Mendocino Farms — Restaurant in Santa Monica

So I went in for a job interview, and the interviewing manager Josh, who was super nice, let me try whatever I wanted, which was great because I hadn't had lunch that day, I was super hungry, and always wanted to try there food but was slightly put off by their prices. But it's Santa Monica, so $9 isn't that exorbitant for what they gave me. I ordered the turkey with bacon, salad greens, guacamole, aioli, etc. and lemonade while I waited. I am a lemonade conesseur IMO, and just thinking about their lemonade is making my mouth water, because OMG their lemonade is probably the best lemonade I've ever had. Ever. It's on the tart side with just enough sugar to make it delicious, but not overly sugary. Oh man now I want to go back. Holy heck it was good, but when my turkey samich came out I was astounded by how much turkey they put on it... Freshly sliced and piled on, the slightly smoky turkey paired deliciously with the slightly crunchy small bits of bacon. If I like avocado aioli or salad greens it would have been a perfect pairing, but I took those things home to my son. The greens were piled on and were tender and juicy, and I confess, I had to take the other half of my sandwich home because after working all day and not taking a lunch one half of my turkey sandwich filled me up. Pretty sure they put like, 2 pounds of turkey on each sandwich. Oh and the $14 salads? They were being eaten around me, and were HUGE.... Like, huge chicken pieces loaded onto a salad twelve inches across by like seven inches tall. And the staff? Some of the nicest people I know, and I'm not just saying that because I was there once... Three of my coworkers from steak and shake now work there and I worked at steak n shake for several months, and I adored them there, too. I would give Mendocino farms twenty stars if I could, because the icing on the cake of this whole review? Sidecar doughnuts located on tother aide of an adjoining wall next door bakes their doughnuts every forty-five minutes so you can smell delicious sugary goodness wafting through the brick....

Mendocino Farms in Santa Monica delivers exactly what you want from a premium sandwich and salad spot - consistent quality and satisfying flavors without any unpleasant surprises.

Their sandwich selection strikes a nice balance between familiar classics and creative combinations, all executed with precision and quality ingredients. Each component feels thoughtfully chosen, from the bread that maintains the perfect texture to the fresh produce and well-prepared proteins. The salads follow the same pattern of reliability - generous portions, fresh ingredients, and dressings that complement rather than overwhelm.

The bright, modern space offers a comfortable setting for a casual lunch, and the staff maintains an efficient operation even during peak hours. While prices sit at the higher end of the sandwich spectrum, the quality justifies the cost for what you receive.

What keeps Mendocino Farms at four stars rather than five is that intangible quality of memorability. As satisfying as each visit is, their offerings don't quite reach that level of distinctiveness that has me actively craving their food or making special trips across town. It's the culinary equivalent of a well-made, comfortable shirt rather than a show-stopping outfit.

For those times when you need a dependable, satisfying meal without any risk, Mendocino Farms delivers precisely what you need. It's a go-to for consistent quality, even if it doesn't quite inspire culinary...

Same/good food. Depending on what stage of life you’re in, it’s either a major bonus or a major issue that it’s near a Sidecar Donuts. But the real problem is parking. Didn’t used to have an issue here. But they’re parking Nazis over here. We parked at 12:26/27 (no line, and our receipt says 12:27). You have to walk over and fill out stuff from a QR code to get parking validation or sign in or something. So that’s obviously going to take a few minutes to wrap up/put in. We got a ticket literally at 12:28. One minute. That’s what they give you, I guess. Doesn’t matter if you’re dealing with your car seat or whatever. Mendocino Farms staff said I could email the parking people a photo of my receipt and it’ll get waived, no problem. But then I did that and received a response saying the citation was issued correctly and I broke their parking terms and conditions. No other explanation. They did the standard “we’ll waive this as a one-time courtesy” thing. But whatever. Bad taste after this. Would rather not deal with a-holes. Not Mendocino farms employees, obviously. And they’re always great. But they should get new parking people or have a talk with them about this. What an annoying and dumb added stress in life while just trying to...