The Vault

NOT CLOSED!!!
This place is NOT CLOSED. The food is good. You can get Thanksgiving dinner there everyday. Plus, besides the food and salad bar w/​soup and sandwiches there are made to order stations for things like burgers, which are good.

Some good things, some bad. The food bar is a bit pricey at times. Everyone is real friendly. As some others have said, it used to be a lot better. They used to have make your own tacos on a consistent basis, I loved them. It’s definitely worth a look for lunch.

The Vault makes me sad. They have cut back on the number of stations, but the salad bar is still there. Every once in a while I find something that looks edible on the salad bar and it’s not half bad. Most of the time I’ll try something and end up having to go get something else for lunch. It’s just not good.
On the bright side, they have a pretty big drink selection. So, you know, they’ve got that going for them, which is nice.

Apparently things are looking up for the banking industry, as this place isn’t quite as depressing any more. They’ve re-​opened a couple of the specialty stations, and the selection has improved a bit. So, I’m able to bump it up a star.
The cafeteria at Chase up the street is still better, though.

The vault kind of frustrates me. I always want to go, but am always disappointed. I went there once and got mashed potatoes, tasted them and immediately knew they were prepared with bacon. Yes, certain stocks and soups (even rice) are likely to have meat in them, so vegetarians know enough to ask. But mashed potatoes? Not usually. If so, they really should spell that out on the label. Whatever, it’s over. But anyhow, I was annoyed.
I’ve of course sampled almost everything there that is vegetarian, and I still feel like I come away paying a lot for good (not great) food. Nothing is earth-​shattering, although the cream of broccoli soup gets an honorable mention. It’s very heavy (and fattening, they post the nutrition info which I like) and not cheesy at all. Good show.
You keep at it, Vault. Maybe you just need some time to mature.

In February my office moved to the building the Vault is in. I went through a period where I’d go downstairs three times a week. I got over that when I realized how much money I was spending, but the food is really solid. The made to order hot stations are excellent. For breakfast you can get a custom egg sandwich, pancakes, bacon and such. The grilled vegetables are amazing from the by the pound line! The lunch entrees change on a regular basis. Lots of vegetarian options are available. The fried chicken is excellent when I have happened to go downstairs on a day they are serving it. I love the little cashier ladies. There’s even a large and fairly pleasant place area to sit down and eat in. There are very few places you can find like this in the city and this is one of the nicest.

We came for lunch and left full, dozing into a food coma. Those are the best kinds of lunch breaks! There were so many options but I decided to go with the Mongolian stir fry. The wait for the stir fry was long. I think I stood in line for about 10 – 15 minutes for my meal to be cooked. I honestly didnt think it would take that long to cook noodles and veggies, but I didnt say anything because I didnt need any secret ingredients added to my meal if I complained. If you decide to get the stir fry, I would highly recommend asking to have your food plated on a paper plate. They have a styrofoam to go box and a styrofoam plate to have your food served, but the chef advised people that he would need to double stack the plates/​box so that the food wouldnt burn through the box. I can already see a third eye forming on the people who went with the melted styrofoam…

Located within the Lasalle Building lower level.
I believe the food is prepared by Marriot /​Sodexho company. If you are familiar, than you’d know the food is excellent. ARAMARK SUCKS! I believe they serve Breafast and lunch, unsure about dinner.
Most customers are LaSalle employees, but passers-​by, visitors, are very welcome.
They have many selections, wraps, salads, sandwiches, grilled, pastas, and a very long, very unique Hot/​Cold bar. Hot/​Cold bar is measured by the ounce, selections vary from veggies to fruits, turkey with gravy to roasted ravioli, beef tenderloin to sweet and sour chicken.
The dining area is colorful and always clean and stocked with condiments, cutlery, etc.
Good place to network and enjoy a good meal.

For a food court in the Loop, this place is just ok. Their made-​to-​order selection (grill, sandwiches, pasta, etc) is a small compared to what you’d find at food courts in the Chase Tower, Aon Center and Under 55. Also, their buffet selection is pricey ($ 6.49 per pound) when you consider that you can indulge your buffet craving at Delmonico’s for just $ 5.29/lb. Lighting leaves something to be desired as well; they should call this place «The Dungeon» instead of «The Vault».
On the plus side, the pasta dish I ordered (pasta with italian sausage and white beans) was quite delicious and the portion size was huge. Also, I believe LaSalle Bank (or is it Bank of America now?) employees get some sort of discount so that’s nice if that applies to you. Lastly, lines are much shorter here so no annoyingly long waits if you’re in a rush, which is certainly not the case at the other food courts I listed above.
But all in all, I probably won’t be making a trip back out to the Vault there any time soon, as there are simply too many other food court options in the Loop that are better in terms of price and selection.