The vegan pasta is so flavorful but only at night. The day staff does not make it well. The staff is very friendly and accommodating read more

The Lab Collaborative - Vegan pasta - New American Near Me - Oceanside, California

The food was terrible, if you know how to cook do not go here. The fish tacos were disgusting. I ordered a cheese pasta for my daughter and it had no flavor just watered down noodles. I have never eaten at such a terrible place. Almost felt like asking if they wanted a fast and delicious fish taco recipe! How hard is it to make noodles taste good? Customer service was great but honestly I hope the rest of the menu is better. read more

Open air concept eating. You can sit inside or outside with giant open walls, the inside feels open with a fresh breeze. Staff is friendly and we were seated quickly. We had to request a kids menu, which felt like a secret. The regular menu portions are enormous and would be ridiculous for a child or preteen to order from. With that said, the food was delicious and yes the portions are large. The portions for the kids menu are decent size as well. read more

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Underwhelming. Which is too bad bc it has a nice interior and a great menu. Unfortunately the food is under seasoned and bland (many reviewers say the same). When it comes to service, I had to get up twice to find the server, who was in the corner talking to other employees. The two beers we ordered from the menu - they no longer had. read more

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We had one very good dish here, that happened to be the one recommended by our server (the surf and turf), and okay one (lettuce elote wraps) and one mediocre one (beef cheek). Our server told us that the surf and turf was their most popular dish and it definitely lived up to the hype. The steak was tender and perfectly medium rare, the accompanying sauce was great, and the shrimps were also cooked perfectly. The elote wraps were also decent, though the seasoning to me just seemed like your typical generic taco meat seasoning. The beef cheek was a real disappointment, way too salty and rich. Definitely could have used some acid or something. The vegetables in the dish were a bit less cooked than I'd like. read more

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the idea of the space is great, but idk about the execution. i get a bit confused if it's trying to be a nicer restraint collective or a nicer sports bar. Have come here twice now l and am never thrilled by what we get. stopped here after dinner just for dessert seeing they had a brownie sundae, which was just alright considering for $15 i expected a nicer brownies. we described the texture as more like "cosmic brownie" being dense and chewy. the ice cream seemed very generic so we were a bit underwhelmed. getting to the bathroom is also super awkward as you have to walk in front of the large tv screen where everyone is watching and weave through everyone's tables. the bathroom has a shared sink area that nobody seems to clean very often. service wise everything was okay. the hostess was sitting on her phone and looked a little lost when we walked in. Our server was also kind of short spoken especially after we mentioned we would only be getting dessert. read more

The Lab Collaborative - dessert (brownie sundae) - New American Near Me - Oceanside, California

The lab collaborative. Hmmmm..... So Friday Night Dinner for us is usually made up of trying new places. Well....this is a newer place. I made reservations and when we arrived, we were seated right away which was great. The place is very noisy, but that's just fine. We arrived kind of late and we're super hungry so we got the biscuits with honey and butter. Deeeeeelicious. i brought a couple home to eat in the morning and not gonna lie.... I think I dreamed about them haha. My husband got the seafood linguini which was super hot temp wise and pretty good. Not GREAT, but pretty good. I got a cilantro and citrus halibut with potatoes and a veggie stir fry that was ugly but delicious. The halibut was a little over cooked but still pretty good. My daughter got the lab burger which she enjoyed along with a side salad. For dessert we got the coffee creme brûlée which of you aren't a fan of coffee, don't worry. The flavor is very subtle but adds nice flavor to the creme brûlée. I was going to give it 4 stars, but the service was kind of odd. The waitress was fine I guess. Friendly enough but no one seemed to want to do anything about our dishes. We had already stacked the dishes in a neat pile for them to take since we had a lot of dishes. When she took our dessert order, she walked over, could clearly see the pile of dishes in the middle of the table and left it there. Ok.... Well maybe she was busy or something. Normally they grab them after they take the order for dessert, but nope! Then one of the servers brought our dessert over. She proceeded to put the dessert on the table right in the middle of the dirty dishes leaving it all there as well. Like she wanted us to move dirty plates that had taken over the table at this point to be able to get to the dessert? I asked her if someone could please pick up the dishes and she gave me this sigh and attitude before picking it up. I'm sorry, but were they expecting us to bring them in the kitchen ourselves or something? Maybe they wanted us to wash them too or something? Jeez. I don't really care who was supposed to pick them up, I just think SOMEONE should have. The food was ok. The service...meh. I mean if you like to try new places, then sure I guess. I just wouldn't necessarily say I recommend THIS place... to me, the service is just as important as the food. This didn't cut it. read more

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The food & service were great. My wedge salad was unbelievably delicious. However the lighting is so bad! It's too bright...it's literally like a lab lol They've got to turn the lights down or something. It's not relaxing and made us want to leave. It was like 'last call' lighting the entire time. Ambience is so important. Unless you need to take out your spleen nobody needs lights this bright. read more

We came to this place and asked what the wait time was to get a table outside, 15 min, we waited and came back. The woman told us she doesn't have any tables outside right now so the wait would be another 15 minutes, we came back and she sat us inside but sat the couple in front of us outside even though they wanted to be inside. The food was great, the lemonade is surprisingly good. We needed the check but we were seated in a secluded area behind a little wall and no waiters were ever walking by there to check on us. Someone from our table had to get up and find a waiter, and then we still waited 20 minutes to get the check. Food is great but service is not. read more

The Lab Collaborative - Local Catch Tacos - New American Near Me - Oceanside, California

We have been here several times and continue to return because of the unique dishes and great service. They are known for their fried chicken sandwich called the Oside or No Side and it does not disappoint. There is this special bourbon habanero sauce that goes with it that is just *chef's kiss*. The Bourbon Maple Bacon Brussels sprouts are divine. And the perfect app to share. When we were there a huge group came in, looked like a family reunion? I was so impressed by the staff and how they just went with the flow and treated everyone like they were their only customer. Caroline was our server and she was excellent. read more

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I love everything about this restaurant - the service and food are outstanding, but my favorite part is being able to bring my Lab here, (no pun intended) and she gets so much love. Thanks ,Jeff, for the wonderful hospitality! read more

The Lab Collaborative - New American Near Me - Oceanside, California

We came here for a late lunch as a group of three and sat on the patio. I chose this restaurant because it had very clear good vegan options which was great for me, but also had non-vegan options for my family. We ordered the brussels sprouts with no bacon and then she is on the side so that I could eat them. we all agreed the brussels sprouts with onions were absolutely amazing. And then we got the vegan curry pasta and the vegan barbecue. Both were delicious. Our one complaint with the barbecue, vegan dish was that it was hard to cut the cabbage. I wish it was more of a bowl that may be had tofu as well on either of a bed of cabbage that was grilled, or at least grilled cabbage that was cut up. It was just really hard to eat and we had to ask for a knife and even then it was a regular knife but like a steak knife probably would've been better, the curry vegetables were very delicious along with the pasta. I like the unique vegan dishes. Our server was really nice and very attentive and personable. I am writing five star specifically because he was so amazing. The place is a little on the pricier side with the vegan entrées being $20 and a lot of the meat entrée is being 25 or 30 but it is a prime location in downtown and was a nice treat while on vacation. read more

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Ate at the Lab for a second time last night. I love food, but two things I like most is food to taste "fresh and light," even if it's pasta. The Lab has a prime location and impressive bar, but the food is anything but light. Instead, they tend to serve large heavy portions that can both take your breath away as well as your appetite. The Lab features enormous hamburgers, enough for two people in my opinion. However, if you must serve "anything" huge, please add something light and refreshing on the plate like fresh mango or watermelon slices. After all it is summer, and there's plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables available. The Lab needs to work on balancing their dishes to make them more appetizing, delicious and kind to the stomach. Simply adding more on a plate is not necessarily better! Carole from San Marcos. read more

Wow! I love the decor here, service is great, and the food was flavorful. Everyone I was with LOVED their food. Probably the best poke bowl I've ever had. And the restaurant is a short walk to the beach. I highly recommend read more

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Good food great service. The lab Bergasa hamburger is one of the best in the neighborhood. A favorite go to spot with comfortable outdoor seating. read more

We stayed in Oceanside for 3 nights and my meal here was the absolute highlight of the food we ate. The stars of the show were the wedge salad and their potato leek soup. I know it's silly to think of sides with such attention, but YUM! The wedge was crunchy and also tangy. I've never had a wedge like it. The soup was SO flavorful and unexpected! Everyone in the group loved their choices- from salmon to seafood linguine to chicken pasta. The girls loved their carrot cake and cheesecake desserts. Thank you for not ruining carrot cake with raisins! We'll be dreaming of this place for a few weeks! read more

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The first thing I want to say about this restaurant is that it is very well designed. Both the interior space and the outdoor patio dining areas are both very inviting and very nice. The tables are well spaced and this provides for a very enjoyable dining experience. The staff here are also very nice and friendly. In terms of the food, this is where my opinion of this restaurant changes. To tell my story, we went in for Sunday brunch. I ordered a waffle. I expected a restaurant style waffle. You know, one of the thicker style waffles. What I got, was a waffle, approximately the size of an Eggo waffle. That really wasn't the problem, however. The problem was the waffle was totally undercooked. It was horrible! All I could taste was uncooked dough. The other issue I had was I ordered a side of two eggs, over medium. Pretty much any restaurant in the world offers those on their brunch menu. I was told by the server that their staff was just starting to learn their brunch service and they probably did not understand how to make the various style of eggs. What? She said that the only kind of eggs I could order would be scrambled. My guess, and it is only a guess, is that this restaurant only provides those batch style scrambled eggs. Because, ask yourself, what chef doesn't know how to fry an egg? So, not liking those batch style scrambled eggs, I declined the side order. The other problem, was the coffee. Both of our cups were empty and I asked, she didn't offer, our server for refills them three times. I also asked the runner who brought us our breakfast for coffee, but no response. When the server finally brought us coffee, she realized that the flask was mostly empty, and she poured me maybe a quarter of a cup of coffee. She said she would be back immediately with more coffee, but that didn't happen. I had to ask for it again. When she finally arrived with new coffee, she explained that they share their coffee flasks with the coffee house next-door, and, during weekend brunch service, there's very little coffee to go around between the two establishments. Again, what? I mean, I think coffee is a pretty common thing for people to order during their brunch service. And if you can't even provide your customers with that, what does that say about the management and the overall planning of this restaurant? Overall, once again, it is a very nice restaurant space. We sat outdoors on the patio and it was very enjoyable. But, I question their food services. This is all just FYI. Keep it in mind if you go to this restaurant. read more

The Lab Collaborative - New American Near Me - Oceanside, California

We highly recommend this place. Excellent service from Jack and Joe. The place has a unique atmosphere and menus. Big portions. Close to the pier. Reasonable menu and drink prices. It's a must try when your in town. 6-17-2022 read more

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I like The Lab Collaborative. The menu was good and offered items for both meat eaters and vegans. The atmosphere is really nice and the outdoor seating is very convenient. During the cooler months, they keep it toasty with outdoor heaters. read more

The Lab Collaborative is currently in the epicenter of Oceanside's reenvisioned downtown. The big draws to The Lab besides location is that it is mid-tier for pricing, offers a variety of food, and also doubles as a sports bar. Normally, a place like this with an unfocused, eclectic menu is one I would expect to be average. But The Lab is outstanding! The eclectic cocktail list is nicely inspired with a variety of interesting riffs off the classics like their version of an Old Fashioned or Manhattan. I tried their smokey (mezcal-based) paloma as well as the Muñeca, which is like a piña colada with tequila blanca subbed in for white rum. Both were phenomenal. For food, everyone at our table enjoyed their food and probably gave it around 4-stars. However, I ordered their cold-smoked picanha steak and it was absolutely divine. The smoked character was robust and the steak was nicely rare and incredibly tender. The chimichurri sauce was perfect as were the mashed potatoes. Even the grilled asparagus was perfect. Honestly, I was blown away. I did not expect food of this quality when I first walked in. I think The Lab is a wonderful addition to downtown Oceanside, and I hope it continues to be popular while simultaneously continuing to fine tune their food and drink menu. read more

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We came to The Lab Collaborative for a early dinner around 4:30pm. The dining experience is amazing here! We didn't expect too much since we just randomly picked the lab since other restaurants won't serve dinner until 5pm. We made a great choice! The dinning area is very open and comfortable. They have both indoor and outdoor seating. We had a huge wooden table which is great, so we can stretch our arms without interfering each others to have our big feast. We ordered a Good Old Buffalo Wings ($15) is so delicious. I know Buffalo Wings is not special dishes, but not every restaurant can make it right and good these days, But The Lab's Buffalo Wing brought me back the good memory of the Wings. Pretzel and Sausage Platter ($22) is a very special dish to me, I never seen this size of pretzel. And they taste good as well. Red Wine Braised Beef Cheeks ($28) is so yummy! Citrus and Garlic Chicken ($28) is very good, the chicken is very tender and juicy. The Lab Burger ($20) is huge, it's almost bigger than my friend's face, and it taste great too! Bourbon and Tamarind Pork Belly ($28) is delicious. Mocha Mole ($28) is good too, only they forgot to put tamalitos in the dish when they served the dish the first time, but they added after asking them. Overall, almost every dish is great to us. The service is excellent! Our server is very friendly and humor. They have this huge LED display showing the theme in the kitchen, it's very fun to watch how those chief working on those delicious food for us like that they are working in the lab and trying to figure out the best food for their customers. Very creative! Great "Lab Collaborative"!! read more

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Great tortilla soup, awesome server Maddie I think, and good beer! I would return and also send people here!

Great service, pretty food, upscale scene, but super bland food. The jerk chicken wings left my tastebuds baffled. And the only flavor in my chicken sandwich came by way of the brioche bun. I'll visit again. Hopefully the flavor fairy visits next time around. read more

The Lab Collaborative - Oside or no side fried chicken sando - New American Near Me - Oceanside, California

We enjoyed our time together here because of the ambiance and atmosphere. Open floor plan is great for sunny weather. The food was delicious and well prepared. The service was excellent, but when they get busy it becomes slower,but they are attentive. read more

Everything we ate at this restaurant was great! The pretzel and sausage appetizer was yummy. The goat cheese and fig burgers were great (though I gave my bacon to my kids) and the sweet potato fries were cooked so well. My daughters had the cheese pizza and cheeseburger and loved their tater tots. It was a delicious meal. read more

Saw this spot online and all the food looked so good. I ordered the Baja tacos and they weren't that great (not pictured). Needed to be cooked and fried a bit longer. Otherwise, service was great. Great location. Kids also loved all their food. read more

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Our server was very friendly and informed us we had only a few minutes to get our lunch order in before they switched to the dinner menu. The fried cheese curds were delicious. I was a little disappointed by the flavors in the salad with the green goddess dressing. But it was a nice outdoor patio area for a beautiful late lunch on a relaxed Sunday afternoon. read more

From a d was great and so was service. I would highly recommend the chicken sandwich and the Elote wraps. They were both flavorful and delicious. They do have happy hour until 6 PM. read more

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Superlative fries. Pesto gnocchi was very good; Philly cheesesteak was also solid. Great outdoor seating area with heat lamps, fire pits and touristy beach town vibe (in a good way) read more

We had a great time here! We wanted to have lunch at a nice lunch spot that was close to the pier and had tasty food. The Lab Collaborative did not disappoint! We were dazzled by this restaurants overall lab theme which was very good. The menu was split up into different lab aspects like "clinical trials", etc. the lights looked like molecules. It was a very cool vibe! The food was expensive if you looked at just the prices of the main food options. But, when the portion sizes were revealed, wow! You started to realize the dishes could be easily shared and were portioned out for 2-3 people. Not pictured here is the O'side or No side crispy chicken sandwich. It was a monster crispy chicken sandwich that needed its own seat at the table!! This dish lasted my husband about three meals. Other customers actually came up to him during our meal to ask where he was going to put the sandwich because of its ginormous size lol Service was awesome here too. The waiters were patient and fast. They even helped us with starting the fire pit at our table! read more

The Lab Collaborative - Spicy shrimp salad - New American Near Me - Oceanside, California

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4.5 stars. Really a great first experience. We tried several dishes and want to come back to try again and may adjust the rating. The service was 5 stars - super friendly, welcoming and helpful. The food was Flavorful and good for sharing. Firstly the soups - the two we tried chicken pozole and vegan chili both were flavorful and come with sides of pita bread or chips and are a great appetizer. The chicken salad was full of veggies and taste was great. The honey mustard was super honey sweet so glad we got on the side. Finally we tried the riblets and they were nice flavors and worthy for sharing. Next time we want to try a sandwich either spicy chicken or a burger. The craft beer menu is local and not bad. We definitely will be back. read more

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7 of us went to dinner at this restaurant for a birthday. The food was amazing but the service was very very slow for an empty restaurant. We kept having to ask for more water, plates, silverware ect.... After leaving, I thought to myself the food was amazing, but the service was horrible. read more

The ambiance was pretty cool all in all and was nicely and interestingly decorated. It was very bright lit tho which I'm not a fan of. Just came for a few appetizers to share. Their selection wasn't the best tho. Got the biscuits, which were rather salty and came with some kind of black seasoned butter which was not very good. The pretzel with sausage was pretty good tho but didn't come with much sausage. The waitress filled my sprite with water accidentally and when she came back to replace it, she replaced it with a cup of ice with some sprite. She gave us the check and then went to clean, but moreso be on her phone. It took nearly 30 minutes for her to come back to take the payment. It was very confusing to say the least. It's possible the food is good here, but not being a fan of even an appetizer, I'm not sure I'll be coming back. read more

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Food was great, would recommend the Fried Chicken and Surf N Turf. Service was wonderful, however the lead host, HBIC, man who decides if you can eat there or not is not very welcoming. We brought our quiet/elderly dog after seeing the restaurant is tagged and reviewed for being dog friendly. The second he saw our family he immediately turned us away with an entirely empty restaurant inside and half filled outside. He immediately started listing all the reservations he had and did not offer an estimated time of when a table would become available. As we were walking away a lovely couple, who heard the man, offered to give up their small outdoor table as they had already considered moving to the bar area. Only 1 large party arrived during the hour we were there... the restaurant remained pretty empty. read more

Good clean place to grab a drink and watch a game. Unfortunately I'm not super impressed by the food here. I would avoid the halibut and the white pasta, but the burger and pretzel from here are pretty good. The white pasta was soupy and had burnt prosciutto which tasted like charcoal. Why pay $30 for a poorly prepared pasta? Servers are pretty chill and accommodating, but not enough for me to give more than 3 stars on the food's behalf. read more

The Lab Collaborative - menu - New American Near Me - Oceanside, California

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Very good food and service! I've gone a few times and each time the food and drinks are good! The servers are very pleasant and attentive!!

We came here with a big group on a Saturday night, and we were lucky to snag a table in the back. The staff here was really warm, and the food came out quick. I enjoyed my pasta dish, and the Paloma my friend had was really good! Parking can be a little tricky, but otherwise it's a great location. There's plenty of TVs if you want to watch any game, and the bar is pretty big, too. read more

Oceanside has been growing and enjoying its revamp over the years, while visiting this weekend I decided to give The Lab a shot, I ordered a Old Fashioned but they couldn't provide one due to an ingredient being short/out. So on to the appetizers, I ordered the Elote Chicken Salad Wraps which was bland and served cold, and sadly it felt like I was eating dog food. I was unsatisfied, and still looking for some flavor in my life so I ordered The Spicy Shrimp Salad. Needless to say, this too was extremely bland, there was nothing spicy about the plate whatsoever. The ambiance was great, but sadly, this isn't a venue I'd come to grab a bite at again. read more

I have only been to The Lab Collaborative once and so far I am mostly pleased. I had the Lab Poke Bowl that comes with coconut cilantro Jazmine rice, edamame, cucumber, avocado, pickled carrots, and ahi tossed in smoked poke sauce topped with spicy mayo, sesame seeds, and cilantro. This item is on their lunch menu. The ahi was fresh, the veggies were tasty, the poke sauce was delicious, and the rice had great flavor! I only wish the cucumber was cut a bit smaller to match the bite size of everything else but overall it was good! It was a bit overpriced in my opinion as this bowl was $22. The service was great though, our server was very nice, accommodating, and helpful! read more

The Lab Collaborative - Lab Poke Bowl - New American Near Me - Oceanside, California

If you're a lover of good chili or just want some vegan chili while in downtown Oceanside, then I highly recommend TLC aka The Lab Collaborative. I stopped by and their housemade vegan chili is made fresh daily and it is packed full of flavor! It also has no fillers or processed alternatives in it and the protein & flavor is carried by the various beans and veggies that are in abundance. A slight warning though, it does carry a slight "tap" of heat in the back that you really notice as an afterthought. It's really a heat level of 2 out of 10. But for those who're sensitive to heat, now you know. They also have the perfect housemade biscuit to go with it and it comes with a honey-butter sauce. The portions for their other food items is amazing! I saw a guy trying to tackle a massive chicken burger that was humongous! Inspiring! Overall, I loved my experience here at TLC. Just know that it DOES tend to get crowded in the evenings, but you have outdoor and indoor seating. Call ahead to find out their status. I prefer to sit by the bar though. I get waited-on quicker, they have power outlets, bag hooks and I'll get my drink faster too; all with a view of the televisions! read more