GREEN ZEBRA CAFE — Restaurant in Sarasota

This review is about the service, not the food:

We arrived today at 10:30am. After giving our name and number, we were told to expect a 15-20min wait for the first available table. They would call when the table was ready.

After 30min, my wife went to ask about the status of our table. "We'll sit anywhere," she told them, as our four month old was getting more than a little restless.

"20 more minutes, then we'll have you a spot," the hostess replied. Odd, given that they'd already seated a number of other parties of varying sizes...

We eagerly waited on a park bench across the street while my wife fed the baby the good old-fashioned way. A mix of adoring and damning looks came our way as we watched the Green Zebra staff clear and fill table after table. Still, no call to say our table was ready.

"These can't all be reservations?" I said, to no one in particular. It was 11:30am at this point, an hour after we had arrived.

When I went to go see what was up, the hostess informed me that she tried to call, though she couldn't say when, but the call hadn't gone through. I confirmed that she had the correct number on file and asked why she didn't try calling again or simply flag us down since we stayed within earshot of the restaurant for the last hour now. She simply repeated sheepishly that she did make one attempt at calling us. I showed her my call log; nothing had come through in the last hour.

I didn't raise my voice or berate her, because anyone who's worked in a restraunt before knows that mistakes happen. Fine. What I was so disappointed by was that no effort was made to make things right. She said we could have the next table in maybe 20min or so. That was it. No discount offered, no move made to make space somewhere, no even an apology was made!

Mistakes happen. But a restaurant that won't make things right or even offer an apology when the mistake happens, it probably isn't worth my...

On 3/23 I after watching the sunrise on the beach came here with my mother for breakfast. We saw it was busy so we decided to order our food to go. They promptly took our order and seemingly forgot about us. They said 15 to 20 minutes. We sat there for far longer than that before i finally got my food and drinks. Once i paid we told them we were still waiting on my mother's order. It seems they had completely forgotten about her order and she put hers in first. We waited an additional...10 mins perhaps before her food finally came out. She paid and we left. The service wasn't great. I understand its busy and a sunday but the occasional check-in or an update to say"hey, things are pretty busy but your food should be ready in x amount of minutes" or something to that effect would have been nice. My mother ordered the meal that was 2 pancakes 2 eggs and 2 chicken sausage, and then ordered 2 cheesecakes. She recieved only 1 pancake. It looked a bit sad. I ordered the tofu scramble with added avocado, Blueberry basil cheesecake, and the tiramisu cheesecake. For the tofu scramble: In the box, the presentation was very nice. However, the flavor sadly was lacking. Tasted as if it was seasoned with taco seasoning, not great. The desserts...were very tasty despite being melted because they were packed in the same bag with the hot food. Also my mother's cheesecakes melted as well. In my opinion, the pressed juices are overpriced. $14 per bottle, and they used to come in glass now they are bottled in plastic. We regrettably bought 4, 2 each without realizing. The desserts are $14 each, for a slice of melted cheesecake. Major disappointment. We will NEVER return. Cute spot though. I'm glad they expanded, it used to be a...

We had such a wonderful experience at Green Zebra Café! It’s rare to find a restaurant that truly caters to different dietary needs without compromising on quality or taste, but this place delivered on every level. I was thrilled with all the raw vegan options, everything was fresh, colorful, and full of flavor. I’ll be posting some photos because the presentation was just as impressive as the taste!

My father-in-law and kids aren’t vegan, so it was great that they had a wide variety of non-vegan options too. Everyone at our table loved their meals, which is no small thing when you’re dining with a group that has very different tastes and preferences. It’s the kind of place where you don’t have to settle or feel like you’re giving something up, everyone can find something they enjoy.

The atmosphere was calm and inviting, with friendly service and a bright, open space that felt relaxing from the moment we walked in. One thing I deeply appreciated is that, unlike some healthy or trendy restaurants, there were no political messages, slogans, or agendas being pushed. Just good food, good energy, and a break from the constant noise and division of the outside world.

It felt like a place where everyone is welcome, no pressure, no preaching, just a peaceful space to enjoy a great meal with people you love. That kind of environment is so refreshing and honestly rare these days.

We’ll definitely be coming back the next time we’re in Sarasota. Highly recommend if you’re looking for a spot that values both health and...