I pretty much love anything Cava so I was beyond excited for my tastebuds when I learned the grill was coming to Montgomery Mall. My wallet on the hand was not as excited. Either way, today is opening day and they didn't disappoint! Since it is opening day, my lunch was free (woohoo). I ordered a salad with a blend of lettuces (super green and romaine), chicken, tzatziki, and a double scoop of crazy feta. Seriously, who doesn't love crazy feta?!?! A few other toppings and I was ready to go. Even with the crazy line due to the freebies, the line moved fairly quickly as they were well staffed and very prepared for the crowds. I tried the cucumber mint lime juice for the first time and it was delicious! Very light and refreshing. My biggest problem right now is that it is way to convenient to stop by on the way home....uh oh! read more

CAVA - Mediterranean Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

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Pros: more food than Mezeh or Roti Cons: they charge extra if you opt for more than 3 sauces. Mezeh and Roti offer shug sauce. Mezeh and Roti honestly just taste better read more

First, they have done a great job fixing up the food court at the mall. A lot of the places have been changed over to higher end fast food like Cava, and the finishes and lighting are much improved. Ive been to the Tyson's location several times, which was good since they don't have the menu board up yet. They really need to get that installed, since the staff seemed to struggle communicating with the customers, many of whom were trying Cava for the first time and had no idea what some of the items were. There were a handful of paper menus at the front of the line, but most people didn't see them. That said, the food is on par with Tyson's location. Its a great mix of Mediterranean choices, and everything tastes fairly fresh. Its nice to have a good option like this available, but they have some work to do still. read more

The Gaithersburg location beats this one by miles. The veggies don't taste as fresh here and actually are a bit warm. The staff seem a bit standoff. The pineapple apple mint drink has a dark tinge to it and is incredibly sweet. That being said, while this location isn't stellar, it's still pretty good. You got your wonderful crazy feta dip, mint is always refreshing in the bowl, and I'm eating a lot more vegetables here than I do at home - so huge thumbs up for the hearty but healthy meal here at Cava! read more

CAVA - Mediterranean Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

From the makers of Cava Mezze comes Cava Grill; their take on casual fast food dining. It's pretty much the Mediterranean version of Chipotle. You go down the line choosing your base, protein, toppings, sauces, and finally your extras. It's definitely one of the better places to eat in the food court at Montgomery Mall. They are fairly busy so try and get there at a good time, but with that being said they turn their stock pretty fast so you can get fresh ingredients. I usually go for their chicken. I find that their meatballs and falafel are on the drier side. If you are looking for a vegetarian option their roasted vegetables are amazing! It does count as a "protein" though so if you want chicken and roasted vegetables you will be charge for two. As with Chipotle, I think you need to go a few times to perfect your order. Be sure to grab one of their seasonal juices. All of them are refreshing and tasty. Expect to spend somewhere between $10-$15. It's a little pricey, but it's worth it for something fresh that will fill you up, but won't weight you down. If you become a fan of Cava Grill be sure to check out their main restaurant Cava Mezze! read more

I wasn't expecting a whole lot when I looked inside. Appeared to be a Chipotle-like place. The noise level was so outrageous (as in the entire food court) that it was impossible to ask any questions of the staff. It's fine if you already know what you kind of would like. I'm not sure what I agreed to but it began with a paper bowl with a layer of decent greens. I can't do rice, so on to the protein. Surprised to find out that grilled veggies were in the high priced protein food group. I had some chicken and grilled veggies. I thought the price of $15 for the 3 items to be very overpriced given the amount of the food, but it was fresh and nicely flavored. read more

Ambiance of this restaurant was perfect just chairs are wobbly ! But overall the bowl was great !!

Excellent all around. The service is great; the workers are always patient and smiling. Even after months of being open, Cava's ingredients are very fresh and good. You can't go wrong with making your bowl, they are very generous with how many ingredients you can add. (Some think they are stingy with meat but I have never had a problem with their portions.) I usually get water at places but here I will never again! They have some really delicious juice combinations to try out. Awesome! read more

I love Cava! It's what I get when I feel like eating a salad, but getting more of my money's worth. I say "more of" because it's always better to just make your own salad at home, lol. That being said, I always get the salad with tzatziki yogurt, hummus, chicken, and a bunch of veggies. I pass on the pita and eat the quinoa for the carbs instead. The dressing I get is sriracha yogurt, though I think I will pass on the hummus next time because the salad is too drenched in this dressing and that dressing. Regardless of a salad or a rice bowl, you'll still be stuffed. I'm already full and I only ate half of my salad just now. When it comes to those salad places like Chopt, Sweetgreen, or Sweetleaf, I don't think you're getting your money's worth unless they put seafood in it or something. read more

Super tasty and healthy Mediterranean bowls, I love getting the half grains and half greens. Everything is fresh and well seasoned, they sure know what they're doing! read more

CAVA - Half Super greens, Half Basmati rice, with all my favorite toppings - Mediterranean Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

The good: An example of a well executed fast-causal. Great for vegetarians, many options to bulk up your meal. The falafel was impressive. The strawberry citrus drink was tasty as well. The bad: The employees seemed less than enthusiastic and didn't communicate well. Also, the well under the house made drinks... mold. It doesn't come in direct contact with the food but someone needs to lift that grate and pour bleach down the drain. Had a similar problem with that in a restaurant I used to manage. Could be better. read more

We don't have this restaurant in PA but I've had it twice in MD and I think it is my favorite chain of all time. It is like a Chipotle for Mediterranean food but also 5x as good(and I love Chipotle). I always get the greens+grain bowl with lamb and a pita on the side. I load up on the veggies and then mix it all together at the end. If I had this near me, I'd be going here 2-3 times a week easily. read more

AMAZING. My friend introduced me to this place and I was like meh I wanna go to chipotle and she was like do u want EColi and I'm like ok...ill give cava a try. I saw the line and almost walked away till my friend grabbed me (yeah I know, I hate her too). Anyways we stood and my friend got me a menu while we killed time and I saw the ingredients and my heart melted; tzatziki, falafel, spinach, harissa, pita crisps..see I'm a health freak. THIS IS MY NEW HAVEN. ITS AMAZING read more

CAVA - Described in Pic - Mediterranean Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

Perfect location inside the Montgomery Mall food court. It is very easy to find and located near the main entrance that leads to the food court. CAVA offers casual dining and you can build your own bowl as you go. You start with a base of rice/salad/pita, and proceed down the line to add sauces, protein, and toppings. My bowl consisted of: -white rice -feta dip -lamb meatballs/veggies (you can do half/half for protein) -tomatoes and red onion My bowl was very basic, but yet still flavorful with the spiciness of the feta and juicy meatballs. The veggies were seasoned well and not overcooked. There are a variety of toppings to choose from and ample seating in the dining area. Tables are also located in the food court for quick and easy dining. read more

Each time I go to the mall I tried to get an salad. My favorite is the lentil avocado. It appears that there's always a new crew working. They don't always have what is needed to make the salad. Last night I ordered a lentil avocado salad to get home and there is the avocado in the bowl --they were rushing everyone through the line and I did not realize that I didn't see the worker move the dish to the next worker to put in the avocado. For nearly $15 they should be carefully prepared with all the ingredients. I feel like they are skimpy on the ingredients. I have been coming to this location for a while and I'm a little disappointing. read more

Very much a Mediterranean chipotle, Cava offers really fresh ingredients prepared in either a pita wrap, rice bowl, or salad bowl. I've been here a few times, always at off peak hours, but there has always been a line. Don't be discouraged - it moves pretty quickly. Grab a small square menu against the wall at the front of the line that walks you through the process. Excellent bang for your buck and amazing house made juices and teas (try the cucumber mint lime juice). They also have beer and wine. read more

CAVA - Menu - Mediterranean Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

We eat at Cava Mezze a lot, but this was out first time at this location. Oddly enough, the experience was pretty different. To start off, we were all given to-go containers for our food even though we were eating in. I understand that all their dishes disappeared during their opening week....which is a shame because the to-go containers aren't the right size for some things and certainly make it harder to eat (for example, when you have 4 open containers with their attached lid's flapping and one of their small tables...there is barely any room for your drinks). If to-go containers are going to be used, better containers are really needed. They also seem to be a lot stingier with the food here. At other locations, I always tell them that a smaller amount is enough as they are about to give me my second scoop. At this location, I had to constantly ask for more. I ended up with a lot less food for the same price. This locations could also use a few more seats. I realize that the whole eatery is right outside, with plenty more seating...but if you offer free drink refills and condiments that are not packaged to go, everyone is going to want to sit nearby.... read more

CAVA - Kids meal - Mediterranean Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

I love CAVA and I've been to several of its locations in the past few months. I recently visited the CAVA within the food court of the Westfield Montgomery Mall in December 2017 and really enjoyed the food there. Their food was fresh, the restaurant is clean, and the service was quick. It's a fast casual restaurant and is set up like Chipotle (it's like a Mediterranean Chipotle), where you go up and order at the counter and can customize your toppings. I ordered the salad with chicken, pickled onions, crispy pits chips, and spicy chipotle mayo. There's plenty of seating in the food court area, but the restaurant itself also has several tables. The food was fresh, the service was good, and it's very conveniently located. I will definitely plan to visit this CAVA location in the future. read more

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I'm updating my earlier review because I received a quick response to my review. Thanks to Cava for monitoring these reviews and working to resolve my issue. As asked, I sent an email which was very promptly responded to. We were refunded for our entire meal. I still don't think I will return to this location because it wasn't well run compared to the other locations we frequent but I did want to post to say corporate customer service is 5 stars! read more

I love Mediterranean food and how I can custom make my own bowl. The food at cava is always good and fresh but the service not so much. The reason I'm giving this 3 stars is because my entire Bowl spilled in my bag because the container was not closed properly. I couldn't eat my meal since it spilled all over the bag. I did order a soup which I ate half of because it was extremely spicy, would have been nice to be given a warning about but they are too busy to care. read more

The rice was very dry, do not add rice which appears to cooked wrong. The order ingredients are fine. The rice and greens are the base, but gives you a bad experience. read more

Pretty good food. Make sure you download the Cava app on your iPhone or Android phone before coming here as they give you a $3 credit. I liked the brown rice bowl with the tzatziki, hummus and crazy feta for my dips and sauces. I ordered the beef and falafel for my protein - you can order half and half proteins. I added almost all of the toppings and the yogurt dill and lemon herb tahini dressings to top it all off. The rice bowl was really heavy (like Chipotle) and tasty. I will definitely come back but when Chipotle opens next door, it will be a hard choice to make. read more

The only.m reason I go to Cava is because my daughter loves the falafel pita . This restaurant needs To improve his service and to make sure that the employees are smiley and polite and helpful . On the top , the food there is expensive giving the portions and quantity , they are very stingy . read more

I love Cava Grill. Been to this location several times. Unfortunately, just the other day, I saw mice run from the kitchen and into the eatery sitting location. The staff employees were more worried about my reaction than the actual rodents. No explanation or apologies. I think Cava is great. But, I would avoid this location due to sanitation concerns. read more

We visited the one inside the Montgomery Mall. The entrance is inside the food court but they have some seating inside and separate from the food court area. You start with a base of greens, grains, rice or pita. You then get 3 scoops of spreads/dips, add your protein (chicken, lamb, beef, felafel, etc), then add whatever toppings you like and finally choose your dressing. Unless you are a regular, get a menu as you enter the line. (A Yelper posted a pic here) It will give you a list of your choices. It would really help if they labeled the choices at the counter. Unless you are a regular, you can't tell the different spreads, dips, proteins and dressings. I felt rushed trying to figure out all the choices. Even when the servers tell you your options, the music and noise is so loud you can hardly hear yourself think. Good "healthy" lunch alternative. read more

Let me just start by saying I am DEF not a bandwagoner nor do I like to just do the ohhhs and ahhhs about things unless I'm serious. But I am absolutely 100% sold on cava grill! Believe the hype because it's incredible! Onto the food... the food is delicious! The freshness, the bold flavors and varieties, blended together into an awesome Mediterranean chipotle style food joint. So you start with a bowl, pita or salad, next you stack up your dips, then protein, then fresh veggie addons, finished off with more sauces, feta cheese, or whatever. I'm a saucy kinda girl so I'm totally digging that there's a station at the beginning AND the end to fill up on explosive flavors to add to, but not over power your meal. I always get the bowl which I do a mix of a little bit of brown with arugula, then get the eggplant dip, harissa, and red pepper hummus. Pardon the spelling or lack of actual name for each. Next, I get the chicken, I've tried the meatballs once, but enjoy the protein mixed into each bite versus having to stop and take bites of it off. Both are good, flavorful and moist, never dry. Next I go on major overload of veggies! Hey! That's the skinny mini people rule right? More veggies?! Get em all! Veggies never hurt nobody! Lol! And I always ask for more of this, more of that, and I love how the workers never get pissed or annoyed by my requests, they just happily oblige. I love the pickled onions in it, think it breaks up the richness with a nice bit of tang. Add sauces, feta, and VOILA! HEAVEN IN YOUR MOUTH! As for the service, the workers here are very nice and make you feel welcome esp if it's your first time and you get overwhelmed with the concept since there's no overhead menu to help you out. Tip for customers - make sure to get a menu card right at the beginning of the line, it will help tremendously! Even though I know exactly what I want, I still like to look just in case! tip for cava - an overhead menu would be really helpful like the bethesda location. my poor poor husband... he's had to listen to me beg for him to pick us up dinner almost weekly from this place. That's one of my suggestions - cava! PUHLEASEEEEE open one up in howard county or even in the bmore suburbs! That way I'm not driving 35-45 mins out of my way each week to get my fix. I'm telling you - you guys would make a KILLING with this in the health conscious city of Columbia MD! I know there's a cava full on restaurant that's supposed to open by the harbor! That's cool! But more of these closer to me would be GREAT also! love, Your current most obsessed customer! read more

CAVA - Menu to help! - Mediterranean Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

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4.5 stars. This is definitely one of the better Cava's I've tried. Ingredients are fresh, dips and sauces are tasty, and the chicken (only meat I've tried here) is juicy. It's always a treat to find delicious food that's actually healthy. There are a lot of options in terms of meats, dips, sauces, and toppings. I had a super-greens bowl that came with a free side of warm pita. Hard to say no to free carbs! We ordered pick-up and it was ready within 15 mins. Taking 1/2 star off for forgetting my eggplant pepper dip, but overall, the bowl was delicious! Will definitely be back again. read more

This location was clean, friendly, and helpful. Did not eat within the Cava location but rather a few yards away in the food court. Tip: They have a mini card near the beginning of the line that walks you through the steps and lists all the choices/options. This was a HUGE help so that I knew what to expect when coming down the line. read more

Pros: -I love Cava's food no matter which location -Since it's in the mall, there is plenty of seating -The homemade drinks are very good -Always busy Cons: -The line moves way too slowly -Workers are not trained properly -The workers are not very generous on serving portions (unlike Chipotle where they will always "add a little more" upon request) -Workers are not very kind -Workers never place lids properly on bowls, causing spills very often read more

Please open up a store in LA! The only restaurant I miss when I go back to LA. It's quick, healthy, affordable and delicious. Portions are huge, I usually eat half and save the other half for later. read more

This location is inside Westfield Montgomery Mall. Hadn't been here since they redid the food court and it was gorgeous with tall ceilings and pillars, making the atmosphere very open and welcoming. There were plenty of seating options including booths, tables, and bar stools. It was my first time at Cava and it seemed a little overwhelming at first with so many options and add-ins. There was no wait around 8pm on a Friday night and I grabbed one of the menus at the entrance and it walked me through how to order the base, up to 3 dips & spreads, a protein, toppings, and dressing. Love the fresh ingredients and infinite flavor combinations. I chose braised lamb as my protein ($1 extra?) and a rice bowl with a pita on the side and it came out to a little over $13 for the meal..a little steep. For that price I could just go to Chipotle (there is one in the same food court) and get 2 burritos, but maybe the price was just marked up due to location. read more

First time eating at Cava Mezze Grill. The food was phenomenal and fresh. I will definately come back. read more

CAVA - Greens & Grains Bowl - Delish! - Mediterranean Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

A great place for a quick meal. I liked that they have healthy options (brown rice, salad greens, savory dips and many veggie toppings). They now offer black lentils, soup and seasonal veggies. Their grilled chicken and falafels are my faves. read more

Second time after 1st time was excellent, but that was several months ago, i guess good things don't last. Not being overly familiar with what you can get i let the server know: however rather than helping, they could not convey the choices. Then when done, i became SO disappointed with the quality. Pita was very stale, coul not even cut with knife and chicken BITS, not even enough portion were mostly gristle. I will not return. Value, quality, and price not worth it. read more

I really like cava and I'm super happy it's now 5 minutes from my house. This location opened just a few weeks ago with the opening of the new movie theater at the mall. Everything tastes good but I have two things that's stood out which I think could be improved. The 'assembly line' I guess you would call it could be more smooth and quick. Since it just opened, they could still be getting used to the system, but as of right now, there are the right amount of people at each station so there's a lot of waiting involved even once you get started on your bowl. I hope they work this out soon. Also, I didn't realize that it was pricy before. It was $9-10 for a salad bowl. I guess I was used to chipotle prices. I think if they can make the ordering and dish building process smoother, that would make for a better experience. But the quality and taste match the other locations, so I'm satisfied with that. read more

Wanting to try something different and healthy I chose this restaurant. I must say I was very pleased. My bowl was very flavorful. Being my first time in the restaurant I wasn't sure on what to put in the bowl, I actually decided on the right ingredients. Not too much but just enough kick to get me wanting more. A bit pricey but worth it to me. read more

CAVA - Mediterranean Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

I got a verbal confirmation that the lamb is halal (braised lamb) from the server. She also confirmed from her manager. I also looked up on CAVA's FAQ that the lamp is halal here. The food is amazing and healthy!! Highly recommended!! read more

Food 4.5 stars. My problem is the attitudes that I get when we order here. Excuse me for not memorizing all your sauces. My gf asked for rice with her salad and the lady took a big il handful of salad out. Then when she asked for black lentils the mean big girl responded "2.75$" extra. She said ok that's fine. Then again similar snickering across the line when we didn't know how many of each we get. .The food is good just wish the help would be more helpful. read more

Tried half and half of chicken and lamb bowl. Lamb is well cooked . Very full with all the leafy vegetables and beans.

My fiancee, who is among the pickiest eaters you will ever find, absolutely loves this place... to the point where she's legitimately asked what the franchise fee to open a branch would be, because she loves it so much. That says plenty, in my opinion. Big props to my friend Irene F. for posting a pic of the menu; ordering here can definitely get tricky because of the amount of sauces, dips, and dressings they have (and the inevitable language barrier between you and the person explaining to you what they are). For reference: I usually do the Salad with Supergreens, roasted red pepper hummus (solid), harissa (that ish is LEGIT spicy -- proceed with caution), spicy lamb meatballs (more on this in a sec), tomato + cucumber, diced cucumber, pickled onions, feta, banana peppers, and a lemon wedge. I would very happily grade this bowl at an A/A- in flavor. And for such a bowl, the portions are actually bigger than what you would get at, say, Chipotle (as hard as that may be to imagine). Unless you're silly hungry, it's easily one of those deals where you can eat half, be satisfied, and eat the other half later. And while I'm usually one to get a cup of water as my beverage anywhere I go, I would strongly recommend purchasing a fountain drink and getting one of their signature juice blends. Their carrot-ginger juice is very good, but the Strawberry Lime? Abso-f**king-lutely transcendent. It haunts me that I can't make this at home. The biggest -- and probably only -- reason this place gets 4 stars (instead of 5 stars) from me is the price. Example: my fiancee and I went just a couple of days ago, and ordered their regular salad bowls with the spicy lamb meatballs ($1.50 upcharge), and I got double meat on mine. For said two bowls and one fountain drink, our bill was over $27. I actually checked the receipt because I was sure the cashier overcharged ... she didn't. Apples to Apples, you're going to pay about twice as much money as you would pay if you were to go to Chipotle. Is it worth twice the price? I could make arguments both ways -- but then again, I am a loyal Chipotle devotee -- so the answer to that question is in the eye of the consumer. read more