Common Roots — Restaurant in Rye

I am not sure if this building is jinxed or the new owners do not feel service is important. I live in Rye and support local businesses. So I thought I would try this establishment again......... When I entered the store a young girl was stocking the shelves and she greeted me. Off to a good start. I looked over the menu on the board and decided on a grilled cheese sandwich. It was around 1:45/1:50. She stated the cook was on a call and would be out shortly. I told her it was no problem and I looked around and picked up a zucchini brownie and something to drink. In the mean time another customer came in to order a sandwich. I explained to her the cook was on a call and would be back shortly. And he did. So I was at the counter with my other items and the cook was starting to prepare my sandwich. The women ask to order her sandwich to the young girl and she stated the kitchen was closed 😳. I couldn’t believe it. I asked her if the kitchen was closed why is he making my grilled cheese? So we are going back and forth on this and I asked her what time the kitchen closes? She said 2:00 p.m. So I opened my purse and pulled out my phone and it said it was exactly 2:00. Now the women had been in the store while the cook was out on his call so she was well in before closing. And to get technical the words were out of her mouth before 2:00 probably 1:58 to be exact. I explain to the 2 employees that I would share this with the community so another person is not caught in this time crunch. I guess the owners don’t need the money or repeat customers. To be honest I was more annoyed by this then the women ordering. I have had years of service and understand how it works. At that point the two employees powwowed and decided to make her sandwich. The cook argued that the grill was cold as he was grilling my cheese sandwich. This is just so puzzling to me. I could understand if it was a little after 2:00 and they had shut everything down but that wasn’t the case. In addition, the young girl stated she could only make avocado sandwiches and wasn’t allowed to use the grill? Geez train the girl. On a positive note the sandwich was good and the brownie was excellent. As I was leaving I asked the cook if he had any pickles. He said yes and proceed to reach in the container with his hands and grab some pickles. That is how one get cross contamination. I not sure if he ever washed his hands....I know he didn’t before he reached into the pickle container. I won’t be back and I will spread the word. I have asked Trip Advisors to add the business so I may also share my experience. Now I see why this place is always empty. Prime location and they are...

The good: The woman at the counter (one with glasses) was really nice and friendly. Most of the menu can be made vegan There are vegan baked goods (I didn’t try them)

Room for improvement: The breakfast burrito made vegan was flat on flavor and extremely oily- though the avocado was delicious as well as the salsa. The oat milk latte could have been made with better oat milk and better coffee. The overall vibe of the market/cafe is strange- they sell random items that don’t make a lot of sense. The prices of the market items are extremely high (I would imagine one of the reasons the market is there is because of location and for people when they are staying at the beach so thats understandable) otherwise most all items can be found at a grocery store for less. Suggestions: Use less oil when cooking Use oatly barista blend or Califia for lattes Stick to the cafe or separate the market out so it’s not one big space. Add a few two person high tops Some live Plants would be a nice addition to the space. Instead of the stand up black fridge for to go items- get something that you can reach right in to grab things and that’s a little bit brighter and open.

Overall it’s a great concept and if I was ever in the area - I would probably pop in for a vegan baked good or a quick bite but unfortunately it’s not going...

Wow a couple menu items blew me away.

Try the kale caesar (spectacular, vegan), the hang ten omelet (amazing, but not vegan) and the vegan gyro. Smoothie was also stellar and they accommodated my custom order. Skip the garden salad (standard lettuce and cherry tomatoes) and of course expect the New England summer mainstay, slightly distracted (but sweet :) teenagers at the register.

I should mention that they weren't quick, but they were so good it was well worth the wait. Will head straight here next time I'm in the area.

One more note: as a place with so many wonderful non standard items, I wish they had some kind of ingredient list available. For example, what comprises the vegan gyro? They could tell me only vaguely, and only the main ingredient. I wanted a clearer idea of the components for dietary reasons. I'm still not sure what was in that gyro, even after eating it. Any rice? Any flour? Corn? High...