CAVA — Restaurant in Gainesville

Unfortunately I have to edit this review after 2 horrible experiences. They run out of everything and refuse to make more even though they have 3 more hours that they are open. When I asked, they said they " run out of the good stuff by lunch time ". I asked when I should come in to get food and they said before lunch! Came back the next day and the same thing happened. They were out of a lot of toppings and refused to make more.

Old review from opening day:

If this restaurant looks familiar, it's because CAVA bought out Zoe's kitchen and they serve similar Mediterranean flair, but with harissa being prominent on the menu of flavors. Cava has the benefit of offering multiple raw mixed vegetable options as a base instead of just boring lettuce. You can order preselected combinations or create your own bowl or pita. Once you have selected pita or bowl as your base, you can select a combination of rice and fresh veggies before moving on to proteins. From there you can pick a variety of fresh toppings such as pickles, avocado, feta, cucumbers, tomatoes etc. The last step is the sauces on top, which includes things like tahini or a spicy harissa sauce.

Harissa chicken is a kind of spicy that builds as you eat it, and the sauce they put on top brings more heat. If you're like me, you like a spicy challenge but I felt the spice overpowered some of the more delicate Mediterranean flavors I was looking for. My favorite part was the pickled onions, but I'm a sucker for pickles. I also tried a build your own brown rice bowl, to which I added the braised lamb. The lamb was incredibly tender and juicy and paired nicely with feta, hummus and pickled onions.

Don't pass on the house made juices! I loved the cucumber drink even though I'm not a fan of cucumber water. It had a sweet and fresh flavor.

My one critique is that I found the scoops for the toppings are too small. Most of the flavors come from the toppings, and I was disappointed to receive a tiny thumb amount of hummus on a large Mediterranean style bowl. The eggplant is incredible, but unfortunately you get the same tiny scoop which doesn't even fill a spoon.

If you're looking for a light yet filling meal, this is the...

I am pretty frustrated as i’m leaving this restaurant currently. I’ve been to CAVA in Tampa before, so i’m aware of the expectations as the location in Tampa was amazing so I was excited to visit again and take my boyfriend who enjoys Mediterranean food as well. Walking into the restaurant I waited over 15 minutes for rice to be made, which I understand and didn’t have a problem with. When rice was finally made, they only had white rice and I wanted brown, but they said I would have to wait longer for that, so I just ordered it with the white rice because I didn’t want to wait longer and was never told it was only going to be white rice made. While making my bowl, I was told I was going to be charged for tzatziki sauce on the side even though it is considered a topping which is supposed to be free. I understand upcharges for items like my double protein I ordered I have no problem paying more for. I just don’t understand why I got charged for a topping just because I didn’t want it on my whole bowl and just on the side instead? Then, as I am driving away I realize I was never given any pita bread for any of my 3 bowls I ordered. I did not feel like returning and trying to make it through Gainesville traffic. I am not one to write reviews, but the CAVA I went to in tampa was so amazing it was so disappointing to come to this location and be nothing but underwhelmed by the service and quality, like forgetting to include the pita bread after I spent 80$ on my 3 bowls, and then tell me I have to pay for a topping because I wanted it on the side. Like I said, I am not one to write reviews, but I was so excited to bring my boyfriend here and feel I was mistreated by the staff and after waiting so long I wanted to just order my food and leave, then was let down again by there being no pita in my bowls as well. This is quite unfortunate because this is the closest location to me and I feel I may be disappointed again my next visit here, but we’ll see.

Update: I was eating my bowl at home and after taking a few bites, I unfortunately came across a piece of...

Sunday 3/26/23, i arrived with a friend of mine to the restaurant on Archer Road in Butler Plaza at approximately 1155am. We were 5th and 6th in line. There were three workers behind the counter. One black male and two black females. The male was taking the orders and creating the bowls/wraps while one of the other females was apparently in charge of adding the side items and sauces and then also having to cashier, while the other female did NOTHING. Our bowls sat on the counter waiting to be finished for 10 MINUTES, because the girl that was supposed to be preparing the sides and dressings, couldn't figure out what the sauces were for the two take out orders ahead of me. She went thru 3 sauces, discarding them all, before she got the right one. Top that off with the fact that she had 2" nails on and her nails kept breaking the gloves. We finally received our bowls at 1222pm. By the time we sat down to eat, our chicken was cold and the lettuce was soggy. By the time we got to our table, there were 37 customers in line and the line wrapped along the wall, across the back, and back down to the East exit door. Meanwhile, the other black employee, not the one with nails, is casually sorting the pita chips...she had the audacity to rearrange them three times and then fuss at the male worker for grabbing pita bags from the back and not the front. She then proceeds to grab a broom and pail and begins casually walking around the dining room picking up scraps of dirt....the freaking floor was CLEAN. IT WAS ONLY 1225 AND THE RESTAURANT HAD JUST OPENED. this employee had no sense of team work, no sense of urgency, no sense enough to say, "LET ME JUMP IN HERE AND HELP THIS SERVICE LINE MOVE FASTER". Literally zero leadership in the restaurant, zero efficiency, and zero sense of customer support. By the time we left the dining room at 110pm, there were still 29 customers in line. Shame on you Cava, shame on you two young ladies for having zero sense of what good customer service should be. I won't be...