Laughing Seed Cafe
| Address: | 40 Wall St, Asheville, NC 28801, USA |
| Phone: | +1 828-252-3445 |
| Site: | laughingseed.com |
| Rating: | 4.4 |
| Working: | 11:30AM–9PM Closed 11:30AM–9PM 11:30AM–9PM 11:30AM–10PM 11:30AM–10PM 11AM–9PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 8
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Coleby Slade
I stopped by the Laughing Seed Cafe for dinner with my family while visiting Asheville for the first time. We approached the hosts stand and told the girl there that we had a party of 6; the server at the stand (girl with pink and blonde hair) rolled her eyes and then walked away. We then witnessed her go up to another server and that server then proceeded to roll her eyes as well. When she came back to the host stand I apologized for any inconvenience as I could tell there was a level of attitude, and she just said that in order for us to be seated she would have to move two tables together as though we should just leave, but did not make any effort to lighten the situation with a simple "no worries, just give me a moment to group tables together." After finally being sat, I ordered a Margarita. The Margarita came with a long blonde strand of hair in it. I asked for a new margarita and apologized yet again for any inconvenience. This time when the Margarita came, there was a black shard of glass in it. A shard of GLASS!?! I was appalled, but did not make a scene because I was with my family and this was suppose to be a nice evening and I did not want to ruin it. Instead I simply informed the server that there was now glass in my drink and I will just drink my water. She did not apologize or anything, she just grabbed the drink and left. Shortly after, I got up to use the restroom and as I walked past our server, the blonde who initially greeted us at the host stand, I heard her say to another employee "there is that party of 6 that put glass in their drink and blamed it on me." I stopped and told her that I can hear her talking about us, and her response was to mock me word for word "oh I can hear you talking about us." I could not believe the level of disrespect.. I continued walking towards the restroom, ignoring her at this point, and once my back was turned towards her she called me, and I quote, "a f*ing fat a$$." Wow. Just wow... Our party finished our meals and my mom left a generous tip regardless of the extremely unpleasant situation, however I attempted numerous times to reach out to management and have yet to hear back from them. I have written Joan a detailed email, attempted to call several times and even contacted their accounting department, yet I have not received so much as an apology. This is truly unacceptable and needless to say I will never return. Shame on that server and shame on Laughing Seed Cafe.
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Melanie Clauss
Was in town to visit recently and couldnt believe how poor the service was. It was POURING down rain and we had our dog with us. They were kind enough to wipe off a table under some covering on the patio. You could tell we were not welcome right off the bat. Our server was an older woman I had seen a few years before. She was incredibly condescending and verging on argumentative. I was suspicious that was GF bread wasnt vegan so I tried to contact the bakery they source their bread from. They were closed and my server acted like she had never been asked if the bread was vegan before... in Asheville, come on! Thankfully the kitchen manager assured me that their bread is special order and is egg free. I am so disappointed that my favorite Asheville establishment left me with a bad taste in my mouth. I am hoping they were just having a bad day.
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Stuart F
This place alone makes a strong case to sell your residence/break your lease and make your new home in Asheville. I had a great brunch here with several people, and this was probably my favorite place of the entire trip. A large, diverse, healthy menu with very reasonable prices. The staff was friendly and efficient. We were able to call 30 minutes ahead on a Sunday and reserve a table. I wish they would open a restaurant in Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill. Everything on the menu looked great, but I can say from experience that the Sooner Country and the pancakes are delicious. I am still figuring out how to arrange my life around moving to Asheville for dining options like the Laughing Seed, but even if it doesnt work out, Ill definitely be back to visit.
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Land Heintzberger
Ive been eating at the Laughing Seed for well over a decade now, and Im sad to say that their food and service has really gone downhill. The last few times Ive been there things have progressively gotten worse. They used to really care about their food, now it seems like they only serve food that suits the tread of whats considered "healthy" at the moment. The food is not inexpensive so I think their clients deserve better. I ate there yesterday and the food made me sick for the rest of the afternoon. Everything was bland, but over spiced with curry and tons of black pepper to cover up the poor quality. I can make much better food at home myself, next time I will. Im sorry to say that this will be my last meal at the Laughing Seed.
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Matt Spewak
One of the better healthy vegan dining options in Asheville that offers table service and outdoor seating. I highly recommend the Buddha Bowls that come with layers of fresh organic vegetables, grains and sprouts. We ate here a few times during my visit and had a great experience overall. I would not recommend the burger, however, I thought it was mushy and small which left me hungry compared to the bowls. We also tried their appetizer with nut cheeses and picked vegetables which was a bit pricey but tasty. What I appreciate most is that they offer very fresh healthy options, which is not always the case with popular vegan restaurants. Its easy to eat whole foods here :D
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Leeanna Maniace
Really not sure about this place. I am very much into knowing exactly what Im eating and whether or not items are organic or local and organic. On the menu some items are marked as organic which eludes me to thinking the items that are not marked organic are not organic. I asked my waitresss and she was super friendly but just wasnt fully sure about the ingredients used. For me this is the most important aspect of a restaurant. I got the zucchini pesto and that was good, a bit salty but tasted good. Very pretty presentation. Are the chocolate chips used in the cookies vegan and organic? These questions it was hard to get a clear answer to.
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A Private User
When my fiance and I went, the service was extremely slow... almost 45 minutes to get our lunch sandwhiches. The waiter didnt provide any explanations to us and wasnt helpful. We were starving. Once the food came out... it just lacked the freshness of other vegetarian food. There was a reliance on dry protein substitutes that hardly justified the wait. It really felt like glorified nutrition bars wrapped in lettuce with sauce stuck between two pieces of bread. I frankly dont understand the rave reviews. Theres some really wonderful vegetarian restaurants in other big cities that emphasize vegetables!
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Sarah R
LOVED this place. Our first time in Asheville and, after reading some Yelp reviews, we decided to give Laughing Seed a whirl and wow, are we glad we did! The place is super quaint and just plain beautiful at night. And the staff was friendly and have us some good recommendations. Our server, Brooke, educated us in the menu after hearing it was our first visit, which was great! And the food was AMAZING! So many options! I wanted to try everything on the menu. Went with the ramen and it was tasty! Definitely want to come back in the future!
