Central Cafe & Organics

Please, please, pretty please, reopen!
I ate here about once week… always the jerk chicken salad with whatever amazing house-​made dressing they had (Champagne vinagrette! Mango something or other)!
I got a salad at a restaurant on the same block today (no need to name names) and it is just so BLAHHHHHHHH.
Hurry back, please!

Pros: Awesome fresh healthy organic vegetarian food.
Cons: Been closed for eventual reopening for a LONG FREAKIN’ TIME… Was supposed to reopen in JANUARY???

Great food! I actually walked in without checking Unilocal… which I never usually do. Asked the waitress what was the best thing on the menu she rec. the jerk chicken wrap it was great and best of all the ginger limeade was bang’n!!! I’m in town 4 more day will be back for sure!

Pros: Excellent, fresh, delicious organic wraps, salads and platters. Their chicken salad wrap is a must as is their Gorgonzola dressing. Fantastic smoothies. Prices are good for organics, although one could easily spend $ 20 on lunch here.
Cons: It’s a small place, so it gets busy fast and orders take AWHILE. Don’t expect to be in and out in 5 minutes. Call ahead if it’s an issue.

I had my first visit to Central Café & Organics today, and I was truly disappointed. Their menu was scant, and they were out of almost 50% of what they listed on their chalkboard. The man at the register– who was immensely rude (think «douche-​bag»)– told us, among other excuses, that he was «a very busy person.» I found this ludicrous– not only that he should make sure stock is maintained but because he could easily have wiped the out-​of-​stock items off the chalkboard. I was not impressed by the menu or juice bar selections. I was also disappointed that this company uses Styrofoam. If your company philosophy is organic and «green,» then you should follow through with that. Will never patronize them again.

Food is healthy but very expensive. I personally don’t think it should cost that much. Also, it usually takes longer than I’d like to get my food. Even if I call it in to pick it up I still have to wait in line to get it.

First visit today.
The small footprint is more than made up for by the quality of food, and the friendliness of the staff.
Beer selection includes a variety of lesser known (and very interesting) choices to pair with your eating food selection.
Tip1: When ordering the Jerk Chicken a healthier option would be to ask for humus instead of mayo
Tip2: If you are in a rush, call in your order on the way — this can save you 10 mins or more of waiting.

My first experience in St. Petersburg was a good one, with the exception of Central Café. While I was a fan of the ambience of this quaint spot on Central Avenue, they disappointed me immensely. As an avid juicer I was happy to find a juice bar close to the hotel I was staying at. Upon entering the store, I told the nice woman behind the counter I wanted a juice and she proceeded to tell me they were out of cups. Call me crazy, but how is a juice bar out of cups? Then I decided to order a ginger black iced tea, which I was then told they were out of. So I had to settle for a ginger lemonade, in a small coffee cup. I was somewhat disappointed in the flavor of the lemonade as well. I didn’t get any of the spice from the ginger, just a heavy dose of sugary lemonade. If I am ever back in town for business, I may try again, but rest assured I will call first to make sure they have adequate juice cups.

This place is great! After eating tons of fried fish at the beach for days– we did a day trip inland. Chicken salad wrap with side salad (homemade dressing) — all delicious. The healthiest item we ate all vacation. My bf called it life changing :) Love it– quick easy, healthy, good!
Eat at a little table outside, then walk to the Dali museum. Great afternoon.

I stopped in here for lunch, wanting something a little lighter and healthier. I ordered the hummus wrap for me, and the southwest wrap for my wife, plus the «Cosmic Cookie».
We wound up splitting each of the wraps so we could taste both of them. They were very tasty, and not at all skimpy on the filling. There was a number of different dressings to choose from, but I chose the balsamic vinaigrette. Also, both had a spinach flavored tortilla wrap.
The cookie was a vegan cookie with flax seeds and chocolate chips. Also very good, especially being vegan with no butter.
I only had to wait about 5 minutes to get my order, which is not bad, since they are made to order. It’s not fast food, so that’s not a bad wait time.
Next time I think I want to try the curry egg salad wrap…
Great for lunch, and there is a comfortable looking room to sit and eat, if you’re not doing take out.

Great wraps and delicious, natural, organic food and drink. I recommend the hummus wrap and a ginger lemonade. As with most Tampa Bay people, most do not understand BETTER INGREDIENTS MEANS MORE EXPENSIVE. You get what you pay for nowadays eh? This place is definitely worth checking out if you want something nutritious!

I love this place for lunch. It is super yummy and healthy. I love that I can get a wrap, side salad and soup, which eat for 2 lunches, for under $ 13. I’ve had most of the wraps and some soups and have never been disappointed. The service is great. I was even there this morning and the owner was making the special of the day and was out of walnuts. He thought the walnuts made the wrap so he went out to get some. It’s nice to see how much they care! I would definitely recommend Central Café!

Def one of my favorite lunch spots in downtown St. Pete! Healthy, fresh and organic — I always leave feeling good. The staff is awesome and the prices are pretty standard for the area. Their vegetarian shepherd’s pie is delicious and their hummus is the best in town. I’m not a salad person, but even their side salad is so good! Try one of their homemade soups or a cosmic cookie as a snack. If you’re there in the afternoon or evening stop next door at Green for a glass of organic wine or one of many craft beers. I love this place!

I’ve been to Central Café more times than I can count. It’s sad to see ANY negative reviews because they absolutely do not deserve them. I’ve always felt so welcomed by the incredible staff and always have a healthy and delicious lunch or snack when I pop in. The shop is sweet and quaint, clean and welcoming, small and hip.
This isn’t the place to visit if you are looking for a greasy spoon or house burger. It is however a great spot for something tasty, healthy and fresh. You can walk out guilt free and without a lead in your stomach.

Hip atmosphere with awesome outdoor seating. Vegan and veg friendly. Delicious food… you gotta try the sweet potatoes and hummus! If you are not a fan of cabbage, watch out for the purple stuff.

I’m not sure about the smoothie but I’m a fan of their soups and cookie. They have new owners as of a couple of weeks ago who are super nice. They have made some very nice changes to the place. For me, the best change they’ve made so far is adding the free Wi-​Fi. But of all the things they’ve done, the best thing was, and is, that they’re keeping the old crew.
If you want to try the quiche, come before 9 because it goes quick. Check in early afternoon and you might be able to grab their famous cookies when they just came out of the oven. Their chicken salad, although a bit pricey, is a lot better than Messineo’s.
Best of luck to the new owners.

My girlfriend and I were looking for a café after lunch and we came across this place. I was hoping to see desserts in the store but very few selection for bakery. So we ended up buying just drinks.
I had coffee smoothie and my girlfriend had ginger lemonade. Mine was extremely sweet and could not finish it at all. This place is good for your health… Not! My girlfriend could not finish hers because it was too sour. They have the tendancy to go extreme on their drink flavors.
Their bathroom is on the upstairs and it is in a poor condition. I cannot say anything about their food but I guess I will never find out. Their service was good.

The lady and I took a spontaneous day trip to St. Pete last week because we wanted to go swimming and failed to find an open community pool (we also slept too late to go to Wet ‘n Wild — we’re night owls). Only problem is our spontaneity led to a lack of preparation — namely, food.
After a lovely time at the beach, we headed to downtown St. Pete, having not eaten for several hours. Feelin’ grumpy, we stumbled upon Central Café and after checking out the menu and its various vegetarian options, stopped in for some much-​needed sustenance. We were very impressed.
The food is delicious, healthy, organic and carefully and quickly prepared. I had the southwest special, which filled me up quite nicely with its fresh black beans, veggies and melted cheese. It also came with a side salad, and many of their dressings are homemade; I recommend the raspberry vinaigrette.
My girl ordered a curry egg salad wrap, which had a unique flavor and was chock full of eggs. I liked it, but I liked my order more.
The service was very friendly. The man who helped us couldn’t have been more pleasant and patient with us. Definitely a place to remember for those day trips.

I gave it two stars, because when we walked in, though greeted, we felt rushed and expected to know what we wanted to order, it wasn’t relaxed, so we picked the consistent vegan cookie (not made there).
In one way I can understand the urgency in ordering, there isn’t a lot of room, this was not a busy week day. So I can imagine what it would be like if it were. It would be a place to call in or fax an order.
If we go back I would like to try the hummus, (we finally read the menu once we sat down). The table next to ours had some wraps they looked very fresh, the vegetable colors were superb, may try that as well.
The weather was good, so we sat outside in front where they had tables with umbrella’s. There was seating in an area outside of the serving area, it was under roof, but it seemed warm and dark, and not too inviting at least the day we were there.

I feel bad as I really didn’t stress the deliciousness of the vegan cookies enough in my past review, so I’m letting all my fellow Unilocalers know now… get the cookie with flax seeds in it! Yes, it may sound suspect to you non-​health food eaters out there, but you won’t know that it’s a healthy alternative, I promise!