Serves meat, vegan options available. Coffeehouse cafe serving breakfast all day which includes tofu scramble as a substitute for eggs, tempeh sausage, vegan biscuits and gravy, sweet potato home fries in addition to other food items and fair trade organic coffee drinks, smoothies, and other beverages. Menu marks which items can be made vegan. Uses some organic ingredients. Counter service. Open Mon-Sun 7:00am-6:00pm.
Category: Vegan-friendly, Lacto, Ovo, American, Juice bar, Take-out, Non-veg
Reviews (24)
First Review by lentil
Contributions +44
Deserves5 stars! - Edit
So many Vegan options! We made our own breakfast sandwich with tofu scramble& maple seitan "bacon"= Best part is their business model- completely Vegan. They even have a solar powered hot water heater!
Pros: Vegan business model, lots of Vegan options
Cons: none
Contributions +81
Love this place for Breakfast - Edit
I've gotten breakfast here a few times now (every time I visit Asheville) and I love their fresh pressed juices and oatmeal or chia bowls especially. They also have vegan milks available for coffee, which is great.
Contributions +32
Lots of vegan options! - Edit
This place was so cute, yummy and quick! The veggie burger is delicious and the almond butter vegan brownie blew me away. I'll be back and anyone who is vegan with meat-eating friends should check this place out. Only giving it four cows because happy cow won't let me put five since it is classified as "non-vegetarian."
Pros: Yummy, Quick, Inexpensive
Contributions +107
Great spot downtown - Edit
We stopped in here for an afternoon coffee break and had a juice and a brownie. The gluten-free vegan brownie was so tasty!! I would definitely recommend visiting this place if you're in Asheville.
Pros: lots of vegan options, everything marked if it's gluten-free
Cons: downtown, so definitely can't park on premises
Contributions +16
oily - Edit
The food was good, with helpfull service and vegan options
Pros: Price was fair, tea was good, service was good
Cons: food was oily , portion were small but adequate
Contributions +68
Unjust Desserts - Edit
The food is very good. I had the tofu scramble, biscuit and gravy, root vegetables, and sausage/gravy. Only dissapointment was the mushroom gravy, which isn't well suited for a breakfast meal (maybe better on a stir fry). I suggest a traditional white gravy (flour and unsweetened soy milk), with their excellent tempeh sausage crumbled into it. My friend had one of their grain/vegetable/tempeh bowls, which was excellent.
There was a large case displaying muffins, cookies, etc. Only a brownie and a ginger cookie were vegan. This is really unforgivable, given that vegan cupcakes have taken over the world, and even Whole Foods knows how to make vegan blueberry and cranberry muffins. I suggest simply converting all baked goods to vegan.
Pros: All Day Breakfast, Green Juices
Cons: Limited Desserts, Mushroom Gravy
Contributions +54
Many vegan options - Edit
On my recent trip to Asheville my omni boss and I had breakfast at one of the locations 3 times. I had the tofu scramble platter and it was fabulous. My boss had the breakfast burrito and loved it. I also had a cashew butter brownie that was very good. Service was very decent and it has a pleasant atmosphere. Beware they open at 8 which seems a little late for a breakfast place.
Contributions +21
great food - always - Edit
green sage has not let me down at the downtown or hendersonville rd locations. always enjoy their food and juices/smoothies
Contributions +13
Lots of choices to satisfy many - Edit
Being a local and having to watch what I eat, Green Sage is one of my many go to places. I have a gluten intolerance so they offer so much that I can eat here. Farm to table food...which means fresh organic!! Smoothies, juices, salads, beans/rice bowls, soups, breakfast and much more. Many vegan options. They usually have a few specials every day. Fast service, friendly folks and they pretty much work with ya on helping to match your food needs. They have a nice selection of tea and sweeties (many gluten free). You can order different size plates such as a small portion or a large portion. Very affordable. They have also opened a much bigger place (number 3) at westgate where the Earthfare is. Easier parking than downtown and open a bit later too.
Pros: fresh, organic, green space
Cons: parking, close to early
Contributions +22
WARNING: Items listed on menu as VEGAN are NOT!!! - Edit
on the current menus being used at all three locations, the biscuits are labeled as vegan when THEY ARE NOT. most staff will not offer this info up as you order, so ASK ABOUT EVERYTHING you order being clean Vegan. I was told they are in the process of a "menu overhaul" and that the Vegan biscuits are gone for good, as well as the Vegan gravy and several other Vegan items.
Pros: locations, clean, comfortable
Cons: conflicting descriptions of menu items, ease of finding parking, sometimes pricey for portion size
Contributions +38
Awesome vegan brunch - Edit
The Green Sage Plate, veganized, was delicious. Tofu scramble, sauteed kale and onions, sweet potato home fries, vegan biscuit with mushroom gravy and a side of house made tempeh soysage. Yummy, vegan, southern, comfort breakfast food! I visited The Green Sage twice, both times for brunch, because it was that good, and the other vegan-friendly places only had brunch on Sundays. They have vegan brunch everyday!
Pros: A lot of vegan options, Vegan brunch everyday, Friendly staff/relaxed atmosphere
Contributions +73
opens early gluten free - Edit
Great vegan breakfast options. I got the sunrise made vegan. Scramble was pretty good with a biscuit. The sweet potato hash was too sweet and not very flavorful though, wouldn't order it again. Decent coffee. Lots of organic and gf options also.
Contributions +87
Great Vegan Options - Edit
They have great options for all meals. Breakfast is served all day. Thumbs up for that. The breakfast platter with tofu scramble, kale, and sweet potatoes is very satisfying although a tad too oily. There's nothing fancy about the biscuits however I quite like them! The fries are delicious and you can opt for tempeh on the wraps and sandwiches.
The Asian Chop Chop salad is fantastic. Definitely try it.
Pros: Vegan Biscuits, Breakfast All Day, Plenty Of Options
Cons: Too Oily
Contributions +15
The Green Sage - Edit
This is our third time eating breakfast here, and we went hundreds of miles out of our way on our trip from Orlando FL back home to IL to eat at 2 cafes in Asheville. The line was out the door, same as last 2 times. Breakfast was wonderful! I had Mushroom Gravy on biscuit, scrambled free range eggs, kale and sweet potato hash browns. Yumm!!!! Can't wait to "purposely" go back through Asheville to eat there again!!!
Pros: Great food, Friendly staff, Clean, neat, cute, great souvenirs!
Cons: Only 3 locations. Need one in So IL!!!
Contributions +20
Awesome! - Edit
Fantastic food, moderate prices, cool vibe, environmentally responsible, friendly staff...and the list goes on. Best vegan tofu scramble, hands down. Run, don't walk to this fantastic eatery. My omnivore husband was equally impressed and the two mornings we were in Asheville we ate here.
If you are vegan, as I am, please don't pass up the opportunity to eat here. Don't let the fact that they serve meat put you off...if more people continue to order the vegan dishes they might stop serving meat dishes altogether!
This is an extremely vegan/vegetarian friendly place. Looooooved it!
Contributions +43
Good Coffee - Edit
I wished we had eaten here instead of Laughing Seed. It is a cool little place. We did get coffee here, it was good. The one thing we didn't like is that the sleeves for the coffee was over at another counter, so we almost burned ourselves carrying our coffees from register over. The people working there seemed pretty uninterested, but it was a hip place.
Pros: Coffee, Atmosphere, Vegan options
Cons: Staff, Friendliness, No Sleeves
Contributions +61
Amazing Mushroom Gravy - Edit
I'm very surprised to see the mixed reviews below because our experience there was so outstanding. We both ordered the Sage Plate with scrambled tofu/eggs, sweet potato, biscuit and gravy and kale. The sheer amount of fresh herbs made me giddy and the mushroom gravy was out of this world. Iced tea and hot tea were also great and the place was cozy and the staff super friendly despite having to work early on a Sunday when it was raining cats and dogs. So I can't speak for consistency but our visit was great and we will return when we come back to Asheville. Oh, also their prices are great when compared to other vegetarian/vegan places in Asheville that charge $14 for brunch which is just crazy. We paid $20 for an amazing breakfast for 2.
Pros: Sage Plate, Pet friendly outdoor seating, Price
Contributions +20
organic affordable cafe with good ambience - Edit
It's not often you can go to a mainstream organic type cafe and find something for everyone, but Green Sage satisfied my family's diverse appetites.
My partner and I shared a Green Monster organic smoothie and the vegan biscuits and gravy with a side of vegan soysauge. The smoothie was a full pint glass for $5.59. The portion for the biscuits and gravy was small, but for $2.99, it's not *that* pricy. The soysauge by itself was maybe $1.50 as a side. The coffee was delicious. They were serving their own grind of Uganda Peaberry. There were several selections of vegan muffins, cookies and cupcakes in the bakery case as well.
The inside is bright and cheerful. I liked that they have agave and organic sugar to add to drinks, and rice, almond, or soy milks are available too, FOR NO EXTRA CHARGE! yayy!
It was also nice to see that they were rated a 100.0 on their sanitation rating.
Pros: vegan breakfast options, good coffee, organic
Cons: smallish portions
Contributions +723
GREAT OPTIONS - A TAD PRICEY - Edit
I liked this place and my breakfast was good. But, it's expensive for what you get. BEST COFFEE I have ever had -- big, huge cup that was delicious. Definitely go here for a good cup of coffee!
I got the scrambled eggs, sweet potato fries, and grits (it all comes together). While I am not normally a grit-kinda girl, these were pretty good. My friend had the southwest omelet and she said it was tad on the spicy side; but, she said it was good. It was a busy day and the breakfast took a while to come out. But, it's a laid-back atmosphere and I didn't mind. I like that you can sit outside.
All in all it was good. And, I try and support places that offer vegetarian options, which this place does. Anything that came with meat, you could get a meat-substitute instead. That's fantastic.
Thing is, Asheville has so many true all vegan/vegetarian restaurants for me to come to a place that serves meat and is expensive. I'm glad I tried it, but I would only go back if I was with someone who wanted a meat dish that my favorite veg places don't offer.
Pros: GREAT coffee, Lots of meat-substitute options, Cute atmosphere
Cons: Pricey
Contributions +29
Good coffee, nice atmosphere - Edit
I really like the philosophy of this place being as organic and local as possible. It is always clean and has quick service, though the employees usually look stressed and unhappy. My complaint is mostly with pricing. This week I ate there and paid $4 for one pancake and $3 for one piece of tempeh soysage. Rather pricey even for organic. The food has always been pretty good although I agree that the sweet potato fries don't need sugar on them.
My other complaint is the lack of vegan baked goods. When they first opened they had a nice selection but it has diminished quite a bit. Last time I was in they had only 2 vegan baked goods in the whole display case. I have asked them why and they always say "we are looking for a new vegan pastry chef" but they have said that for years. Overall it is a nice place to chill and have a coffee whether or not you want to shell out $8 for breakfast.
Pros: clean, green, fast service
Cons: expensive for what you get, few vegan baked goods
Contributions +62
Awesome Food - Edit
I ordered the Tofu Scramble with Sweet Potatos and a biscuit on the side along with a double soy latte. My check was a little over $11, but it was worth it! The only thing that wasn't fantastic was the biscuit- it tasted like it was 90% shortening. The Tofu scramble had greens, spices, and cherry tomatoes in it and the potatoes were simple and delicous! I was so satisfied that I didn't want the biscuit anyway! The service was friendly and prompt, the atmosphere was nice and it was CLEAN! They serve breakfast all day too! The coffee was much better than the regular chain coffee shops around too. Avoid the biscuit and you'll be set for a great meal.
Pros: tasty, quick, clean
Contributions +72
inconsistent, but lots of options - Edit
I had to delete my review and write a new one, since my first visit a while back had been really good and they do have a lot of options for all different kinds of eaters, so I was pretty positive. But more recently I was embarrassed when I brought people here since the food was mostly very mediocre. The sweet potato home fries had sugar sprinkled on top, which everyone agreed was a terrible idea since they are way sweet enough naturally and it wasn't a dessert. I'll have to try it again to decide one way or the other, but honestly I'm not too anxious to give it another try anytime soon. The first visit worked out well for us as there were options for a bunch of different diets; vegan, gluten-free, picky conventional, etc. But not sure if things got worse here or we got lucky once or unlucky once. Good for coffee and hanging out though.
Pros: variety, locally sourced, sometimes good?
Cons: sometimes not so good
Contributions +68
I agree with Lentil - Edit
If I had to write a review, it would be the EXACT one as Lentil's. I try and try to like my visits at Greensage because I love their philosophies and the atmosphere, but their food sucks unbelievably! The soysage is absolutely disgusting along with the gravy. The tofu scramble is really gross too. It's like they just dumped some tofu out of the package and microwaved it. I've been there 3-4 times and I'm not impressed.
Pros: atmosphere
Cons: food is gross, cramped, long wait
Contributions +35
Don't get your biscuits & gravy here! - Edit
This place has really fast internet service & comfy couch seating. The ambiance is polished & nice. They have stevia, agave, rice milk, soy milk & honey all out on the bar. I really appreciate the fact that they use biodegradable corn to go utensils & have an extensive composting & recycling area BUT the food sucks. I tried & tried & tried to eat here. The worst being biscuits & gravy. The gravy is a really gross salty brown shitake gravy(almost tastes like chinese food sauce) & there faux sausage tastes like I don't even know what. Yuck. When I ordered slaw on the side it seemed like old slaw that had been in the fridge atleast overnight. I ordered egg & cheese biscuits repeatedly & every time it was something different. Like almost no cheese or sooooo dry & repeatedly over salted eggs. Some how they managed to ruined sauteed swiss chard. I never had one thing for breakfast good here so I gave up. Almost everything is organic & local. There smoothies are good. The baked goods looked good. The coffee was fine.
Pros: organic & local , earth friendly operation, great central downtown location
Cons: food, sorry but the FOOOOD, cranky staff
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