Lacto
Ovo
American
Organic
Beer/Wine
Take-out
Honey
Non-veg
Serves meat, vegan options available. California based chain of eateries offering some plant-based and veggie choices including a chickpea & sweet potato bowl, beets & avocado bowl, curry tofu, portobello mushroom sandwich, a few hot and cold sides, and a vegan matcha vanilla cake. Check for the day's soup. Long list of beverages. Open Mon-Thu 11:00am-9:30pm, Fri-Sat 11:00am-10:00pm, Sun 11:00am-9:30pm.
7 Reviews
First Review by MandrillusSphinx
Forman
Points +5426
Good vegan options - Edit
The menu is clearly marked with vegan items. Pretty easy figuring out what to choose.
Read moreHad the quinoa & beet salad. A very flavorful dish, cabbage salad, marinated beets, 1/2 an avocado and large portion of quinoa.
A side of roasted mini potatoes. Everything was really good!
Guest
DmarieC
Points +182
So glad that I decided to give this place another try! - Edit
I hadn't been here for many years because I found the ordering process to be stressful and not very vegan-friendly. It is so different now with clearly listed vegan items and also the option of ordering on your phone. Leila very kindly took our order and off we went with our utensils and water to pick our favorite table. We did not wait long to enjoy our "Chili Glazed Grilled Tofu Bowls". Delicious. I had low expectations, but now I will make this one of my favorite restaurants in the area. Amar picked up our plates and asked how we liked the bowls. Leila also came over to check whether we wanted anything else. The power had gone out and my friend and I had not noticed. That's how much we enjoyed ourselves.
Read morePros: Clearly defined vegan dishes, Kind and attentive staff that are knowledgeable , Tasty vegan food and nice ambience
Cons: Could have a much larger vegan menu
Guest
kkeegan5
Points +378
Very good food! - Edit
I love being able to seat ourselves, place our order on our phones and having our food brought to our table very quickly.
Read morePros: Many vegan options , Tasty
Cons: Could use a few more vegan protein options
Guest
dosdosequis
Points +286
Removing vegan items from menu - Edit
New review:
Read moreUP keeps removing vegan items and adding more meats. Also keeps getting more and more expensive. Vegan options are now limited.
Original review:
In the past year, UP has added several vegan items to their menu, and they’re all great! My favorite is the vegan meatless loaf and tomato soup — so good! There’s also healthy and light options, like a beet and avocado plant-based bowl. They’ve improved a lot!
Updated from previous review on 2021-01-06
Cons: Keeps removing vegan items and adding more meat
Guest
Veg4lifeOG
Points +196
Food over seasoned - Edit
Food had way too much salt on it. Broccolini and potatoes were almost inedible. 🍅 bisque was tasty.
Read morePros: Clearly labeled Vegan options, Salad was good, Soup was amazing
Cons: Overly salty , No vegan dessert , Default dressing Caesar with anchovies
Guest
JKay
Points +130
Interesting experience – I would go again (4/5 Green Stars). - Edit
What I liked about urban plates: the staff members behind the counter were invested in cooking food – you are interacting directly with the chefs who cooked your food from scratch that day (instead of corporate-trained automatons delivering stock soundbites). I liked the general atmosphere and most of the food looked really good. I think I was a bit unlucky in that I chose a tofu green curry ($10) and it was pretty bland: the usual mistake of trying to make it suitable for everyone (not too spicy or bold) but in the end probably pleasing few. Also, the server happened to give me a pretty small portion of it, so I wasn’t at all full after it – it’s like the old joke that Woody Allen used to use: Person 1: The food was terrible; Person 2: Yeah, and such small portions! But seriously, it wasn’t terrible – just bland. We also had a piece of pumpkin/walnut cake ($6.50) and a Mosaic Session IPA ($6.25). They have a nice outdoor covered seating area, friendly staff, and aside from the bland (and small) tofu dish it was a pretty good experience.
Read moreI’m also giving Urban Plates 4/5 “green stars” for social and environmental impact, based on these reasons:
• They do stock a reasonable amount of plant-based food but the menu is focused on meat and fish. Maybe they’ll introduce more veggie food if there’s enough demand – their website has a chart for dishes that are (or can be modified to be) vegan or vegetarian.
• I appreciated that my tofu was organic – this is important to me (esp. in the US).
• They do stock quite a few organic items (e.g., kale, tomatoes, potatoes, rice, and the milk and apple juice on the kids menu).
• They stock local beer and wine and organic, fair trade coffee.
• The model of chefs preparing everything from scratch and serving directly to customers could actually change things a bit: moving customers who don’t cook much a bit closer to their food.
Interested in writing green star reviews? If so, contact me or check out the Green Stars Project online!
Pros: Organic tofu and several organic veggies, Supports local farms, On their site they have a full guide to veg dishes
Cons: A lot of meat and fish on the menu
Guest
MandrillusSphinx
Points +301
Vegan options but keep an eye on things - Edit
Today was a pretty typical experience the line cook was making my food and didn’t know one of the items had egg in it, then didn’t know or want to check if other items were vegan or not. The food was WFPB and amazing but the store doesn’t bother to stock a single vegan dessert and they don’t teach their line cooks what items are vegan. This place could be so great with a little effort. It isn’t cheap so they should get it together a bit.
Read morePros: Vegan options on the menu, Food tases great, Nice casual atmosphere
Cons: Staff not clear on what vegan means, Staff don’t know the ingredients in their station, No vegan desserts
Guest
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