I have been to Sweet Tomatoes three times now in the last six months. Â My husband and I love it for the following reasons:
1. Although the price is a little high for what we'd like, we never go without a coupon. It's worth it when you can get 20% off your bill or BOGO 50% off.
2. It's not an in-your-face, people stuffing their faces kind of buffet (i.e. Golden Corral). Â We like the fact it only focuses on soup, salad and a few pastas. Â You can eat what you want and not leave feeling disgusted and sick.
3. The employees are so friendly! Â They greet you throughout, and are very attentive to your needs while you're at your table.
The only reason I can't give it 5 stars is that it's a buffet. Â I know that sounds dumb, but the food quality and taste is not on par with a solid sit-down restaurant. Â You don't come here for an amazing, out of this world food tasting experience.
My wife and I like that there is a place that is thinking of vegetarians. We like the fact that when you look at the soups and pastas you don't have to wonder is there a base of chicken stock in this or shrimp in that? You know it is vegetable. There are a few meat offerings such as pepperoni pizza and shrimp salad. Other than the drinks and condiments everything we ate was made in store as far as I could tell. Fresh, appealing, and delicious. Try their strawberry-lemonaid! Best veggie chile I have ever eaten. Totally satisfying with honey butter corn bread. My kids say it is their favorite restaurant.
Review Source:I don't tend to like buffets; something about people serving themselves out of the same pots and platters usually freaks me out.  This however has not been my experience with Sweet Tomato's, the serving areas look very clean and well cared for and there is staff frequently walking around to  make sure the food  is fresh and full. Â
I am conflicted by other review stating that this place is a bit on the pricey side for buffets... if it's $15 per person that is expensive but if it's around $10, which was my experience, I think its fine. Â I just had lunch here the other day and with my $6.99 per person lunch coupon plus $2.50 for a drink, I didn't think the price was too bad given it's all you can eat. Â I mean I can't remember the last time I spent less that $10 on lunch at Panera or Portillos for that matter, so I think the pricing is average. Â Â
No the food here is average, nothing great and nothing bad. Â I tried the chili and the Chicken noodle soups, both tasted homemade and weren't overly salty. Â The salad I made for myself was good as was the baked potato. Â Frozen yogurt machine is always a plus for me, I live caramel sauce and that I can have all I want!
This is the perfect place for a lunch where you aren't craving anything in particular and want the option to eat a larger than normal quantity of soup or salad. Â It's a good place to sit and chat. Â No one is bothering you or trying to rush you along to turn the table.
I really don't do buffets, but Sweet Tomato is worth it. Whenever I want a guilt-free meal, I come here and load up on salad. Most of the soups here are just ok, except for the very tasty chix soup (which has big meaty chunks of chicken breast in it). I also love capping off my healthy meal with some soft serve ice cream, topped with nuts, fudge and Oreos. All for about $10. Deal.
Review Source:I like sweet tomatoes. Â I'd go back here when we're visiting family who lives around there. Â It's a nice change of pace when you want some roughage/fiber in your diet and a lot of it:) Â
Or even if you want some warm soup choices on a cold winter day.
I like their soups and salads...I get double the plate of salad when I enter (lazy to go back to get 2nds). Â
One plate for the speciality salads (sample each of them) and then a plate to create my own salad..love the beets and dressings. Â Also the broccoli and cashew salad is yumo! Â
My favorite soups are the chili topped with cheese and sour cream, homemade chicken soup and when it's in season...lemon orzo soup!
Other soups are OK when I'm in the mood to try something different.
Pastas, I don't care so much for unless it's lemon based.
Hot veggies are OK but looks more like they come frozen
Baked potato is good topped with chili soup if you like.
Breads and muffins are fine, I like the ones that taste more like pizza like pepperoni.
Desserts are ok...but too full for it.
If you want a cheaper deal, sign up your email to get coupon deals, check your local sunday newspapers for coupons or if you can...go to a website and pull up a coupon code on your cell phone to show at the register or print it out.
Over it's one of my go to place for a good salad.
I'm so torn on this place. I love the healthy food and variety, but the price is pretty crazy. I get that keeping vegetables both plentiful and fresh must be expensive, but for a salad, light vegetarian fare, and a soda to add up to $15? That's a bit extreme. I didn't have a problem with this until they stopped giving their regular customers BOGO coupons via e-mail, that program's ending really turned me off.
One thing that stopped me from going here: The front has no greeter, so my friends and I built our salads and went to pay only to find out that there were no tables for the 10 of us available. In such a huge building this was disappointing, and we all had to stand at the end of the line waiting for a table to open up. When they're busy it would be nice if they had someone sorting out the tables.
Really..2 adults and 2 kids, $45.00 for a salad. Although the food was fresh it was way too expensive for what you get. I think it is $12.00 for adults and drinks are $2.99, If you want chicken or some cheeses on your salad, you have to pay additional $2.99 for premium toppings. It would be a nice healthy place to eat but it really adds up. The desserts were really lame too. A disappointment for sure.
Review Source:Pros: Soft serve machine with mini ice cream cones. For this alone I will trek across deserts and mountains.
Cons: Expensive. It feels like a rip off, and I don't even get the BOGO coupons in my email any more.
Sweet Tomatoes is an okay buffet if you are into salad and soup and stuff. Well, mostly salad because their soup is just alright. They have other stuff like focaccia bread-ish pizza, mac & cheese, muffins, and baked potatoes.
It feels pretty clean for a buffet, which is a big plus too. And don't get me wrong with the lukewarm review: I still overeat every single time I go here. You have to roll me out the door like an oompa loompa rolls Violet Beauregarde.
I love to go to sweet tomatoes for a great buffet! (and healthy too) Their salad bar is always fresh and the first thing you see when you walk in. Then you pay for your meal at the counter (about $10 per person) and then have the option to pick up the rest of your food or find a table first. They have an awesome bakery that bakes the best pizza, bread, corn muffins...and UNLIMITED as well! Also, their soup bar is insane...with daily averaging about 8 different soups---all very fresh and healthy. My favorite is the chicken noodle soup---hits the spot every time. Especially during the cold winter or when I'm feeling sick. There is a decent amount of chicken in their soup as well! (as most restaurants or panera usually do NOT give you as much chicken when you order chicken noodle soup) I also LOVE their ice cream dessert and always make sure to save room for one (or maybe two) servings of ice cream at the end of my meal! I would definitely come back.
p.s. The only reason why I gave this place 4 stars instead of 5 is that I do find the prices are a little pricy if you do not have the sweet tomato coupon that they send you for the buy one meal get one free if you buy two drinks or $7.50 or so for dinner per person. Otherwise this place is awesome. Highly recommend! Great for groups too.
I absolutely LOVE this place.
Come for the salads, which are completely make your own. They offer some pre-made salads, of which the ceasar is my favorite. I am all about making my food the way I want it. Meats, such as chicken, are an additional charge to the salads.
Stay for the rest:
1. Soups. While I personally haven't ever found a soup that I LOVE (I typically find them lacking SOMETHING, though I can't really put my finger on what that usually is. Flavor maybe?), most other people I have gone with really enjoy the soups. I do enjoy that they have many different options to choose from.
2. FOCACCIA BREAD PIZZA TYPE OF AWESOMENESS. This is hands down my favorite thing there. They typically have several different options in this area, and I always carb-load here.
3. Desserts. Self-serve ice cream and topping options are fun to play with. They also have seasonal dessert options which can be hit or miss. NOTE: avoid the chocolate muffins. I always want them to be a brownie, but they aren't even close. Don't waste the stomach space on these disappointments.
4. Baked potato bar. I've never ventured into this area, but it is another nice option.
My least favorite thing about this place: kids. Although there are House Guidelines on every table which say "Please accompany small children when visiting food bars," apparently parents have a different interpretation of what SMALL CHILDREN are. Under the age of 10, I think parents should be with their children at all times in this place. I have seen many times where kids are running around on their own (breaking house guideline #1, which says 'For the safety of our guests, no running, horseplay, climbing or skating on roller shoes at any time'), playing with the fountain drinks and WASTING a ton of them, and just plain being annoying. Yet typically for every bad kid (and parent), there are two that are well-behaved and normal.
You can receive weekly coupons by signing up on their website <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.souplantation.com%2F&s=f506087f730764eb3436cac092d24f5f5e354cb9fce7d0d52e499e44a7ee4bd6" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.souplantation…</a> which will save you LOTS of money. Also whenever I visit, I usually receive an additional receipt with a discounted price on a future visit (date specific) for 2 with purchase of beverages. So for people complaining about the price: there are many ways around paying full price.
I love this place. I have visited this location and many others across the country and am never leaving hungry. I still can't figure out if you're supposed to tip or not though.
So I finally tried the Sweet Tomatoes breakfast this past Sunday. Â As with most buffets, there are obviously some flashier dishes than others. Â Having said that, overall, Sweet Tomatoes does a really nice breakfast. Â The basics are available (cereal, hot cereal, scrambled eggs, potatoes), but there are also some very tasty specialty items. Â I recommend saving your appetite for the special stuff, like breakfast pasta, donut muffins (very good), and vegetarian spanish casserole (made with corn chips and cheese). Â The only thing that I didn't like was the scrambled eggs. Â Also worth mentioning, the dessert (and soup and salad) bars are available. Â In fact, I think there were more dessert options at breakfast than previous dinner visits. Â By the end of the meal, I was in hibernation mode.
Review Source:Great Salad Bar/Buffet. Â They use good quality produce and have a lot of options for your salad. Â Also enjoy their bread options/pizza. Â The edy's frozen yogurt is great too to keep your desert on the healthy side. Â Not much else to say, but I'll be back anytime I'm in the area and need a quick lunch.
Review Source:If it wasn't for the fact that I could make my own salad, this place would get one star or less. I remember when this pace first opened and it was amazing, but since then, the quality and the service has went down. I had the cheddar broccoli cheese soup and that was gross. It left like a chalky after taste. The strawberry lemonade was way to sweet. If you want diabetes well that's the drink for you. The blueberry muffin tasted like it came from one of those jiffy box mix. Man I don't know what happened to this place..would I go there again, well only for a salad as far as anything else??? Naw I'm sure I can find or at least make better and trust me I'm no cook
Review Source:Salad and soup and pasta. You really can make a meal of it. In fact, you should, and Sweet Tomatoes is banking on it.
The produce selection is excellent year-round, with everything fresh and vibrant as can be. I discovered that beets aren't all of the mushy canned variety when I had my first taste of a fresh one here! And if the pasta on the menu doesn't suit your fancy, the chefs just behind the counter will prepare you a custom dish. Definitely a lifesaver for this picky eater!
If you go to Sweet Tomatoes, you just might find me behind a mountain of the tri-colored rotini, spread between two plates. That's what I come for, and that's what I gorge on. I love it!
I love eating at this franchise. Â This particular location has a great dining room. Â
The food is always delicious and they switch out some food every 15 days to change it up. Â They have 4 salads that you can try or you can simply make your own salad. Â They usually have 7 soups or so, most are good, and sometimes they are not to my taste.
People think this place is only vegetarian, that is not true. Â They have chili, and chicken in some of their soups and salads. Â The food tastes fresh, and it's all you can eat. Â An all you can eat healthy buffet, that is an amazing combination.
People say it is over priced but they release coupons every week which makes lunch 6.99 and dinner 7.99. Â That is an amazing deal. Â $6.99 is what some places charge for 1 salad or a bowl of pasta. Â This place has it all. Â Salad, soup, pasta, frozen yogurt, antipasta, muffins, a solid breakfast menu, and they change it up once in a while in case you want to try something new. Â Of course some of the soups won't be to your taste. Â I hated the lentil soup they had. Â However, the other 5 soups they served were amazing, from their chicken soup, to cream of (so and so, they change them constantly). Â
I have been to other locations where the layout looked kind of like a high school cafeteria, which I did not enjoy, but the food was still amazing. Â
If you want a healthy place to pig out and not feel as guilty, give this place a shot. Â Take the whole family. Â It has something for everyone.
When you've hit the meats a bit heard in the week, Sweet Tomatoes really tones back your guilt.....with a buffet, which is kind of an oxymoron in itself. Â Yes, it's a bit child-infested, and yes, it's a big unoriginal, but it's all-you-can-eat salads, soup, and light bread-items and dessert. Â "It ain't no ol' country buffet or golden corral" but, I don't show my face at those establishments to begin with, so this is my go-to buffet!
Review Source:So I've never heard of this chain before and I stopped in by chance since I was a bit overwhelmed by the variety of chain restaurant choices along Rt. 59. Â
Yes, there were 70 million children here, but most were well behaved. And because it was so busy and buffet style, I was less self conscious about dining alone.
The salad bar had a good but not particularly exotic choices; the selection of soups was interesting and the one I chose was OK. Â The muffins were AWESOME. Â And then I grabbed a mini-cone of frozen yogurt on my way out the door. Â Not bad for $7.99
I've actually been here quite a few times. My 5-year old loves this place (I think it has something to do with the soft-serve ice cream and toppings), so this is usually where we go if he's picking the place.
Before you stop in, I suggest visiting their website to see what the theme of the month is and to take a peak at their menu. There are times when their menu is awful (lemon theme) and times when it is pretty good (asian, greek, etc). Needless to say, the salad bar is pretty big and has a nice variety. Things do seem to be pretty fresh, though there has been a few times when the quality was questionable. Their pre-made salads are my favorite part of the meal. The confusing thing is that the salad bar is located right inside the doors and at the end of the bar is the cashier. This is confusing because I'm never certain if I can go up for seconds or not without being charged... I mean, who's to stop a new customer from just pretending he's already been through the line once? If it were up to me, I'd only eat salad here. Which leads me to...
The rather bland and boring pasta. Incredibly flavorless. Very, very bland. Same goes for their soups. I do like their cream of cauliflower soup, but only if I add my own salt and pepper back at the table. Without "doctoring" it up, it's a little too bland to eat.
I am also a big fan of the blueberry muffins (with honey whipped butter). I usually make them my dessert.
At any rate, if you're looking to pay a little too much for not enough flavor, but love salads, this is your place! Whenever I ask my husband how his meal was after we leave, he always answers with a "meh" and a shrug. That pretty much sums it up.
Stopped in for lunch. Â The salad bar has a large selection of greens and add-ins. Â All looked fresh. Â The two soups we tried were just so-so. Â The chili was OK. Â The cornbread and blueberry muffin were OK. Â The hot Vegetable pasta with meatballs was disappointing. Â The pasta was mush and flavorless. Â At $8.99+drink, I think they are overpriced. Â They probably have a lot of waste. Â So, If you want a nice green salad of your own making, stop in. Â Otherwise, keep driving.
P.S. The Google Maps location for this place is WAY off.
Wow, I love this place. I had no idea of the concept of this place, but I like it! The salad bar is great, fresh everything! My favorite is ALL the soup choices. The chili here is great. And a potato bar?! I love bake potatoes with all the works!
I wish we had a Sweet Tomatoes in Joliet!
I found this place to be confusing on several fronts:
The Building Design-A warehouse cum airplane hangar? Â I don't get the connection. Â Additionally, for an establishment that touts itself as being green, and part of the locavore movement, this design is very inefficient, not to mention the fact that it's sterile (in feel only), and lacks character.
The Floor Plan-You walk in, and are immediately accosted by  an enourmous salad bar.  There is no one greeting customers, no instruction as to seating, only a large price schedule hanging from the ceiling.
The Process-I thought I read somewhere that your used dishes and utensils would be bussed by an employee. Â That never happened. Â Perhaps they were understaffed, but as with any buffet, you accumulate a large collection of used plates, bowls, and utensils. Â Health regulations prohibit the re-use of the aforementioned, and by the end of the meal, our table looked like a ship ready to sail.
Everything in the place was sticky. Â Our table top, which appeared to be clean, was like tacky paint.
The floors, which also appeared to be relatively clean, had the Coefficient of Mu of fly paper.
And the bathroom door had the same problem.
O.K., enough complaining. Â The salad bar is comprised of a great variety of fresh, tasty ingredients. And I was pleased to discover a reasonable selection of non or low-fat dressings.
The soup area is impressive. Â There are many choices, and the two that I sampled were very good. Â I especially enjoyed the asian ginger broth, into which you can add tofu, fresh veggies, wontons, etc.
There are also many other food items- a variety of pizza bread, baked potatoes, noodles, steamed veggies, etc. Â And my daughter loved the soft serve ice cream anchored dessert bar.
The price is very reasonable, although you get dinged on the soft drinks. Â Overall, a good place to take the family for an impromptu weeknight dinner outing.
This place has the best soup and salad bar around! Â I always try as many soups as I can when I visit this place, including my favorite Lemon Chicken Orzo. Â They always have baked potatoes, pizza/cheese breads and a pasta dish. Â To keep it interesting, they often have themed weeks and months (e.g., a few months ago it was a Lemon theme). Â
This is a great place to take your family, and the service is quick in retrieving your messy plates and very  friendly.  Ideal for people looking for a healthy alternative to the OCB.  Enjoy!!!
*My wife and I just love this place! Â It is pricey, but we usually only go when there's a coupon (often found in the Chicago Tribune).
This is a rabbit food type of buffet. Â The salad ingredients were very fresh. Â The soups and chili are scratch made and really quite good. Â Apparently the menu varies fairly often, and it all seems pretty good. Â Not great, but not bad either. Â I think the biggest problem is that this really isn't my type of restaurant so it is difficult for me to compare it to similar other places. Â While, I think it is good for children, I don't believe that most will rave over the dessert selection. Â The selection is fairly blase. Â I would definitely go again, but I think it would be when I am tired of all of the other choices. Â Also, it seems just a little on the pricey side for salad, pizza and pasta. Â On the very plus side, this place seemed to be immaculate.
Review Source:It really is too bad you cannot give half stars on here. Â This place is not really 2 stars but not three either. Deserves 2.5 stars. Â The salad and soup bars were both very fresh and tasty. Â I guess that is great if that is all you are into. I found that the rest of the food items were quite lacking. The eggplant maranara was like eating mush. Â I went to try some mac and cheese and then thought better of it.
Plus this place is kind of rediculous with there pricing. Â $14 for the buffet with drink. Â Keep in mind there are no carving stations.
Kind of a lot for a salad bar.
This place is a salad buff's heaven. Â It's a super vegetarian friendly place with everything labeled as vegetarian or not. Yes, they are a little pricey for salad and pizza slices but if you sign up for the veg club online, you always get a buy one get one free coupon like three times a month so I feel with the coupon, it pays off very nicely.
I go here at least once a month with my fiance just to see what's new. I'm usually craving a really good salad anyway. We always leave eating far too much.
They have a really cool way to take out as well. You can grab a container and pay for only the things you want to take home with you. A salad ends up being like $6. It's really cool that an all you can eat place does a nice job of take out.
This Sweet Tomatoes has a way better atmosphere than the one on Route 64 and the people who work here are much nicer. I recommend it to any of my veggie friendly friends.
First I should say that this restaurant is very 'fresh', the salad bar is excellent, probably one of the best out there. Their soup is 'good' also but that's where it ends. Everything else from their 'pizza' bread to their 'mac and cheese' (which tastes more like mac and condensed milk) ranges in taste from poor to below average, which brings me to their price which is $11 for Salad and underwhelming soup. That's way too much. The wait staff are friendly (although some of the bus boys and cooks who put out the food look as if they just escaped from prison) and the atmosphere is OK but the place is always crowded with little kids running around, it reminded me of shopping at Target some days.
Review Source:The place to be when you're having an all-you-care-to eat night. This is the cleanest Sweet Tomatoes that I have visited and they always have a friendly staff. Make your own amazing salad, then try the pinto bean soup (if they have it), followed by few bite-sized pieces of pizza. Finish with grapes, mousse, molten-lava cake or blueberry muffin. Not bad for the price, but sign up for their emails and you'll get great coupons.
Review Source:I grew up on Mom's Chinese/Taiwanese homecooking and SALAD BARS! Mostly Fresh Choice but Sweet Tomatoes is really similar. It's great for those that like to be in control of their foods (though everything tastes great so might be hard to control portions) and mix their own salads and if not, well there are a ton of pre-tossed salads to your fancy (the Thai flavored was good). Add in some pasta, soup, tons of carb options and you're set. Bf's biggest complaint was that out of 8 soups offered, NONE were clam chowder! How can that be!
When I was there ago a few nights ago they had this really addicting asiago cheese focaccia. I had to pocket one to eat on the car ride home. The muffins were a disappointment, though, and the pizzas weren't that great either. Nevertheless, the veggies were fresh and bountiful. I just wish there was one closer to the city now.
Crazy place, we went for lunch with the family (3 adults, 3 Kids). Â Not many large tables for a larger party. Â However the table attendants were all over everything. Â Nerver had to clear our table just get up and go to the buffet. Â There was a nice variety. Â Salads were flavorfull, only wish you could go back for seconds. Â Enjoyed the salad bar the most, the kids loved the pizza, salad toppings, soups and of course dessert. Â Nice to get my kids to eat something other than McD's. Â All in all good value, clean and friendly service. Â Would definetly be back.
Review Source:I'm a fan.
Heard a lot about this place from a friend of mine, before I'd ever heard of it. My mom and I tried it out tonight.
It's a clever twist on the old fashioned "buffet." Enter and make a salad at a HUGE fresh salad bar with everything you could ever want (I recommend the basil dressing). Pay at the end of the salad bar (one price, differs based on age of children, adult, etc) and then enter a room with pastas, pizzas, bakery items, soup bar, and sundae bar. I'm already impressed.
So, the salad bar is great and everythings super fresh. The pizza is hot and I saw it replaced like 3 times in the 45 minutes we were there -- good sign for a buffet.
Anyways, we both really enjoyed our salads and sampling the other foods there. Particularly think everyone must try the cornbread... It was very homemade and good. I didn't try soup as it was 92 degrees today, but I'd love to go back for a winter or fall lunch sometime! Loved it though, very kid friendly as well if you have little ones. A great alternative to the unnecessary amount of choices at current buffet restaurants. This place has soup, salad, dessert. What else do you need?
I want to go five stars but they miss having a truly vegan pasta, and mroe importantly the bus staff is still fresh - not really good at making sure the tables stay clear. Â Otherwise I love their Strawberry Fields Salad, delicious bean salad and Vegan potato salad. Â They have a Fit Fact on the way out that lists all calories, fat etc in their meals (don't look if you are an avid multi-trip taker to the bar.)
I did overdo this place during my first trimester (two times a day, four times a week) and can't stomach the idea of going here right now.
June 8th they are having a PJ Party, kids in PJs eat free on Sunday for breakfast. Â Don't forget to join the vegout club - you get 15% off your meal for your b-day and as a special treat via email.
Well, my email campaign has finally paid off. Â Every few months for the past 3 years I have been sending Sweet Tomatoes an email asking them to open a restaurant near my house. Â This one opened about a week ago.
My kids loooove Sweet Tomatoes. Â My son chose to go here for his family birthday dinner. Â The food was excellent as usual. Â Pizza was slow, but the place just opened last week so I'll cut them some slack.
The food is very fresh. Â The selection is excellent. Â We'll be back on a regular basis!
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