Tropical Smoothie Cafe — Restaurant in Garden City

Tropical Smoothie Cafe--AS GOOD AS IT GETS Service: 5/5 Food: 4/5 Price for value: 4/5 Bariatrics/Healthy Options: 5/5

Overall stars for this establishment, for me, is 5 and here's why: I am always on the lookout for something tasty and healthy to eat. Those that follow me know that I don't like to go to the same place twice (to eat) unless it's really good. Well, although I like the food, I think that I will stop in here often as my go-to place for a comforting albeit healthy drink! They even have a drive-thru for convenience.

Located on the corner of Overland and Maple Grove, I am nearby there often as I frequent Crunch Fitness across the street. TSC is located in a small strip mall with AYCE Sushi, a loan place, and an urgent care center. Parking can be very difficult-- be aware of that.

Walking in, space seems to be very large, but really it's just a long hallway and a small kitchen and dining space; however, they make the most of the space. The colors are vibrant, music was a good even tone, and the temperature seemed to be on the cold side to me, which I didn't like, but others may.

The options are plenty! There is a nutritional face sheet that is readily available and it tells you how many calories and carbs when you substitute Splenda, which at times raises that calorie content because they are made all natural. There are other options like you can get at other juice places such as protein.

They serve food, too! I got a Baja bowl with no rice. It had chicken, black beans, veggies and more. The sauce was a little too spicy for my belly, so I asked for a side of ranch--good ranch! My dining companion got the same thing but in a wrap. The wrap was held together tightly in the tortilla, making it easy to eat. You can get a side with your meal such as baked chips, or fresh fruit (you pick from: apple, orange, or banana. Total for the bowl, the side, and a smoothie was only $9.99 and a smoothie usually is $6 in and of itself at other places.

The service was great. The first time I went I got a young lady who made a great suggestion of Detox Island green (200 calories when made with Splenda/180 without--this one is more healthy without Splenda) and I liked it. The second time I visited, I was helped by one of the managers and he was very nice and helpful and helped me understand the process and the menu more. This time I tried Sunrise Sunset (140 calories when made with Splenda, 36 carbs with 7 dietary fiber= 29 net carbs, and a whopping 15g of protein).

Well, thanks for reading! I hope you're having a good day whenever you read this!!! Leave a comment and say HI! Would love to know your thoughts on Tropical...

I absolutely LOVE this place. This is my new "fast food" place to eat. I put fast food in quotations because it's anything but, however, it's not a restaurant. This place has healthy, vegan, and even gluten free food options. It also has a few breakfast options and menu for kids. It's not a giant menu but I love that because the QUALITY of the food is much better than anything you'll get from McDonald's, Wendy's, Carl's Jr, etc... Not only that you can obviously get smoothies there. There are Classic Smoothies to enjoy, but they also have "Superfood" smoothies that have great health benefits. That still taste DELICIOUS!!!! They also have add-ons that you can put into your smoothie for a $1 per item. They have a multi-vitamin, probiotic, energizer, fat burner, etc. But they also have "live" options like flaxseed, ginger, and things of that nature. It can get a little expensive depending on how many add-ons you do but they have a special where you can get a smoothie at a cheaper cost when you buy an entree type item. Today my food cost $10.90 and I got the Chicken Cali Club which is one of my favorites, it is so darn tasty!! The sides they have are also healthy. You can get a kale-apple slaw, which surprisingly isn't too bad or your choice of fresh fruit, with apple, orange or banana as options. They do have chips but healthier option ones. Another thing I love is the food is filling and has a great portion size but doesn't bog you down to where you're tired and wanna go take a nap instead of going back to work. I have been coming here for months now and I can say with the utmost certainty they have TERRIFIC FOOD. No matter how busy they get EVERY SINGLE time I've eaten there the quality of the food doesn't diminish neither do their smoothies. I have NEVER gone somewhere to eat where every single time the food was on par.. And to be completely honest I was a little surprised by that because they do have younger adults working there but they're quality of service is phenomenal and better than adults working at fast food joints. They are always friendly, polite, and enjoyable to interact with. They even know my name now. (Told you I go there a lot haha) The manager there does a very proficient job with his staff. You can also download their app and when you use it to pay, they scan the QR code on your phone and you get reward points and can get $5 off after a certain number of points. Hands down this is my favorite place to eat. I promise you,...

So, I've been here four times. Two of the time it was through the drive through and awesome. The other two times because the drive thru was closed I went in. The one time, they had a guy who wasn't familiar with the system and it took about fifteen minutes to order. I recommend they have someone watching behind them to help the new employee with the system to navigate through the process for the drinks. It litterally took us 20 minutes to get out drinks. The second time was today, I stood in front of two employees who of ignored me for about two minutes, but it felt like forever, the reason being was the employee was ordering a drink for herself and couldn't decide what she wanted. After she decided it was evidently my turn to order and then the gentleman wasn't qualified to take my order that I ordered through an app. Then a young lady came to help, couldn't locate my order, and had to get her manager. Then I had to wait an additional five minutes for them to come to the conclusion that the order didn't go through. And they would take five minutes to make the drink. After investing ten minutes I was very frustrated with the whole treatment order thing and realized I could make a smoothie at home. I think I need to not personally order from this place for a while and when I forget about the frustration of this place I'll come back. Essentially, of you aren't in a hurry, by so me and stop by. If you are, you may as well make your own. Plus the all evidently doesn't work. But when everything does work out, they drinks are great. The service right now, not so much. I'm sure with time they may get better. But now,...