FreeFoods NYC
“High-quality vegan, vegetarian, and non-vegetarian food in a clean brightly-lit store.”
“It's more expensive than I'd like, but the trick to making it out happy is to grab one of the PRE-MADE SALADS from the back refrigerated section.”
“The goods: I like to get their "create your own salad."”
FreeFoods NYC
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Caters: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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I decided to give FreeFoods another try. This time, I got the Create Your own Organic Salad. The base price of $14.50 includes your choice of greens, one protein, four toppings, and dressing. Each additional protein is $5 and topping is $2.50. The food tasted good, but again very overpriced.
I got the arugula salad with Honey & Lime Glazed Free-Range Chicken Breast (protein) and Quinoa with Fresh Parlsey, Roasted Portobello & Squash, Soy Glazed Shiitake Mushrooms, and Spiced Mango as my toppings. Additionally, I added the Olive Oil Poached Salmon and Citrus Marinated Hearts of Palm for $5 and $2.50 extra, respectively.
The chicken was very tender and juicy, while the salmon had the right amount of fat without being too fatty. I wouldn't get the quinoa again because it was rather dry. Loved the soy glazed shiitake and the roasted portobello. The mango slices with chili spices weren't very good. For $22, I wouldn't get this salad out of my own pocket.
First I want to give an honest review, then I want to tell a story.
Review: Healthy, relatively tasty (for healthy food), overpriced lunches. Generally about $4 more dollars than I want to pay for a sandwich, but usually pretty good (but a little small).
Story: So I walked in today and ordered a sandwich, but wanted a little more so I perused their chips. The were mostly bland looking kale chips (terrible) but there were also tortilla chips. What goes great with tortilla chips? Guacamole. I see that they have guacamole and ask for a side, but the guy tells me it is only for salads. I pushed, "I know you can do an open food item on your POS (point of sale), just charge me $3 or something and it will be fine." His response: "sorry we are not Chipotle". I know because if this was Chipotle, they would fucking let me bathe in the guacamole, but not FreeFoods. I guess the "free" in FreeFoods does not stand for "free-thinking" or "free to make the customer happy". You think it ends there, but it doesn't. I retired in defeat and waited for my sandwich. When it came I picked up from the sandwich station and low and behold they have sides of guac. sitting out with other orders! I look at the guy, point at this delicious guacamole side and say "ummm, I see a side of guacamole right here." The next part can't even be made up, "Sorry those are only for seamless web orders, we don't do it in store." At this point my state of dumbfoundedness has reached an all time high. I pushed further (because, you know, I had to for the good of mankind), "so if I went on seamless right now and ordered a side of guac you would give it to me, but as I am standing here in front of you can't, this is what you're honestly telling me".
"Yes."
Will I ever go back to FreeFoods? "No."
Not cheap or the biggest portions, but I think the food is clean and of high quality. When I was vegetarian-ish and working in midtown, I would get their soup for lunch.
This was the most expensive and most underwhelming salad I have had in New York City. This place champions itself on being an organic and fresh salad place but really it's just overpriced salad that tastes very average.
Never had their smoothies but they looked slightly better than the salads.
I LOVE FREE FOODS.
Regrettably, the food does not cost zero dollars, as you may ascertain from the restaurant's name.
It is, in fact, quite pricey for lunch, but very, very worth it.
So we order from here all the time. ALL. THE. TIME.
I personally love the Free-Range Chicken Margarita Sandwich (Lemon roasted free range chicken breast with mozzarella cheese, fresh arugula, basil and sun dried tomato tapenade on grilled ciabatta.) with the bread always fresh and crispy, the arugula always fresh, the chicken well cooked and flavorful. I also love the Fajita Famosa Wrap (Naturally raised spice rubbed skirt steak with roasted peppers and onions, pico de gallo, white cheddar, avocado and jalapeno tomatillo salsa on a whole wheat wrap) which is perfectly spicy and very filling without making you want to die!
The Yakuza Salmon Salad (Sesame Crusted Salmon with Avocado, Edamame with Lime Zest, Shaved Carrots, Orange Wedge, Soy Glazed Shiitake with Carrot Ginger Miso Dressing over Mixed Greens) and it's DELISH. So fresh, so good, the salmon is perfectly charred.
The soups are good, the rest of the sandwiches are good, the smoothies are awesome!
I haven't had one bad thing from here. Not one. The people are nice and friendly, readily make most substitutions, and prepare your order relatively fast. Definitely a solid spot to get lunch in Midtown without needing a nap or feeling mostly bad about yourself after consumption.
This place is amazing! The quality gets it a 5 but knock half a star off for the price tag! What I love about this place is the freshness and variety of salad sides!
If you're a salad lover, this is the place to go. Seriously the custom made salad is amazing. My favorite combo has got to be arugula, shiitake mushroom, sliced avocado, cayenne almonds and mangoes with shrimp or tuna. It turns out to be 12.75 ish pretax. This is a lot, but considering that they count avocado as a side and not protein, the price is justified.
They have the salad in a huge rectangular container. Doesn't make too much sense, it's way too big for the portion of food. (But it does make it easier to toss if you order delivery).
They also have amazing freshly made juice! Best green juice ever – the 7 greens does not even taste like it's all veggies. So amazing!
If working in Midtown is like making a daily trip to the dentist, then the organic-themed fare from FreeFoods is like manna for the worker bees that flee their desks and offices around noon to pay a visit and pay premium prices for healthy food at this well-subscribed joint.
FreeFoods rests on the premise that the supply of healthy lunchtime nourishment significantly lags demand. Delis and plain salad bars are easy to come by, but if you are looking for gourmet wraps, salads and juices, then look no further than FreeFoods.
I particularly like their mushroom quinoa soup and juices (consuming the potent Ginger Lemon Cayenne (GLC) shot is equal parts motivated by wanting to stay awake and stay cleansed). The supply chain at FreeFoods is a disaster though. As the crowds get thicker, you will see no less than three winding lines forming, some for the food stations and others for the cash register–make sure to know which one you are joining!
As long as there is Midtown, and my work brings me to the neighborhood, I will be coming to FreeFoods. However, it remains to be seen if the business is sustainable over time, with the biggest concentration of their clients only coming at lunchtime.
I ordered a custom made salad from here and was underwhelmed. You get four free toppings with the salad but I had trouble identifying where these toppings were. When I finally found them, they lasted me one bite and then I was sad to see the bottom of my bowl. It's also expensive.