Laughing Planet Cafe

A very kid and dinosaur friendly place.
There were a few menu discrepancies and a service issue.
The gal that took our order at the counter had a great personality and was friendly and helpful.
We ordered pints of beer along with food. They were dry on our first two choices of beer but the alternative suggestion was pleasent. We had pints of Migration IPA. It had a fruity nose and a nice hoppy modest bitterness.
My date ordered a burrito, the Santa Fe with tempeh.
I ordered a cup of Hungarian mushroom soup and the grains and greens salad.
My salad was fresh and yummy, with lots of grains mixed a in with a vinaigrette dressing. However, much like their beer tap having a few issues, my salad was dry on the dried cranberries or butternut squash, as described on the menu.
The mushroom soup came too hot to initially sample, and in a small «cup,» but was good, creamy and had nice shrumes. And here comes another «however», I had to remind them about my soup and got an apology having something to do with it being an appetizer and there is no ticket for it. Say what?!
My date’s burrito with huge and excellent. She said she couldn’t imagine it not being smothered in the green chile sauce.
Overall, I would like to give them a better rating but there were several issues, not enough to say we would not be back. We can recommend and may return.

I have used and referred this place for a few years. It has been our go to place for regular weekly meetings… have spent a lot of $$$ here. The last time I went, I was disappointed that they had gotten rid of the good tea selection. They now only had 3 and not very good ones. Today I scheduled two meetings at the restaurant. I ate and was so looking forward to a hot tea. I was told they don’t have it at all anymore. That I could walk across the street and get some and come back and eat!!! Enough said about that. Then my appointment showed up, she went to order. When she came to our table her first comment was they don’t have any hot tea! Looking around the neighborhood, we found Grand Central and they will be getting our regular weekly lunch meetings in the future. I ate a salad that I had not had before. It was good enough but not enough dressing. They said that we could get free refills on our ice tea, but they never offered. As the years I have used this restaurant, it has been dropping in our choice of a go to spot.

Been here many of times, and almost every other location around town, and I keep coming back for one thing… the paleo bowl. It’s my go-​to when I’m feeling like I need a clean, whole food meal. The new killer green sauce was tasty, but I always get a side of Korean sauce because it’s dynamite. And it’s super family friendly with dinosaur toys scattered around the tables for the kids, what more can you ask for?!?

Everytime in Portland I make a point to come to this place! Ingredients and food quality are AMAZING! I always get the Che, which has now been renamed to the ‘Cuban.’ Either way — it’s delicious! I also love their green juices. I’ve tried their soups and specials as well. You really can’t go wrong here. The only reason I give them 4 stars is because I’d love to see more locations and later hours. I’d much rather be eating laughing planet at 10pm-​12am than some of the alternatives.

This is such a cute place. I love that it’s kid-​friendly with decent, healthy options.
I am vegan now and it was such a treat to know that I could still get my favorite, the spinach and black bean burrito, as a vegan entrée without any extra charge. They used Daiya «cheese» instead of regular cheese and I ordered vegan sour cream and guacamole (extra cost).
It was perfect.
I think I will be spending more time eating my new favorite burrito at this joint.
Oh and the kids’ options are great. My fourteen-​month-​old loves the black beans, butternut squash, and broccoli.
This place is perfect for families… and everyone else!

1Nov15 around 11am for lunch.
Three of us had bowls and one had a burrito.
Everyone liked the bowls. Good but nothing to write home about. Burrito person thought it just ok. Seemed a bit overpriced.
Good service. Nice ambience.

Not too impressed with the food. I got the Thai tofu bowl and it was fairly bland. There are much better places to eat in Portland.

Laughing Planet Café offers good American-​style Mexican (read: good quality but somewhat bland), food, decent prices, and really great service!
I like their kale salad with white cheese, pumpkin seeds, and cranberries, and also their spinach, bean and cheese burrito; I get it «mondo» for extra rice and beans, otherwise, it’s kinda skinny. I always have to add salt to the burrito, but the flavor is fine.
This is a café meant for parents and kiddos, or for those of us who are too tired to cook at the end of our work week!
The reason I rate them 4 stars instead of 3, however, is because of the service. They really, really care!
Just tonight, when I ordered take out, they lost my order, and after realizing their mistake, they pushed my order up to the top, gave me a discount, had it ready in 10 minutes, and added in a cookie! The manager even offered to run it out to my car! It was amazing! I wish the food were as good as their service, but, it’s not bad, and it’s organic and clearly well-​made.
Thank you, Laughing Planet Café! You gave us a great experience, even with the missed order! We’ll be back!!!

The food is OK, but the jerk that drives around the laughing planet van drops their score to two stars
#laughingplanet #food

Service is pretty slow and crowded. People working don’t seem to happy about working there either. Food is so-​so, definitely the healthier blander version of Mexican food. One of those places where it tastes a lot better if you’re really hungry, but then again they have you waiting a bit to eat.

This is our favorite place to go! for dine in or take out, The prices are great they get all their ingredients local, and it’s close enough to bike too. Right now we are stuck on the bean & cheese burrito’s but we love the taco’s too. Fantastic food for a more then reasonable price.
If you don’t have a punch card get one! 10 punches and you get an on free. Not many places do you go that you really leave full, and not broke.

I bike to this location fully intending to load up on super healthy good food. And that is reliably what I get, that’s the draw for me. I’m not stuck with the one healthy option on the menu like I am at a lot of places. That’s a treat.
The staff, in addition to being friendly, are surprisingly knowledgeable about the food on the menu. «How much chicken comes if I add it to a bowl?» I ask. «3 ounces, the USDA recommended serving size,» I get in response. Snap. Makes it easy for me.
Laughing Planet is a chain but it doesn’t have the homogenized feel most chain restaurants get stuck with. The consistency is there but it still manages to feel uniquely fun and neighborhood-​y.
Speaking of neighborhood-​y, expect to encounter a lot of families and children here. If that’s off-​putting to you, sit in the bar; it’s quieter and a kid-​free zone. Cheers to LP for recognizing some of us prefer that.

REALLY healthy, fresh food, for a hefty price. I guess you get what you pay for — I can tell how fresh everything is. I’m a huge fan of their smoothies. Delishhh. I always add kale to any smoothie I get.
I normally get the Spanky bowl because I’m a sucker for mashed potatoes, corn, broccoli, and cheese. And that’s exactly what it is. Yes, i can make it at home very easily, but hey — when I’m there, that’s usually what I get.
this time around, I got the Seoul Quesdilla — kimchi, chicken, and something else in it that made that one of the best Quesdillas I’ve had. Its only seasonal, so you have to catch them at the right time of the year.
They have superb service! And what other place has a bunch of toy dinosaurs hanging around for you to play with?! I mean… not that I’ve played with them… at all… pretending they’re my miniature pets… and that I’m feeding them..

Friendly service, a good beer selection, healthy and quality ingredients, and toys for my kids — those are the main reasons we will go to Laughing Planet again. I wasn’t super impressed with the food itself and definitely felt it was overpriced, but it’s a nice walk from our home, so we’ll go back.

There seems to be a theme here. Wait in line to order, then wait over 30 minutes for sub-​par food. Tip up front and bus your table…
I was served a partially empty quesadilla and a bowl with hot rice and cold beans. After waiting for so long we ate because we were starving. I did bring the inedible quesadilla evidence to the counter and requested my tip be removed from my purchase. I didn’t feel like the business should suffer for the short comings of staff. I was informed they have a policy in place and refunded me for the entire meal. The manager made a point to mention they are very busy… as if that is the customers problem? ¾ of the tables were empty, nice try. The bottom line is I have eaten and will continue to eat at the other locations around town. I am done with Woodstock because it’s consistently horrible service and messed up orders. They seem to be short staffed always and that’s just not the customers problem.
This location seems to have the worst reviews and the lowest rating of the entire chain. Open your eyes and fix your problems.
I did post a picture of the pathetic quesadilla the obviously high staff thought was acceptable to serve a paying customer. And when I say pay I mean yeah, expensive. The food should be perfect for the prices being charged.

Service here is horrid. Food is actually good and generally healthy. Don’t come here when it’s busy or if you’re in a hurry.
We have been going here for years and have watched as the service has gotten worse and worse. We’ve finally had enough of it and won’t be retuning.
First, the cashiers are also food runners and smoothie makers and sometimes bartenders too. This doesn’t work unless you run a place that is dead. Worse, the staff slunk between different stations with no sense of urgency. I have yet to go in and see where customers consistently got their orders in a timely manner. Most sit in the window for at least 5 – 10 minutes before someone grabs it and brings it out. Not cool.
I’ve stood waiting at the register for 3 minutes to place my order waiting while the staff get caught up bringing out orders and god knows what else.
This sort of failed system lives on despite frustrated patrons and ex patrons bringing it to the attention of management. Sadly, LP doesn’t have any real competition (food wise), so I guess they have no motivation to fix their customer service problem. Too bad, really.

This is the place to be if you have several kids in tow, want to get out of the house for a bit, and desire a flavorless bowl of stir-​fried veggies. I’m reasonably positive their dinosaur toys are all covered with germs, and if you’re looking forward to waiting 45 minutes for a simple burrito or quesadilla while attempting to tune out overly loud music, look no further.
Mediocre food with a loud and somewhat filthy environment. Decent beer.

Back again after my first review in 2008, and well, now I didn’t even really get any of my prior «mexican food feel». Ok, there are burritos on the menu, but this place is def way more a ‘health food’ restaurant than anything else. Kudos for all the consideration for dietary restrictions.
I have consumed two bowls, on separate visits. One a regular type bowl, approx $ 9.50 to go, and the other, a burrito turned into a bowl, approx $ 6.95 to eat in house. The regular bowl was smallish but healthful, full of beets, veggies and nicely prepared meat. Best was that the packing could be partially composted. The ‘burrito into a bowl’ was very smallish but had a good quantity of chicken, pinto beans cooked to smooth perfection and brown rice that was firm. Good lunchtime pick.
It’s a solid go-​to and I am glad I knew about it to make another visit.

I didn’t even know this place existed until my friend suggested it for lunch. It’s next to Otto’s – which I go to all the time. I met my friend, her husband, and three children (all under the age of four) here.
You walk-​in and you order food at the counter then they give you a number to put at your table. There is always a line to order, but plenty of seating. They have an indoor and outdoor space. I had gotten there early so I ordered myself a small Highway to Kale, Peach Berry Chia, and a Cheese & Pico Quesadilla for the children so that the food was ready once they arrived.
I have to say, it’s a very kid friendly restaurant. Lots of people with small children dining at this restaurant. They have dinosaur toys at almost every table to keep kids distracted. While I waited for my friend and her family to arrive, I just watched other people’s kids having meltdowns. Eventually, they arrived… their kids weren’t on the best behavior that day, however, far from the other terrors running amok.
It did take a little bit for the food to be served. I wasn’t impressed – the selection seems healthy and fresh, but nothing special. Most of the menu items could have been made simply at home.
This wouldn’t be somewhere I would chose to go for a meal if I wasn’t rolling with kids. I don’t mind busing my own table, however, it was very inconvenient to have to when you are trying manage children at the same time.
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My question has been answered. LP has NOT stopped caring at all. In fact, they messaged me with some clarifications and to let me know that they do care. Quite a bit. I’m still disappointed in the lackluster food, though, but do take heart in the service follow up.
I’ve been informed that all food is weighed, so portions should be the same across all locations. Maybe the portions have gotten smaller, or maybe I have some grand memory that they used to be more generous. Either way, the food itself that I’ve received from LP the past few visits has left me nonplussed.
But bravo to the staff at this location for reaching out and closing the loop on my customer interaction. I take back what I may have said about this location. Maybe it applies across the board?
My vector of love for LP still peaked quite a while ago, and I’m left not really aching to return for more. I do appreciate their mission to serve healthy food in a fun environment, but it seems that even with said appreciation, it doesn’t make me anxious to rush back for more.
Thank you, LP, for following up with me. I really do appreciate that.