Litestars

Wow! I was super impressed by this place. The food, service, and atmosphere were all great.
Before I went inside, a man called me over to sample the tartlet and soupdrink. He was not only friendly, but knowledgable and passionate about the food. A great first impression. He also told me I could sample anything I wanted inside.
I thought the selection was great… I’ve never had tartlets like that and there were a lot of flavors of soup and types of salad to try. I got the mango chicken salad and what I loved about it was that it was more than just lettuce, mango and chicken, it had a sauce to it, but it wasn’t gooped up with mayo either. I didn’t get a soupdrink because it was a sunny day, but the sample I had was pretty good. My friend and I each had a tartlet. I liked the turkey and my friend liked the Bison.
I was visiting from out of town, which is disappointing becuase I’d love to go here for lunch /​dinner on a regular basis. It offers such a great variety from the normal «health» food places I go for lunch… which pretttty much make me eat lettuce and then taunt me with fatty dressings («it’s under 300 calories… IF you don’t add x, y, or z»…then why bother??).
I would imagine it would be an awesome place to study too… they have wifi and it’s on GW’s campus.

I got lunch from Litestars today for what had to be the hundredth time. Out of curiosity I thought I’d check out the Unilocal reviews (while I was eating my lunch) and I was shocked. 3 stars? Really? What do you people want?
I’ve had just about everything on the menu by now, and though I like some things better than others I would never say that the food lacks flavor or is «disgusting» as some reviewers have. It’s fast, fresh, and healthy just as advertised… and if you read the pamphlets inside their mission statement is pretty cool too.
I suppose you could make the argument that it is pricey, if you compare to McDonalds. But I don’t care, it’s completely worth it.

You can’t beat this place for healthy, delicious, quick food! I come here at least once a week for lunch. The only real downside is the price… add up a few items and you can easily exceed $ 10 for lunch.
Speed — Good
Most of the time they are quick and efficient, although I did recently get stuck behind a group of newbie tourists, and I stood there annoyed while the staff doted on their every question.
Customer Service — Good to Great
A few of the long-​time employees provide excellent service, offering samples, greeting you with a smile and warm words, and offering alternatives when your favorite item is not there. There are a few exceptions, but the more experienced staff often steps in to assist.
Taste — Great
A few of the reviewers have trashed the food taste, but think it’s excellent! When the place opened they offered a free sample day for the building tenants and the flavors at the time were very bland. We filled out feedback cards and I have noticed a huge improvement since then. I love food where you can still taste the original flavor of each ingredient, and it’s not overpowered by salt.
This place is great! Keep up the good work.

Great place for an extra healthy meal. They have been friendly and patient in explaining the unique items. I enjoyed the mango chicken salad and the angel face soup drink.
Keep in mind what this eatery is striving for and you will have found a great place to have a healthy meal. Since I’ve started eating healthier my taste have changed and I think this place has amazing flacked. But I don’t know if I would have said that a month ago. I truly enjoy their generous policy to let you taste many of their items before hand. Try them for yourselves.

An update! Since ‘yelp-​ing’ Litestars, I’ve become a recognizable face as I go there 3 – 4 times a week, no exaggeration. Walked in today, after bypassing a few other options on my way back to the office and «GASP», they removed the Soybean chicken topping from their salads. WHAT? Poof! Just gone. No update, just gone. I know for a fact I’m not the only one upset about this. A few folks were mentioning it while I was in line and I’m confident it was a fan fave. As I told the manager who happened to be helping me today, this was a deal breaker for me. Off to find another salad (& tartlet) option! Bummer. 4 to 3 stars.
Original review:
Mid-​bite with my zucchini tartlet and side salad special, I headed back to my office knowing this place needed a solid Unilocal review. It’s Monday, blah, but the employees made me feel like it was the best day in the world. Great customer service, engaging but not overbearing. Team work to make my salad and package my tartlet and a 20% off card that made my meal $ 9.33. A tasty, healthy meal in a good location — hell, I might head back for the fat free frozen mango yogurt later today. They put a smile on my face and I’m full in a good way versus a carb overload way.

The premise of Litestars is light, healthy eats and one must keep that in mind.
Litestars has a rather limited selection considering the size of the place. I opted for a salad and butternut squash soup. Both were enjoyable, but I’m not sure what sets Litestars apart from say a Chop’t or Sweetgreen. The section that housed the tartlets looked scant with just a few spaced out tartlets on a large surface area. Visually, that could be improved upon. It just gave off that Soviet Safeway feel.
I did try a sample of the veggie tartlet made with egg whites. It was ok.
A female employee named Michael walked me through the process. She had great customer service, helped with recommendations, and offered samples.

I’m going into this review under the fact that the whole point of the establishment is to serve healthy food on a higher level than most restaurants.
I had a few gift cards from the Unilocal event held here a while ago and was in the area, so me and a friend decided to come here and redeem them. Both of us ordered the salmon with brown rice (listed at 210 calories and gluten free). I decided to top mine with tomatoes, red onions, and cranberries. My friend opted for the same but with different toppings. We also got the red wine dressing with it.
Although we had gift cards both for $ 5 each, the meal which was quite a lot for each of us, was around $ 9. Not bad for a healthy salad that is 210 calories and very filling. The salad was arugula and the brown rice with bits of salmon were at the bottom. Honestly, you really do need the dressing which makes the meal. Without it, although healthy, it would be a chore to eat. However, both of us enjoyed our salads and were content, satisfied, and would come back.
With this in mind, I am going to give Litestars 4 stars. Why? Because of the premise. Hyper healthy food at reasonable prices that is not bad. A lot of the options are vegan, gluten free, and low calorie although they do have chicken, bison, and salmon. I would suggest to the owners to try adding spice. The only other place I’ve been to that has a «healthy» menu that is dine in would be Seasons 52 and I was displeased with it since it was much more costlier. If you are a carnivore like me, give this place a try with an open mind. It is really a love or hate type of place, especially with all these mixed reviews. I enjoyed it and would come back.

Free generous huge samples. Plus it has a livingsocial you can use instantly! $ 4 for $ 7 worth. Everything is healthy and made fresh. Free soymilk and salt supplement with booths with outlets, fast internet and not too busy perfect place to eat and a vegans delight. Food is a little bland for my taste. I got free coffee with my oatmeal yay!

I agree with the others here– the food is too bland. I get that its healthy, but that doesn’t mean it needs to be bland. The powers of a pepper and herbs is remarkable.
I really liked the vegetable tartlet and quinoa salad. The frozen yogurt is also a treat. If you’re daring, try some of the squash «juices.»

Ok. Did someone forget to flavor the food… with anything? I found myself looking in my wallet for a little mini bottle of Tabasco or some soul seasoning, even a packet of soy sauce that I somehow smuggled from Chinese takeout. I could have sworn food that looks this good is supposed to taste like something… and not all the same… which is nothing.
We were there for an event with free food. I feel bad for even writing this review, but dammit, I must warn anyone who appreciates salt, pepper, bacon fat or even butter… not «I can’t believe it’s not butter»…BUTTER, from a real cow… that was really churned.
I was ready to try and wipe some sweat from my forehead to get a little salt up that mix.
I don’t understand the name either. The sign should just read «_​_​_​_​_​_​». Because I think that is a better reflection of the taste.
Man that is so mean. What’s wrong with me? I think I’m chemically imbalanced from the lack of certain things in the food.
Anyway, if you are diabetic, or maybe even vegan, or have something else wrong with you. This is probably the right place to go. The owner and staff are really friendly and they do serve alcohol.
Ok, let me stop now.

Good concept — but I love the concept and wish we had more truly new ideas in the industry. Healthy eating is needed. That being said, I was not impressed with the taste of the food and I found the prices to be pretty steep.

Pass the salt please. And the pepper, and the sugar while you are it.
I like the concept of this restaurant– eating healthy is a good thing. The staff is very friendly and helpful, and the place is decorated fairly nicely. But the food is just plain bland. For the tartlets, only the tomato one had any real flavor or taste to it. I tried the bison, chicken, and turkey ones too, and they all tasted about the same. The salads/​sides were the same letdown. I’m not a soup person, hot or cold, so I can’t comment on those. But even the cookies were bland and could have used a good dose of sugar. I’m sorry, I really tried to like it, but it just didn’t happen.

For the health freaks out there this place is great. But I cannot fathom the idea of eating food with very little to no salt or flavor.
I tried the small tartlets and the only one that had flavor was the tomato one, not even the ones with chicken or meat had that much flavor.
Great variety of soups. I actually asked for some salt and they gave me a Litestars low salt jar and it did nothing no matter how much I kept adding so I gave up and went to grab dinner elsewhere.
Other than that, staff is really nice and the ambiance is great.
PS; mimosas are made with fresh squeezed OJ which was quite delightful.

I want to like them. But the food is not good. I don’t care if it’s more «pure», it’s not tasty. I’ve tried two different «tartlets» and a soup — didn’t like any of them. Overpriced and small portions.
Drink options: few and also sacrificing taste for health.
Redeeming qualities: neat ambiance; ample seating, including outdoor seating; menu is on easy-​to-​read LCD displays, and they list the calorie counts; staff is friendly and offer samples of anything; location is great; free wifi.

Maybe it’s the sun shining outside after what seems like an eternity of rain and cold. Maybe it was the gorgeous sunset last night as the sun set out its last rays behind billowy clouds. Or maybe it’s seeing 4 big construction guys sitting outside at Litestars’ outdoor seating enjoying their salads and sun alongside healthy-​eating fanatics doing the same.
But I gotta say — I came here on a whim, and more often than my my whims have taken me to better places than planned routes. I am enjoying my sumptuous wheatberry cranberry salad with balsamic vinaigrette, alongside a pump-​my-​arteries-​with-​energy mango shake, at their sun-​drenched bar counter and can not think of another place where I’d rather be for lunch today. And amidst the hustle and bustle of a meeting-​ravaged day, I am enjoying unplugged music in the background, just enough to set me in the right cadence before getting back into the madness of the day.
The environment is fun, with Italian little blown glass tangerine– and avocado-​colored light fixtures and décor. The ordering process is pretty simple once you realize you can order different things at their 4 stations, and it definitely helped that the first guy I talked to here started with «we have four ordering stations: dessert…» I’m eating fast food without the fast food glut and grease. And I still have time to get to my next meeting.
A health-​food oasis on L where I rediscovered my love of wheatberries. Perfect for the mid-​day getaway-​from-​it-​all.

Yes, the food is low-​fat and low sodium, and you can tell. Personally I dislike the saltiness of American food and I don’t miss the fat in most dishes.
The staff is friendly and will let you sample the dishes. You can always get in and out quickly and if you’re dining in there’s free ice water.
I eat here twice a day sometiems, particularly when I was fridgeless for two weeks — and I lost weight during those two weeks!
Best dishes: the turkey tartlet; the onion tartlet; the butternut squash soupdrink (100 calories and somehow filling enough for a whole lunch for me); the wheat berries with orange juice and cranberries (but w/​o the overpriced mixed greens) are like a dessert; and somehow the massive serving of creamy oatmeal with milk is only 340 calories.
Obviously I spend way too much time and money at this place, but it’s a nice change from prepackaged coffee shop sandwiches and Brueggers.

Food/​Cost: (2.5÷5) I came here today for lunch and ordered the Bison Tartlet and Chicken Mango side salad ($ 8.08 total). I’m a fan of healthy fare, but that’s no excuse for bland, badly textured food. Perhaps the other, non-​bison tartlets are executed better, but my bison one had dry meat and a cardboard-​like crust. Not good. The Chicken Mango salad would have been okay IF it had more spices. I understand cutting back on the salt benefits our health, but apparently Litestars forgot about the great spices out there. There was a redeeming factor though: I knew I was doing my body good with the food here and I was left quite full at the end of my meal.
Ambiance: (³⁄₅) Litestars is decorated with a modern sensibility with clean lines and rich colors. The LCDs on which they display their menu is a cool touch, I must admit. It was pretty much empty when I came here around 2pm, but some of the other reviews seem to suggest a lunchtime rush on weekdays?
Location: (³⁄₅) Litestars is close to the Foggy Bottom metro and is an easy lunchtime destination for workers and students in the area.
Service: (²⁄₅) It’s a bit cafeteria style here with your telling people behind the counter which items you want. The employees here were okay when I came here, but the speed they served me was a tad slow (and I was the only one here).
Overall: (³⁄₅) I wish I could rate Litestars better as I’m a huge supporter of the health food movement. I appreciate that they note the calories of most items here, and I hope Litestars sticks around to bring healthy fare to the District. However, realistically, the food here is not for everyone and Litestars needs to spice up (literally) its food items here if they want to attract more patrons. On a side note, I’m not sure why the paper boxes for the tartlets to-​go are so big here (it’s 4x the height it needs to be for the single tartlet it fits); it’s not very environmentally friendly.

I have to disagree with the people who said the food is here is flavorless/​bland/​etc. I have been wanting to try this place for a while and finally had the chance for lunch today since I happened to be taking a seminar a few blocks away.
I was there before the lunch rush, so the guy at the counter was very engaging and offered samples of as many different tartlets as I wanted. I sampled the chicken tartlet, bison tartlet, and salmon tartlet, and I thought they were all delicious and not overly salty (it’s hard to go out to eat and not consume way more sodium than necessary). That said, I definitely liked the chicken tartlet the best.
Yes, the food is not cheap, but unlike many other overpriced places, you can really tell the ingredients are fresh and of high quality. And they do offer side-​sized portions of their (also tasty) salads, which make a perfect complement to one of their tartlets. My chicken tartlet and mango chicken side salad came out to about $ 9 total.
‘Tis true that big eaters will probably not be satisfied without spending at least $ 12 or $ 13, but I was actually quite surprised by how full I was when I finished my meal.
I also noticed a nice variety of hot and cold beverages on their menu, though I did not partake, but Litestars definitely has a very nice atmosphere (plenty of booths and tables) in a comfortable arrangement and would be a great place to sit for a while and use their Wi-​Fi or chat with friends, etc.
Like the previous posters, I also wonder why they chose this particular location, which, although close to Dupont Circle and Foggy Bottom/​GWU, does not really get much foot traffic and is not very visible. I think they could do so much better if they were in a more visible location. Also, their weekend hours are sort of strange — I’m not sure why they close at 6 PM. That means they close just when everyone is getting ready for dinner, which has prevented me from going here about 70% of the time I otherwise would have wanted to.
Overall, I really liked my experience here and will try to go back whenever I can manage to get there when they’re open. Also, I really hope they continue to expand their menu so that there are more food options.

OK, so here’s the deal. This place is focused on extra healthy food. That means less fat, less sodium, whole grains, whole foods. Some people just don’t like what that kind of food tastes like. I personally do, so I think the food is tasty. I like the portion control — I like that full meals overall have reasonable amount of calories — I like the extra focus on health.
The staff are SUPER friendly — almost too friendly. Because there aren’t a ton of people in there — and lots of staff — I feel obligated to say hello and how are you and all that stuff when I really just want to get in and get out. It’s not a huge deal…
The check-​out process is just plain weird. I don’t know why it has to be so complicated. The incentives card hasn’t worked yet — so that I don’t like. The place is HUGE — plenty of table space if you need a place to camp out and work or have a meeting — since it’s not super popular — its a good and quiet.
Overall I doubt they are going to survive — which is sort of a shame — but the business model here doesn’t seem to be refined /​totally well thought out.

I like this place. I had lunch there and had a little quiche thing and a small salad topped with quinoa and beans. I was quite satisfied. The food was quite healthy and tasty.
I found the other reviews interesting, saying that food is bland. I suppose it is compared to other fast food, but I didn’t feel nasty afterwards. I certainly hope this place stays open because it’s now my go-​to place in that part of town for lunch.