Urban Plates

I LOVE this place! Their salmon is always perfectly cooked, flaky and fresh tasting and the Brussels sprouts are always charred to perfection with a light coating. I wish they had more options with no cheese for sides (I can’t eat cheese so sides are limited for me) but I usually get extra sprouts or a mini salad. Everything always been super tasty and flavorful, with quick service. They also have kombucha on tap so that’s a huge plus in my book, it’s always the perfect finisher to my meals here. The cooks are always super friendly and helpful; cashiers are alright.
They only have locations in North San Diego so that’s a bummer. I only get to enjoy them when visiting my family in Carlsbad or have time for a drive. So I’m usually stuck eating at Tender Greens which is all over central San Diego. So here’s hoping they expand to my area!
Highly recommend!

Delicious! I had the Kale Coconut Tofu Salad which was so good! It was very big and filling, yet refreshing. It had such interesting flavors to it.
The ambiance of the restaurant is great! It’s decorated nicely and comfortable.

Decent prices. It has the vibe of bougie cafeteria/​fast food. The food is pretty good too. Overall had a nice experience :)

Loved my first visit. Fresh ingredients, delicious balance of flavors. I tried the steak salad and enjoyed it immensely. Can’t wait for stores to hit Northern California.

I love this place! If your trying to eat healthy quick but delish food this is the best!

Once again I paid full price for a meal and find out I have been shorted. This time it was only avocado missing from my salad. Before it’s been bread, avocado, red pepper, and dressing all missing from a salad.
Why is Urban Plates consistently shorting their take out customers? Is anyone else experiencing this?

Sunday Family Funday! We passed by Urban Plates while running around town. Lunch crowd was hop’n, even in the mid afternoon, with a consistent line from the ordering counter to the door. Service line is split into two with salads on the far right and entrees toward the left. I’ve gotten both in recent visits. On past visits, I’ve enjoyed the grilled steak and the salmon. Today, I wanted something a little lighter so opted for a seared albacore salad. The salad was tossed with all sorts of fix’ins such as red beets, fresh green beans, potatoes and capers. The gal added bacon by mistake! She offered to remake it, but I disgruntley objected! Bacon makes everything better! :-)
Super quick service on the line as food is being plated on the spot. Meats carved, sides dished out and off you go to your table. They offer natural sodas as well. Overall a healthy option for a fairly quick bite.
Keep on Unilocal’n!

This urban plates is close to my apartment and I love to stop in for take out salads. My favorites are the Asian Chicken, BBQ Chicken, and the steak salad. They have some other options too, but I usually rotate between those 3. The salads are 11 bucks but the veges are super fresh and the protein is always cooked perfectly. I love the chicken at steak at Urban plates.
If you don’t feel like a salad get one of their plates. They are also 11 bucks and come with 2 sides. They have a lot of good sides to choose from. My faves are the brussel sprouts and mac n cheese.
For dessert get the Mango Tart!

I really enjoyed this place. It’s similar to Tender Greens but I find that it’s more flavorful and the price is even better for the quantity. All the ingredients are organic. I loved the Asian Chicken salad and the Salmon caesar salad. Portions were quite big. They also have kombucha on tap and a good assortment of vegan, gluten free and nonvegan and gluten-​full desserts.

Urban Plates is certainly a solid place to get fresh delicious food. It seems like locations are popping up everywhere lately and as long as they keep up the quality I’m happy to shuffle it into one of the standard «can’t decide, let’s just go somewhere» places in my repertoire.
This time ordering the Cobb Salad with and some mac and cheese on the side really just satisfied both my greens but still my guilty pleasure side. The greens themselves were impeccable, tossed to order and it was just a satisfying meal. This location in particular is very open, large and seats a lot. I like the light display with the nautical ropes. Grab a tray, have a little trouble deciding what you want, then enjoy the ambiance and food!

It’s like tender greens or lemonade, but better. That’s how I would sum up my experience at Urban Plates. It’s less pretentious, seemingly more options, better ambiance, and better food/​salads.
Stumbling upon this gem made for a perfect dinner where I didn’t end up stuffing myself on carne asada fries, which usually happens as soon as I hit the San Diego county border. However, this place made me feel a little lighter and healthier after getting their Steak Salad ($ 12 — all other salads are $ 11). The steak was so tender, albeit a little fatty, and it was cooked perfectly. The steak came out super fresh and it was glistening when it came out. My girlfriend got the kale tofu salad which was also awesome. The tofu came in this curry sauce on the side that made it feel like you weren’t just eating a salad.
Fortunate for Urban Plates, I saw that they’re opening up a few locations in Los Angeles, so I’m sure all the yoga-​going, vegan-​eating, hipster-​wearing Angelenos will be frequenting this spot as soon as they start opening up, especially on the westside.

Having a previous 5 star Unilocal ROTD turn into a 1 star review is a complete shame for any business.
Super disappointed and super annoyed with Urban Plates at the moment. For the 2^nd time in 1.5 weeks, they’ve left my salad dressing out of my order. I choose to not have my dressing tossed in my salad when I place pick up orders and tonight, they did it once again. My husband should’ve checked the bag to make sure it was there before he left but I then ask myself, why must the customer remove everything in the bag to ensure all is in order?
For the 2^nd time, I have to toss my salad in the garbage because I have no salad dressing. With avocado tossed in the salad, it doesn’t keep well so having this for lunch tomorrow is not an option. The only dressing I have in the refrigerator is balsamic vinaigrette and it does not go well with a cobb salad. Trust me. I can salvage the chicken but paying $ 11 for a half a chicken breast is complete crap. I can’t even turn around and pick it up because by the time I got home and realized, they were closing in 5 minutes.
I called and spoke to the manager, Oscar but he offered no remedy. Ie; come in tomorrow with the uneaten salad and we’ll give you another. Or how about, I’m so sorry that this happened but let me get your name and number and let us remedy this when you’re in next. Simple enough but nope. nothing!
If y’all don’t care about your customers experience, here’s me kicking you to the curb… back to Jimbo’s soups and salads in a pinch. Handling it so poorly only proves to me that you are not worthy of my business.

I’m not a big fan of «over-​priced, healthy» restaurants. But for Urban Plates I make an exception. Albeit that a few of the menu items are slightly overpriced to eat at Urban Plates daily, the quality and taste of the food here never fails to impress. The ingredients they offer are always fresh, the recipes they use are exceptional and unique, and the serving size portions are always generous. In fact, so generous, that I am often unable to finish my plate.
My absolute favorite dish is their delicious and fresh Cobb Salad! This salad never fails to impress or hit the spot. It consists of a traditional lettuce blend, grilled free range chicken, organic tomatoes, turkey bacon, avocado, organic egg, blue cheese, organic sprouts, and a flavorful buttermilk dill dressing. It comes with a great big piece of bread, which is always a nice addition of carbohydrates to a fresh, healthy salad.
Their dinner plates are another healthy, popular option. The selection and variety of items is outstanding, with so many different sides and entrees offered. The potatoes never disappoint. Best of all nothing is over seasoned with unhealthy oils, fats, or condiments. Yet each side and entrée has a great powerful taste, making its unique mark on the palette and reminding me that healthy can be delicious. Their gluten-​free, vegan, and kids’ options are a great touch for anyone who needs special accommodations. In sum, this place has wowed me the past 4 times I’ve been here. The consistency in quality and taste warrants a 5 star review.

The best part about this place is that you can go here all the time and never eat the same thing twice because the menu is so extensive. UP is affordable and consistent, clean and friendly, convenient and exciting!
Glad to see them doing well and expanding far!

I love this place. Its like a high class, hipster version of Boston Market. I’ve been three times now and each time got a scrumptious plate of food. The décor is a bit boring and represents the current «Urban Rustic» design craze to a T. Pretty hip.
First time I hopped in the salad out of slight confusion. Salad is somewhat healthy and its the first station. I got station fright I guess. There is a salad station, a grill station, a sandwich station, a stew and braises station and a pizza station. Its a bit like a cafeteria in that you walk up to a station, the food is partially prepared and there is a server there to plate your order in front of you. All plates are $ 10.50 which can be an outstanding deal if you get Steak, Brussels sprouts and Mac and cheese. Use your $ 10.50 wisely cause they don’t give you a discount if you get 3 low cost items.
Day 1: I order the chicken cobb salad and it was fantastic. This chicken was roasted free range chicken off the bird and chopped with the skin on. The succulent chicken chunks were placed on a bed of mixed greens with hard boiled egg, cheese, tomato, turkey bacon, other stuffs and ranch. The salad was huge and came with a slice of grilled bread. It was so good I went back the very next day for lunch.
Day 2: Roasted beet and fennel salad was delicious as well. Bed of mixed greens giant scoop of roasted beets, fennel bulb shaved really thing, feta crumbles and a nice light vinaigrette. Once again, huge salad with a slice of grilled bread.
As I was sitting there eating my second salad I noticed a nice lady sit down with a plate of steak. mac and cheese and Brussels sprouts. I realized that I hadn’t taken the time to really look at all the delicious items across the different stations. I had to come back and get the hot plate with 2 sides.
Day 3: First time getting a hot item and it was fantastic. I got chicken, mac and cheese and Brussels sprouts. I wanted to get the steak because it looked fantastic BUT the sign simply states «steak» so I had no idea what cut it was. Mac and cheese was creamy and think, Brussels sprouts were fried with caramelized onions and bacon. The chicken was succulent juicy and seasoned to perfection.
Writing this review makes me want to go back for day 4.

This is a cool nice little place and I thought the food was great! It is cafeteria style… and one of the best parts is that they will let you try anything! I came in later in the evening so it might be hard to try everything if it is busy… but I went to town trying it all. Which honestly made it really hard to pick what I wanted because I liked a lot of the stuff.
I ended up getting the grilled chicken entrée plate with zucchini and cauliflower and a winter squash soup! It was so good! I really liked all of it. The chicken was super moist and they gave me a nice big piece. For 10 dollars I was very filled!
I was really impressed with not only the food, but the service. They were crazy friendly and would do anything you ask. One man asked for them to make new broccoli and they happily did so.
This is a great place to get good food without having to wait at a sit down restaurant. The vibe is super nice and all around I am a fan!

4.5
Urban plates is one of my favorite restaurants in San Diego. You get so much taste and quality for a reasonable price. For example, my antioxidant salad was about 10 bucks. I’ve had similar Salads for $ 16 at other places in San Diego (and elsewhere) that were equivalent. Choice is king here, but they keep your choices to a reasonable amount. Lemonade and Tender Greens are also gourmet cafeteria restaurants, but while each has their strong points, I think Urban Plates is the best all around.
Cutting to the chase, these are some of my favorites.
— Meatloaf
— Desserts
— Salads (Antioxident)
— Drinks (Green Drink)
The negative to Urban Plates is that I’ve found the line doesn’t move as smoothly as Tender Greens. Line skipping is expected here, but not exactly communicated effectively.

This review is long overdue. I love this place for 1. Because it’s not a huge chain 2. Because it’s fresh and 3. Because it’s conveniently located.
I have had a couple different things from here now and the sandwiches are by far my favorite! The salads are okay and I really just don’t like their chicken for some reason. I do like that’s it’s free range, but I don’t care for the flavor. I wish their steak was grass fed, but it’s still delicious either way! The steak is just so flavorful and tender and with the warm, slightly grilled, ciabatta bread paired with a side of roasted rosemary potatoes… BOOM. You just can’t go wrong with that right there.
The atmosphere is really cool inside and they have a lot of outdoor seating. The employees that prepare the food are always really nice and friendly, but I don’t think I have met someone friendly at the cash registers yet. There’s always next time though, because I will be back!

I frickin love this place!
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been to the forum, seen the place and thought «ehhh» but man oh man, after coming here because I was craving a healthy salad to beat the heat, I became enthralled with the whole frickin restaurant. I keep saying the f word because this place really is that amazing, I can’t seem to emphasize that enough!
Cute. Natural, amazing tasting food with a variety and endless amount of selections, this place offers gourmet food that’s good
for you AND your wallet. I generally like going to Sammys pizza for salads but at about $ 12 – 15 a salad, it gets pretty pricey. Here, you get something similar, and bugged for less the price.
I got the Asian chicken salad, which was huge all for $ 10.50. That and it came with focaccia which was delicious and the right amount of carbs to compliment such a large and healthy salad. I like how there’s chefs behind that makes things as you order and everything is sectioned off by what you want. They have soups, pizzas, salads, meats and sides and a good selection of beers and wines and also teas and juices and natural sodas. They also have an amazing bakery too!
I love the décor, it’s basically like an urban outfitters just rather than clothes, they sell food or an anthro. The greenery and wooden tables…
5 stars for me! So happy we have something so fabulous here! And close to me ;-)

The only reason why I wouldn’t give 5 stars is sometimes it’s soooo popular and crowded that the wait is a while. Also, sometimes you don’t know who’s going to be helping you out so they could be slow. This place seriously has the freshest ingredients and definitely keeps up with that soCal vibe. They make the food in front of you.
Make sure you and your friends know what you want before venturing into the line and talk with a cook/​helper. This will help everyone else around you!
I recommend getting some combos and mix with your friends. Eat each others because the portions are A LOT! I’ve tried their salads, their specials, their desserts, meats, etc. Trust me when I say, you won’t be disappointed!
You can’t save seats but once you order, go and find a seat. It’s going to be cozy but totally worth it!