Sweet Leaf Cafe — Restaurant in Washington

With its wide selection of fresh ingredients for salads, grain bowls, and sandwiches, Sweet Leaf is the perfect spot for a healthy and convenient weekday lunch. Similar to other fast-casual salad places like Sweetgreen or Chopt, you can either choose from their chef-curated selections or build your own. A few favorites from their curated menu are the Tofu Tango (basically a vegetarian take on a harvest bowl with roasted tofu, sweet potatoes, quinoa, romaine, kale, apples, goat cheese, and a balsamic vinaigrette) and the Salmon + Wild Farro Bowl (replacing the farro with quinoa if you're gluten-free).

They have a decent selection of vegetarian mains, including their roasted tofu and baked falafel. Their falafel is by no means traditional, as it has a much softer outer shell, but it's a tasty plant-based addition to your bowl. I also love adding their roasted vegetables (zucchini, yellow squash, red peppers) and, if available, roasted brussel sprouts with pear.

If you're looking for a side to pair with your new salad or grain bowl or sandwich, Sweet Leaf has a decent selection of chips and baked goodies (mostly different variations of brownies and cookies), as well as warm soups and fresh smoothies. Just like the rest of their menu, you can either choose from a curated selection of smoothies or make your own concoction. I'm a big fan of their Berry Blanco (blueberries, coconut, granola) and Green Cure (strawberry, avocado, kale). Their smoothies are on the sweeter end, which I didn't love, but they're still delicious and a great mid-day pick-me-up!

With its wide selection of bowls, sandwiches, and snacks, as well as its downtown DC location, Sweet Leaf is a convenient spot to drop by and pick up lunch in the middle of the workday. The service is friendly and efficient, and you can also order online to make your pick-up process a bit quicker (and, if you're anything like me, so you don't have to feel bad about being indecisive). They do have a couple of tables inside, as well as one or two outside, but it's generally pretty...

This review is not about the staff who make the meals. They are very friendly and maybe its because I frequently go their for lunch. But the manager is very rude. I ordered a pesto salad but I wanted vegan, no chicken. When I saw the girl put avocado i reiterated that I wanted vegan no meat cause i know the full pesto salad on the menu comes with avacado and the vegan does not. She said OK. When I got to the register to pay, the manger said $14. I said to him it's vegan no chicken he said it's the same thing. So I replied I've been getting a vegan salad for the past month and it's been around $9. He said because I added avacado. I said I didn't add the avacado but if it's an issue you can take the avacado out. At this point the girl already started mixing the salad up. I don't know what she told him but her gestures seemed apologetic and like she confirmed what I was saying. But he was like No. He then put the already made salad on the back counter and said I have to order another one because the pesto salad is not vegan. So I had to rejoin the line and specifically say vegan salad. But when I got to the end, and i asked for pesto dressing, they added it. The manager attitude was so stupid. I told him, you were willing to discard a perfectly good salad just because of half of an avacado that was already turning brown. He said yes. I am a regular customer so they know I frequently spend my money there for lunch. This happened last week. I'm so disappointed in the service he provided. I think I'm gonna find...

Updating my review -- it seems this problem has been rectified. I have since ordered online successfully.

DO NOT ORDER ONLINE at 15th Street in D.C. Great food, but the online ordering system is pointless. Although the online order provides a time that the food will be ready, that time is meaningless. It's meaningless because they do not actually start making your order until you go up to the cashier and tell them you've placed an online order. Then, your receipt goes to the back of the line behind every person in line. Today, I waited 25 minutes after the online order told me my order would be ready (and I knew to tell the cashier upon my arrival from a prior visit - most people were just waiting for food that wasn't being made). I tried to politely communicate to the staff that this system does not make any sense, but the only response I received was "I don't like...