Laughing Planet Cafe

When I went to college out in PDX I ate here often, but how things have changed. Some items are still good here, but everything is ABSURDLY overpriced. $ 8 for a small bowl of rice with steamed veggies? (Asian Veggie Bowl). Hipsters more concerned with an aesthetic of authenticity than with the real thing waste money here. Don’t get me wrong z the concept is good in theory, but very poorly executed. Stop ripping people off or lose business, that simple.

Laughing Planet was one of favorite places to eat and relax when I was at IU. I spent many a mealtime out on the patio enjoying a burrito in the sunshine. I relived some of my grad school days while in town this weekend and eating here was a must!
They’ve expanded the inside dining space since I was last here in the early 2000s, but the feel remains locavore (& sorta crunchy) and definitely veg/​vegan friendly. The Planet was more hippy back in the day, but is a tad hipster now.
I ordered my old favorite, the spinach– black bean burrito. A stout, flour tortilla filled to almost bursting with beans, spinach, onion, cheese came out in about 5 min. I had them add their homemade queso this time. Wow! With some salsa Fresca (pico) on the side, I was in heaven.
This burrito helped me regularly get my greens in while I was a poor student. They season it with what I think is garlic, it’s divine. They add just enough spinach to compliment, not over take the beans. The freshness of the salsa and creaminess of the queso were perfect counters to the main ingredients.
You can build your own burrito (or bowl) or chose from several inventive house inventions. They also have quesadillas and nachos. Never had anything but burritos here, but am certain that everything they make is fantastic. My customized burrito was $ 8.75 and with a Blue Sky soda and tax my bill was just under $ 12. Filling, healthy (fairly), and affordable lunch made by local business folks who care about local ingredients and the local community. Win, win for Bloomington and IU!

Better than chipotle. Quality food, quality service. Burritos, bowls and other goods. Yum yum in my tum

We ordered delivery from Laughing Planet on Labor Day and the food was absolutely wonderful. The vegan options really hit the spot.

The food is decent and I like that they use locally sourced ingredients. It can be reeeally slow during the lunch rush so I would not recommend it to someone with any time constraints.

I love burritos and quesadillas. I pretty much love everything that Laughing Planet offers, which was why I was so reluctant to come in. We had a gift certificate and it had Laughing Planet’s name on it, so we went at around 7 PM on a Tuesday. Why was I reluctant? I knew that no matter what, I probably wouldn’t like my food as much as I could because though they served mostly vegetarian food, I was sure their salsas contained onion and/​or garlic in some shape or form. I was also under a strong suspicion that a lot of their other ingredients were prepared with them as well.
Not wrong.
We ended up building our own burritos because in addition to ALL of the salsas being off limits, half of the ingredients were prepared with it too. :(At least we weren’t stuck with a salad? However, even with our custom burritos, our choices were still limited. I got brown rice, cheese, spinach, olives (though I don’t remember tasting any…), and Asian veggie mix. Hubby got his stuffed with brown rice, cheese, fresh jalapenos (he thought they would be pickled, haha… he regretted his decision to include them because they were the spicy jalapenos), and broccoli. It was like unseasoned steamed veggies over rice rolled up in a tortilla. We were also offered a pseudo-​salsa that was essentially diced tomatoes and cilantro, which gave it a perfect amount of acidity and flavor that it was otherwise missing.
Yay for a somewhat healthy dinner? :)
Also, thanks much to the girl stuck taking our order. She took out this HUGE recipe binder from the back and went through every question we had on what we wanted to add (but mostly couldn’t). It was also her idea to make that tomato-​cilantro ‘salsa’ which saved the burrito. If I come back, I would definitely ask to have the ‘salsa’ included INSIDE the burrito. I just wish it was more stuffed because one side of it had too much tortilla.
As such, although the food was lacking, which seems to be the case at most places here except for a very, VERY small handful, the service and help was great. The place was easy to find and décor was quirky and fairly clean. I just wish they didn’t use so much onion and garlic in everything!

Got the BBQ burrito. Wasn’t amazing, wasn’t terrible. I had to add some Bbq sauce to it– seemed a bit lacking. The pork, however, was fresh and juicy and the slaw inside is delicious. The chips and guac are almost 5 bucks– totally not worth it. Don’t be tempted! They’re not that great either. The burritos are, however, relatively fairly priced. I didn’t opt for the mondo and I’m happy with my decision– it’s definitely still a huge burrito. I’d go here again– but the chips and guac is a scam.

Quirky, unique burrito place with a lot of options. Its nothing special, and even though everyone tells me this is the original, its missing a lot of the things that make the Portland chain great. Ingredients are much worse in comparison, have much fewer options and are even missing many categories. Most alarming, they don’t have any special burritos using the best ingredients of the season.
I think they only have 5 – 6 salsas here too.
Its pretty much just a stripped down, lower quality version of the Laughing Planets in Portland while keeping the same price.

The Laughing Planet is the epitome of Bloomington — local sourced foods, funky atmosphere, everyone is welcome, incredibly accommodating to all lifestyles (carnivores, vegans, vegetarians, etc).
This isn’t your mama’s burrito, well it could be. The menu offers some classic and creative quesadillas, salads, soups, and burritos. Don’t miss the special burritos featured, especially the Thanksgiving one with mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce!
My favorites include the Highway to Kale salad (and I hate kale), Where’s the Beef, and the mushroom soup is awesome.
Sit inside at the beautiful Bella Bella tables inside or enjoy the weather and downtown atmosphere at the picnic tables.

This cuisine isn’t necessarily my favorite, but I happen to love mushrooms and they had an excellently flavored mushroom soup. Great local establishment with healthy options.

Laughing Planet, although not 100% vegetarian, sure makes vegetarian food delicious. Their burritos are unique, and definitely quite delicious. The staff is very friendly as well. The café also offers a wide variety of organic drinks which are worth a try. Probably one of the best places to go if vegetarian.

As much as I like their food, my order is either always wrong or never gets brought out. Certain substitutions, like soy cheese, cost extra and I am not told that at the register. My patience with Laughing Planet has run out, as it sucks to be with friends and have the order screwed up, so we are unable to eat at the same time.
Also, while the food is good, I have found some items to be overpriced. Save yourself the money and headache by buying the ingredients yourself — you will enjoy that experience much more.

My go to place when I’m in Bloomington. So many options for vegetarians/​vegans and carnivores alike. And the best part is, if you don’t like what they have made up, you can create your own! Bowls, wraps, burritos, salads, have what you’d like! The best part? Many of the ingredients used are locally sourced, which they let you know on a chalkboard by the register. However, be warned, the portions are huge! If your appetite is big (no judgment here) you can add ten more ounces for less than two dollars. Highly recommend this spot!

Crazy, fun, healthy combinations of ingredients in their monster burritos. FANTASTIC veggie chili. EXCELLENT food whether you’re veg, vegan or not.
GREAT place to check out when visiting B-​ton.

I have been coming here for the past 4 years. One of the best restaurants in Bloomington! Super fresh ingredients. The burritos are killer. If you have a friend visiting who likes to eat healthy, definitely the spot to take them.
Also, the Holiday Burrito is worthy of its own review. One of the best food items I have ever eaten.

It’s hard to go wrong with a menu as versatile as Laughin Planet’s for any meal of the day, and yet it’s a unique enough find that it really has no competition on Kirkwood. Yes, Chipotle is just a few doors down, but beyond wrapping hot things in tortillas, there’s really very little the two share in common. The availability of Thai, Cajun, and Greek inspired fare, plus the selection of genuinely locally-​sourced ingredients, makes Laughing Planet its own force in the ever-​impressive Bloomington restaurant scene.
That said, Laughing Planet has always been a fallback restaurant for me if I can’t make up my mind, or if I’m with a group and don’t want to argue. It’s that sentiment that keeps them from getting five-​stars. While 4^th Street is filled with food that I actually crave — yellow curry from Little Tibet or red lentil soup from Anatolia — Laughing Planet’s flavor is understated enough not to stand out. While the menu on the whole is impressive in variety, each individual item is fairly straightforward. A signature salsa or dish or ingredient, like Chipotle’s cilantro-​lime rice, made help make the food bounce a little more, but maybe that’s besides the point. Maybe it’s this very «something for everyone» menu that keeps the business going. It’ll definitely keep me coming back when I need a bite and don’t want to think too hard about it.

The Laughing Planet Café offers a unique experience. This past weekend was the second time I had the opportunity of eating at Laughing Planet, and both times I had a hard time classifying the restaurant. Laughing Planet offers a fusion style cuisine, primarily using locally produced, organic ingredients. When you walk into Laughing Planet, you feel an instant vibe that differentiates it from its competitors. It has a lively, hipster feel that really embraces the artistic culture of Bloomington.
When I surveyed the menu, it seemed to me that burritos were the go-​to item. The selection was fairly extensive, and the variety of flavors was surprising. I’m an adventurous eater, but when it comes to burritos, I generally like to keep things simple. On this occasion, I decided to go with the «We Got the Beef» burrito — cooked with organic brown rice, Fischer Farms braised beef, avocado, sour cream, salsa fresca, and your choice of either black or pinto beans. You can also choose between mild, medium (verde), hot, or tropical fruit salsa on the side.
If you are feeling a bit more adventurous, Laughing Planet offers a number of burritos that I would consider to be more of a fusion style. The Cuban, Jimmy the Greek, and Thai-​Me-​Up burritos are all innovative, combing a variety of international flavors into burrito form. With 11 burritos to choose from (plus the option to build-​your-​own-​burrito) there is a burrito for anyone who finds themselves at Laughing Planet. Personally, I really enjoyed the We Got the Beef Burrito. It’s a full, and well-​flavored burrito, yet not too overwhelming. If you are looking for volume, Laughing Planet’s burritos aren’t the biggest around, but they are good (and certainly original).
During my visit to Laughing Planet, my friend ordered the Zappatista Salad. In her words it was, «One of the best salads» she had ever had. It was a mix of corn chips, black beans, jack cheese, mixed greens, salsa fresca, sour cream, and your choice of salsa. In addition to good flavors, the salad was quite aesthetically pleasing (see picture below). It was especially flavorful because it contained a mix of Mexican flavors and was prepared with fresh ingredients.
Other options on the menu include quesadillas, veggie burgers, and soups. If I were to go back, I would definitely continue to try new things. Most of the selections looked pretty good, and I would imagine they are on par with the burritos and salads.
Overall, I enjoyed my experience at The Laughing Planet Café. The ingredients were fresh, the food was reasonably priced, and the atmosphere was unique (in a good way). If you’re looking for a casual lunch or an adventurous dining experience, check out it out. I guarantee you’ll find a burrito flavor you never thought existed.

The Laughing Planet is amazing! We were in town for a volleyball tournament at IU, and were in search of good, local, healthy options for our team when we found The Laughing Planet. What a GREAT find!
Michelle was incredibly helpful through the whole process, and was able to work with her team at TLP to get the entire order for 24 hungry kids ALL CORRECT, and on time!
Thanks for making ME look like the rockstar to all these kids, when YOU guys are the real rockstars! We will definitely be using y’all again, when we come back into town!

3.5 stars. This is less a «burrito» joint than a hippy joint that’s wrapping some things in a tortilla. But this isn’t an insult, I like that you can get beans, rice, and greens for lunch, and in this way it does a service to Bloomington.
I don’t think the flavor is particularly impressive, but I like the effort. They do meats, vegetarian, gluten free, etc. A good place to take someone with diet restrictions, and I’ll return. But I wont crave what they serve.

This is a good place for healthy options including salads, burritos, quesadillas, etc. The atmosphere is a bit like a hippie revival but for a healthy meal it’s a nice option.