CAVA — Restaurant in Mission Viejo

Great concept. I think they are striving to be like the "Mediterranean Chipotle" through the industrial decor and quick service type ordering of bowl or wraps. While the food items are indeed a healthy option and quite tasty, they fall flat and are negligent in their attention to detail in overall food safety, restaurant cleanliness, and front of the house customer service and training.

The crunchy falafel wrap and spicy beef meatball wrap we ordered was wet and fell apart upon eating. Our bowls while stuffed and plentiful did not come with the RightRice because they were out. During the initial ordering, our customer service rep did not change out their gloves after touching their nose, face, arms, and adjusting their pants before switching out cold items on the food station. This person really needed a well fitting belt to keep to their pants up. The entire prep station was a hot mess of food juices, sauces, and spills. Nightmare for any vegan/vegetarian not wanting cross contamination. No cleaning or wipe down in between the customer orders.

Additionally, the prepping cue cards they use for EVERY single order is caked with grease and not wiped down after use. I saw a wet rag hanging from the guys pant pocket but he did NOT use it. No sign of cleaning solution bucket anywhere near the prep station.

The mess continues down the line to the person adding your toppings and condiments. They are literally wrapping your finished food onto a counter of wet mess.

To top it off, I noticed the cash register looks like it's never been cleaned. Caked on with grime and grease all along the edges. Their plastic promotional signage was the same. There is evidence of a past grease fire next to their broiler which had black sticky liquid all along the side. The fire extinguisher hanging next to it was also dripping with this liquid. A puddle of black liquid pooled on the floor with no Caution / Wet Floor sign.

Overall, the Chipotle next door is not gonna hurt for any business. While their food has potential, this particular location needs staff to be re-trained up on basic front of the house prep and food cleanliness practices. If customers see this in the front of the house, I wouldn't want to know what it looks like...

I’ve been a fan of CAVA since living in DC several years back. I love that they’re continuing to expand in California and was excited to try this location when I was down in this direction, & like all of theirs I’ve tried, it didn’t disappoint. I also like how convenient the location is to the freeway, and overall I think the center is pretty accessible, although it could be a bit of a pain to get out of in heavy traffic (especially if you want to get back on the 5).

One of my favorite things about CAVA is their seasonal menu, and how they try to locally source a lot of what they serve. There’s something new to try every few months, & their staples are always delicious. I especially love the juices/tonics/-ades that they make in-house and change seasonally - they are usually sweetened with either agave or organic cane sugar, which is great. They also have wonderful iced teas (sweet & unsweet) and Maine Root soda (which has flavors like blueberry and cherry that I always think about trying before I get pulled in by the juices!). There are free in-house refills as well, so you can try everything!

I find that the servings are generous — admittedly sometimes I do wish for a bit more protein, but that’s because my eyes are bigger than my stomach; I have never left CAVA hungry, and it’s food that keeps you full. Often I get a double portion of protein (only $2-3ish more) and save half for a later meal. There’s more than enough other goodness to last.

It’s pretty ridiculous to compare it with Chipotle, other than the part where it’s a build your meal kind of concept. Of course they don’t have guacamole and sour cream; it’s Mediterranean food! Would you go into Chipotle and be mad they didn’t have hummus? If you want Chipotle, go there. If, however, you want delicious Mediterranean-style, in-season, locally-sourced...

Short Version: I have been disappointed by CAVA at this location too many times, and now they are a last resort at best and will no longer be earning my business.

Full Version: This place has disappointed me time and time again. Most recently they started closing at 8PM unannounced, 2 hours earlier than what is posted on google and their app. They will often close 15-20 mins early for various reasons as well.

They are often out of ingredients like the veggie mixes and sauces and they won’t inform you until you’re mostly done with the process of creating your dish.

They are very stingy with the ingredients. They get visibly upset when they portion one meager scoop of rice and force you to ask for a little more just to have a regular portion. I shouldn’t be able to see the bottom of the bowl after the rice has been added… You could order a little bit of everything they have to offer and you’ll end up with a half full bowl costing upwards of $15.00, and if you ask for a little more they scoff or try to upcharge even though they are under portioning. This problem is especially bad when it is busy.

Some of the employees can be friendly and helpful and do a great job, but for the most part it seems like they hire the rejects from other restaurants, people with no experience is good handling or customer service etc. and it shows. These people literally look like they have absolutely zero interest in being there and when it’s busy there’s always 3 people just standing there ignoring the long line of customers while 1-2 people work the service line and register.

Management needs to step it up. Running a restaurant doesn’t take a genius, it just takes hard work and a...