fresh and delicious; they also have some interesting vegan desserts, such as a chocolate-cherry tort or a more traditional muffin/cupcake/cookie. They usually have at least one or two vegan cold pasta salads, and a couple of vegan soups. Common Roots is also famous for their home-made bagels and wonderful hummus (try their beet hummus, which is also great!). I am impressed with their social dedication---they compost everything, have recycled packaging and biodegradable utensils. They also host various social events and speakers, as well as "meet your farmer" sessions. Finally, they also have a few local beers on tap, with an outside garden area open during the summer; their happy hour is a pleasant respite after a long day at the office. If they added two or three more vegan entrees to the menu, they'd warrant an extra happycow for their rating.