Cava Mezze Grill

Decent food! Cava Mezze Grill is basically the Mediterranean equivalent of Chipotle. You go up to the counter and order your base (rice, salad, or sandwich), meat (chicken, beef, lamb, etc), toppings, and sauces, etc. This place is very casual with limited seating downstairs and more places to sit upstairs. I had previously been to the Cava Mezze Grill in Tenleytown and they’re pretty comparable.
I ordered the following:
–Base: Salad (with romaine — you can specify the type of lettuce)
–dips/​spreads: hummus, tzatziki
–Protein: grilled chicken, Falafel
–toppings: tomato and onion salad, cabbage slaw, and pita crisps
–Dressings: lemon herb tahini, spicy harissa
I also ordered some food to go for my fiancé and he got a beef dish. When we opened it up it was all red and we weren’t sure if it was the sauce or if it was raw meat, so we called the restaurant and they confirmed that the beef was cooked and it was just cooked in a red sauce. My fiancé ate it and didn’t get sick.
Overall, great food and it’s on the relatively healthy side. They even have a convenient calorie calculator on their website!

I had such high expectations going in to Cava Mezze. I heard such great reviews and needless to say, I was very disappointed. The girl taking my order acted like this was the last place in earth she wanted to be. I had to repeat my order at least 4 times and then when she wrapped up my food, half of it fell out onto the floor.
As for taste it was mediocre. It wasn’t horrible but definitely not warranting the reviews I’ve been hearing.
Willing to give it another chance but not going to be the first place I pick.

One of my favorite lunch options in DC!
Service: The line can get pretty long during lunch time, but it moves fairly quickly. Once you get to the counter, just point to the things you want to include in your bowl. If I am in a rush, I prefer ordering online and then picking it up by going to the counter directly.
Food: Great value for the amount, the quality and the taste you get. I typically get the salad with chicken and improvise with the toppings depending on the mood.
I definitely recommend this place, especially for a quick bite.

I can say clearly that I would return to this amazing place again excellent food service beyond expectations thanks

Really tasty and fresh food. I went with the arugula bowl and all the spicy additions. Falafel was crunchy. Beet lemonade was perfect to wash it all down.

I will say the food is delicious! The beef and spicy meatballs were on point! The pita was delicious. The waiting in line was a bit annoying, and the prices are kind of high. We ended up paying 36 dollars for lunch for two of us. That just seems a little much for a place were you aren’t being served and more fast foody. But it was very good.

It’s fast and yummy!
I had the rice with red pepper hummus, chicken, lettuce, turnip, cucumber, and tomatoes. It’s so so so yummy, and healthy!

Thanks for staying open on New Years Day and giving me some of the best falafel I’ve ever tasted — I always thought authentic falafel balls were a bit too dry and crumbly in the center, but not these reinvented ones. I am also a big fan of the supergreens mix which has shaved brussels. Don’t get the scoop of harissa if you can’t take spice — it is very very hot.
One complaint is I received a huge chicken bone in my bowl which not only was unpleasant to accidentally chew on but also took up a huge portion of the protein so I only received two bites of actual chicken.

Kind of like a Middle Eastern Chipotle, in which you start by choosing your «bowl», which could be salad or grain based, up to 3 «sauces» like hummus, tzatiki etc, a protein (I went with the spicy lamb balls, which I would highly recommend), add vegetables of your choice and dressing. Affordable, healthy, delicious and fast.

OMG I love this place. I can’t wait to get something like this back in California. It has use west coasters written all over it. Think of Chipotle with a Mediterranean flare. You get there and can choose wrap or salad or bowl. Then you go to the meat section, don’t worry there are plenty of options for you vegetarians. Even though I love my veggies, I opted for the lamb and was thrilled with my decision. Then you choose what kind of rice/​lentils/​veggies etc. There are so many options. I didn’t want to get judged by the girl who was helping me and was going to select only a few things, but after a second thought I was like screw this, «can I get everything please?» She must have hid her opinion of me because I felt no judgment from her behalf, so thank you.
The whole experience was an explosion of flavor. They also have an abundance of tea options. Seriously for this price and the quality and quantity of food you get, this place is a gem.

Bottom Line: A quick-​serve eatery where friendly employees assemble salads, bowls, pitas and other Mediterranean goodies using fresh ingredients in an assembly line fashion.
What I like about Cava is that its fast food that doesn’t compromise on freshness, healthiness or the overall quality of ingredients. At Cava, you can order an array of Mediterranean favorites and watch the employees prepare your meal for you. Much like the concepts behind Chipotle or &Pizza, as your meal travels down the counter you can specify what you want on it whether your «base» is mixed greens, grains and greens, a pita sandwich or something else. The ingredients look great and taste even better. As someone who makes salads at home regularly, I fully appreciate having someone else to rip my lettuce, dice my cucumbers and tomatoes, crumble my feta, mince my mint, braise my beef etc. I also like that along with my salad I can get a mini-​pita to help satisfy my never ending craving for carbs.
At Cava, you can take it to go or dine in. There are a few places to sit downstairs but during the busy weekday lunch rush you may feel swarmed by the business lunch crowd. To get out of the fray, head up the stairs to the main dining room but know it will still be a bit loud up there. Although getting it to go may make for a quieter lunch, one of the nice things about dining at Cava is the hip décor that is a bit of vintage and modern.
Another great thing about Cava is that it is close to the Metro. From the Chinatown-​Gallery Place Metro, take the exit for Chinatown and then Cava is kitty-​corner from that Metro entrance/​exit right next to Matchbox Pizza.
Overall, Cava is a great experience because the food is super healthy, fresh and most importantly tasty.

Yum! This place is good. It’s definitely Americanized Mediterannean food, but it’s really good. There are lots of options and delicious pickled veggies and sauces to add to your bowl, and the pita you get with it is delicious.

Cava, I have one question for you… Y U NO EXIST IN NY? Seriously, it would be perfect. Cava is the hummus equivalent of Chipotle… as in… it’s DIY-​style bowls with all the Mediterranean fix-in’s your heart (and tummy) desires. On a work trip I stopped in for lunch and the line was all the way up the stairs. Luckily it moves quickly and the workers are super fast and super efficient so the process isn’t that long. The food itself is VERY good. You can taste the quality ingredients and I love the large assortment of rices, greens, meats, vegetarian options (like falafel, roasted vegetables, etc), and who can forget the dressings?! Yums all around.

Chipotle style for Mediterranean food!
Its pretty good and gets the job done. Fast, tasty, and healthy!

We were looking for a nice, sit down, grownup restaurant and found this place on Unilocal.From the description and menu it looked great. Boy, were we disappointed.
It turns out that their descriptions of what sound like entrees are actually puddles of slop in a steam table. It’s true that there are seats in which you can sit down, but it is actually a revamped fast food joint.
Their menu is another one of those that try to be clever by breaking down the ordering process into steps: something like, choose your X!, add your Y! and top off with Z! have a great life! Blech. This is just another cheap attempt at skirting the issue of low quality and lack of imagination with the illusion of choice.

The food is great, but the staff at this location is HELLA incompetent. I’ve been here on the weekend when it’s slow, and I often go weekdays during the lunch rush — unwavering incompetence. They need to step their game up and get on Chop’t’s level. No one wants to spend a half hour just picking up their «fast food» lunch.
Then I discovered you can order online and thought — great, a solution! Mehhh maybe if they were to read the comments section/​pay attention to the order. I’ve also noticed they tend to give smaller portions in the online orders. I guess it still beats wasting so much time waiting in line.
But hey, maybe I’m setting the standard of efficiency too high considering we’re south of the Mason-​Dixon line.

are you ever just blown away by how incredible something is?
i had this place bookmarked on Unilocal for a while but never seriously considered trying it until i started constantly noticing people walking around with cava cups. cava drinks seemed more prevalent than frappuccinos! i decided i wanted to be a part of the action.
wow. the drinks are delicious. they are fresh juices in fun flavors like vanilla bean limeade and watermelon mint. at $ 2.75 for a large they’re not a bad deal at all, and i’m not sure whether you’re allowed free refills but unless i’m told otherwise i’m going to assume the answer is yes.
i haven’t tried the food yet, but it all looks great too! my only recommendation is that if you come during lunch, be prepared for a wait as the line sometimes goes all the way upstairs.

Very well executed fast casual Mediterranean. A lot like Roti but with a bit more flare. The little touches like fresh mint and all the different protein choices really set Cava apart. Price is reasonable as far as DC lunch in concerned.
The line did move a little slow but that is neither here nor there. Just want to mention it just in case you are in a rush. It’s worth the wait.

Chipotle style Mediterranean food. Came around 2 and the line was still out the door. You get quite a decent choice, and the servers move fast. Study the menu in line or know what you want before because I was flabbergasted when it came time to order.
Woman who started my salad bowl was a little pushy, shut given the insane line and my lack of knowledge I somewhat understand. I got s salad and there were literally 4 different kinds of lettuce (how was I supposed to know). Then you go down the line, add sauce-​meat-​and toppings. Would be a ton of food with a rice bowl!
Great drink selection, especially if your into juices. And seating area was cute and designed to fit a lot of people. $ 11 for a salad, but it was unique and delicious. I have a feeling I’m going to become a regular.

Chipotle for Greek food is the best way to explain this place. You’ve gotta check it out if you have never been here before. Best part is that there is no limit to toppings, so you can keep asking them to pile them up.
My favorite meal here is an arugula salad with shredded beef and about a million toppings (tzaziki, hummus, pickled onions, feta, cucumber and onion, cabbage, dried pita crisps, dressing, etc).
Price adds up – $ 11+ — for just a grab and go lunch, but it’s healthy and tasty.