Local Urban Kitchen (or L.U.K. for short) is an adorable little brunch/lunch place tucked unobtrusively in Brielle, NJ on Higgens Ave. Â We went for breakfast and had delicious fresh squeezed OJ and Grapefruit juice served in fun mason jars. Â The blueberry pancakes were fantastic, and my turkey bacon was perfectly crispy. Â
The atmosphere is relaxed with thoughtful touches - like fresh flowers on the tables and organic herbs/veggies for sale outside. Â Outback the tables were shady and inviting, complete with a cozy chicken coop.
While we were finishing our breakfast, they brought out samples of the Orange Julius, which was out of this world! Â
I can't wait to come back to L.U.K. for lunch!
Totally recommend this place if you are vegan, prefer organic or gluten free! Great, fresh variety and great food. I love the tomato soup and granola bars. Salads are excellent too.It is situated right between my Gym and my son's pre school.
I will definitely go back.
Wouldn't have gone but my MIL heard about it from a bank teller and passed it on to me.
Met a friend here for lunch. She is a vegan. I had heard mixed reviews but decided to give it a try. A cute, funky, eclectic place. The waitress was attentive although she never introduced herself. The acoustics in the restaurant were loud and it was noisy for a lunch crowd.
My friend had the vegan mash and said it was good. Drinks come in cute mason jars with a straw and a slice of lemon. A side of chips and a pickle.
I enjoyed the portabella burger. They should just call it a sandwich because it was not on a hamburger bun and quite frankly did not resemble a burger. Served on multigrain bread with roasted red pepper, spinach and mozzarella cheese. The garlic aioli was to die for! Â The portabella was overly soaked in vinegar. It was a little much. The side of chips, not sure what kind were very salty and it was a small portion. Â
Overall, I would return. It's a one of a kind place to enjoy unique menu items. Sure to please the vegan or vegetarian in your life!
HORRIBLE. WHO is running this place? Â Local Urban Kitchen has potential, but work is needed. Fast. It is a small venue, so when a table leaves, they need to turn the table over quickly. We visited for lunch on a Sunday--no line out the door waiting for a table, but a steady stream of people. There was no organization. No one greeting. No one taking names. We were next with a table that opened up, so we took it. We sat there with the previous patron's dirty dishes in front of us for 15 minutes before someone came over. Menu looked awesome. Tons of healthy choices (hence two stars instead of one). Â HOWEVER, extremely over priced. Prices do not match portion or quality. My husband ordered the Med platter, and for $12, he got a handful of carrots and celery with three 1 oz ramekins of sauces--no pita chips. So over priced. Â Drinks came one by one. Food for party of four came one by one. No one checked on us--we constantly had to ask for what was needed. Get it together folks. Summer at the shore is right around the corner. You will never survive.
Review Source:2nd time I have ordered take out from here. Although today my order was completely wrong from what was in my omelet to what accompanied it, it was still quite enjoyable. Â Food is well prepared, ingredients are fresh, multigrain bread is amazing. Can't wait to try more of the menu. Some of the items sound amazing and quite creative. It's nice to have a place that offers healthy options as well as gluten free that are not boring and bland. Â I am sure I will eventually give this place 4 or 5 stars, but its kind of disappointing when you are really in the mood for one thing and get something else...no matter how good it is. I would definitely recommend this place. FYI...if you are planning to eat on site it is not a very big place but it is very quaint, cute and clean and the staff is very nice.
Review Source:Sat down here for an early lunch after a recommendation from a friend and was very surprised how this remained off of my radar for so long ( I live only a mile away) The cozy cafe style was just fine by me, we we're able to get a table in no time. Menu was nice and they have specials on the blackboard which spice it up. I like the fact that they use a quiet dignity about preparing healthy food, nothing on the walls or on the menu make you feel bad for not buying organic or supporting non-GMO campaigns. My BLT wrap was fresh and tasty, my buds panini was top notch too. If I had a complaint it would be portions, we both left hungry and had to fill up at home. Upon a second visit, I ordered another sandwich and again had to fill up after. All-in-all a sweet place to ride the bike too for some food I can feel good about. Just wish there was a little extra.
Review Source:This is a great brunch or lunch spot. with an eclectic menu that is also great for people with gluten dietary restrictions.
It is a very causal restaurant with indoor picnic tables. They have been great at accommodating us whether we went with a group of 4 or even once when we had a group of 16.
I recently met a friend for lunch and thought the food was tasty. Adorable place.The atmosphere is warm and cute. The menu has many choices which is good if someone wants breakfast and someone wants lunch.
A few things I noticed which I think should be Yelped -
The ceiling fan and the large vent in the dining area are FILTHY! Looking at them I wonder what the kitchen is like. Please clean them. It looks like the dirt could fall off the fan onto a customer.
I also feel that the waitress should pull her hair back. She has very long hair and I cringe if if falls onto a customers plate, especially mine.
Lastly when they clean the tables they don't move the ketchup, salt, pepper, etc. to clean under them.
I believe you have a great little place here but customers do notice more than you think.
My girlfriend introduced me to Local Urban Kitchen and it has become my favorite breakfast restaurant at the Jersey shore. The omelets are amazing and they put a healthy spin on breakfast. Â I have also tried the Nutella pancakes and they were out of this world. LUK offers vegan alternatives for just about everything and uses fresh local produce.
The environment is very inviting and cafe-like. One of the things I like the best is the iPod playlist. It ranges from Passion Pit to Edward Sharpe and everything in between.
If you are up for trying a new breakfast place this is the place to go.
P.S. Try their healthy smoothies, they are amazing!!!
Decent trendy cafe located in a convient spot in Brielle on Higgen's Avenue. Â Not so sure why all the other Yelpers rate this place five stars but to each their own. Â Also, we did not try lunch here only breakfast.
Friendly help and efficient service but my take is - good but nothing to write home about. Â We would not rush to return but would go back again someday for lunch if we are in the area.
Love this place! Â Breakfast this weekend was delicious... my "over-medium" eggs were cooked perfectly and I love how our iced beverages were served in mason jars. Â Got some take-out today.. the chicken grape almond salad wrap was delightful as was the vegan blueberry muffin.
Although I've never been to Austin, my friend says this place reminds her of something you'd see there. Â Good music, laid back atmosphere, healthy food and the friendly staff make this a 5 star place in my book for sure.
The food and atmosphere in this restaurant was great. Â With an eclectic menu full of healthy choices, it caters to everyone. The food is high quality at an inexpensive price point. Â The dishware, menu, and service seems to be very well thought out, and as the previous commenter said, it took me forever to order becuase I couldn't decide amongst many different enticing options. Â
If you are down at the Jersey shore this summer and want to step away from the greasy and unhealthy food that inhabits the boardwalk, go to Local Urban Kitchen. Â You will not be dissapointed. Â I will be back many times this summer.
Usually at restaurants it takes me forever to order because nothing on the menu looks good. At this place it took me forever to order because EVERYTHING looked good. I used to be vegetarian and appreciate the veggie options. I appreciate local and ethically raised meat and veggies cause I still care about animals (even though I eat them now) and there's not many places like this around the Jersey Shore.
The atmosphere's fun with an upscale hippie kind of feel. I'll be coming back lots.