Crisp Latta Arcade

So I was recommend to come here… after reviewing the menu I selected a flank steak sandwich… I was told they could not make this at this location… that’s fine… I ordered a turkey wrap… and as my side I wanted a side salad… It clearly states on the menu that this is an option… the lady told me that they do not offer it at this location… I proceeded to check out and asked for a water cup… I was then told they only have bottled water and there was not enough room for water cups?! Not sure why they would advertise a menu that is not available at a certain location. have a menu for this location if it is to small to make a full menu… extremely disappointed for a first visit…

I love the F.C.N. salad with chicken. My company usually orders in Crisp for meetings, so I never actually go there… til today. Even though I have my go-​to item, it was still a little intimidating walking in because, as other reviewers have noted, the minute you walk in, it’s your turn to order.
The staff operate as a well-​oiled machine, firing off questions as you walk down the counter, which I mostly knew the answer to but I was still a little overwhelmed! Thankfully it was a rainy Friday, so there was really no line at 12:15 p.m., and I got my salad pretty darn fast.
The salad itself was delicious, but the bread chunk it comes with it always a little underwhelming. It was $ 10.99 for the salad without a drink — not too shabby.

Great salads, Chinese shrimp is my favorite but I haven’t tried all the rest yet. Place is hot and smoky, like a Pakistani sweat shop, but the staff is very efficient and the line moves pretty quick.

One of the best salad places I’ve ever been. The line for lunch is generally pretty long but it moves fast and is well worth the wait. The Chinese shrimp salad is amazing.

Extremely busy but seemed to handle the crowd just fine. Only downfall is that they do not take orders over the phone, so if you are grabbing a bunch of orders for the office, you’ll have to wait in line and be «That person» who orders for 10 minutes. They also don’t offer sandwiches at this location after 11? The menu doesn’t state that, so again, if you’re taking an order for the office, be prepared to only send them one section of their menu to choose from. SALADS ONLY.

What’s the fuss? Crisp is great. Tucked away in Latta Arcade is this hidden gym and if you blink, you may miss it. What you cannot miss around lunchtime is the line at Crisp, generally an indication that there is something good inside that people find worth waiting for. I find that the line moves quickly, but you can expect to wait 15 minutes getting your food from the end of the line to leaving. This location only has takeout and barely enough room to stand. That’s the only downside.
When you walk in, it’s your turn to order, which can be overwhelming for newcomers. This is a salad spot. You can choose from one of their salad options OR you can make your own. If making your own, you’re given three choices of a base, romaine lettuce, spinach, or an arugula combination. I always get the spinach and it’s always fresh. Next is your protein. Your choices are chicken, salmon, etc. Your protein choice is yelled to the guy on the grill, who makes it then and there. Then you choose up to five toppings for the salad. Last, your salad dressing. There are about 8 to choose from. After you’ve placed your order, you pay and find a place on the wall to stand and get out of the next man’s way. Normal price is going to be around $ 10 (including the salmon that I always get).
I have found the staff to be friendly. However, I smile first and always know what I want. They get really busy around lunch, so don’t expect too much hospitality as their main priority is keeping the line moving and getting you in and out rather than make you feel wanted. My personal favorite is spinach w/​blue cheese, corn, craisins, garbanzo Beans aka chick peas, and Balsamic Vinaigrette. While I love bacon, I have found theirs to be hard. The olives are quite tart. Good luck!

Beware of bugs! The salads have many topping choices and can be pretty good, depending on who makes it, but I would watch out for BUGS in the salad! Today I ordered my own fruit and nut salad variation and about ¾ of the way through it I found something that didn’t look right, so I picked it out and wiped it on my napkin. Upon inspection, I realized it was a small, dead bug. Needless to say, I won’t be returning! I have already emailed the company with a picture and am awaiting a response.

A refreshing and varied take on salad offerings, which is not that plentiful, in downtown Charlotte.

Good stuff for healthy diet. Salmon grilled salad is very good and it is cheap too I got this for 10. Line was long but fast at service. Good place for lunch in uptown.

Salads are tasty — of course they are, the lunch line is 30 minutes long. But they’re pricey, too. And I’m not sure you’re getting the most bang for your buck here. Ingredients could afford to be chopped up smaller. The staff is also clearly not super happy to be here, but that could be because they’re slammed at lunch and probably don’t get any breaks during that time.
A previous reviewer was on the right track when suggesting that Chop’t would be a good model here, because you get more goodness for the same price as Crisp. They could consider a frequent customer card to make people feel like their money is better spent.
I’ll probably be back soon and often because there aren’t many healthy and delicious salad options in uptown, but Crisp should beware if someone else comes to town and offers yummy and healthy food at a better price.

I doubt the line out the door that can be seen every workday lunch rush is due to the food. The salads are okay, I guess, but they’re nothing special. They don’t even really chop up the ingredients, so you’re left with a $ 9 salad that has paper plate sized pieces of lettuce that fling dressing all over your shirt. The portions are pretty large, so maybe all these would-​be healthy eaters justify eating a 5lb. salad because it’s health bacon, egg, and salad dressing on there. 3000 calorie salad? hell yes! that thing’s loaded with veg. The worst violation I saw, was a mass of obviously old (and looking rather slimey) mushrooms. Cmon now — with that demand, you have to be the freshiest of the fresh.
Maybe the line out the door is for the display put on by the saladristas? It’s like watching German efficiency with New York attitude and Japanese volume throw ingredients in a bowl. At least they take and yell your name out when it’s ready — you’re part of the show!
No, the real reason there is a line out the door is because the lunch crowd of Charlotte is DESPERATE for healthy alternatives. Even though Crisp may not exactly hit the mark, they’re the first salad joint in Charlotte and have cashed in. If any of the owners happen across this review — I’d recommend taking a trip up to DC and checking out Chopt creative salad company. Really think there is a high ceiling for a restaurant concept like this, so learning from a company that is killing with the same concept will bring a fresh (no pun intended) look into your offering.

Crisp is pretty solid when you’re craving a salad. They have tons of variety to choose from and ingredients to appeal to anyone. I enjoy adding crumbled blue cheese and their roasted red peppers along with steak and spinach to my salad. It is made to order so the steak takes time to cook. It’s not sitting there in a container.
If you go for lunch be prepared for a huge line and difficulty finding seating. The prices are a little up there, but it’s appetizing nonetheless.

12:30p and the line out the door is not too bad. Wait was less than 8 minutes to order. Person taking the order is multi-​tasking but is listening when asked her to go east on the dressing. The person at register was quick and smiled as I paid. My salad was ready less than a minute.
I had the special of the day– turkey bacon apple salad in an apple cider vinaigrette. Romaine was cut chunky. Abundance of turkey wheels, large bacon bits, sliced toasted almonds, sliced apples, and blue cheese. Dressing was not too tart either.
Cost: $ 10 and some change.
It’s a good filling fresh salad. Service was just fine.
Next time I forget my lunch, I’ll come here, unless I find a place where fresh salads are a bit cheaper in price.

Okay so not to be critical but they make salads. Are they really good salads? I would say they are good. Mind blowing not sure about that,
A couple things I liked. If you add a meat of some kind they grill it up fresh and that is great. I got salmon one day and it was very tasty. The ingredients are fresh as well and hey since it’s a salad that’s pretty important.
Where they fall short is the lettuce is not chopped up enough and so you are stuck trying to cut up these giant lettuce leaves with a flimsy plastic knife and fork. Not site where their lettuce comes from but it’s like something out of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2. Serious salad monsters.
Second the people making the salads are what I can only describe as intense. I realize they are busy and in a hurry but as the joker would ask — why so glum? It just isn’t a good vibe. I mean sorry your store is way too small for the hordes of people that try to jam in there but not really my issue.
That brings us to number three. The place is small. Too small for the crowds they get. Hopefully they are going to move into the old Quiznos location a couple doors down. I mean seriously they almost need crowd control. If you like cozy well you’ll really like it. No place to sit it is to go only.
So would I go there again. After three visits I’m going to have to say no. Line is too long, the person on the grill is always behind, and well I want my lunch from people who can take 5 seconds to smile and be thankful that I’m supporting their business.
So summary. Salads are good as long as you are okay with a few quirks. I’ll wave at you when you’re in line while I head down to metropolitan or Valhalla.
Enjoy.

Got the special, Chicken Wrap with corn salsa on it and pasta salad as a side. Good food overall, not spectacular. Everyone working there was really nice, no complaints.

Today was my first time at this location… The reason I have not been to this location is because they do not carry a full menu. I rather have a sandwich than salad. Therefore, I always go next door to Clover Joes, which has the best subs in town!
To be honest I don’t think ill be back to this location. Why?
1. Customer service is awful
One o the girls working today could not hide her face expression on how much she was hating her job…
2. They don’t offer a full menu
3. It is a very small location and it did not smell so well in there…
Pros:
I had the small flank steak salad and it was pretty tasty!

Not again!
Smell wasn’t good as I entered the place. The lady who prepared my salad was wiping her sweet with her arms&shoulder. Ordered the special, grilled grouper salad, I paid and waited by the grill. 3 – 4 orders were delivered to the people who placed orders after me and then I realized that grouper was not even on the grill yet! I asked the lady about my order and she said «fish take longer». I didn’t want to start an argument so I kept quite. After all, the salad wasn’t good and the grouper wasn’t cooked enough. Terrible.

Moving from the West Coast, it’s hard to find a good salad here in the South that is meant to be a meal. The girls at Crisp, Annie & company, do a tremendous job. it’s great to go somewhere that w/​multiple locations doesn’t matter where they see me they know my name. The salads & sandwich specials are interesting & show a creative flair.

Just discovered this place and has become my new favorite healthy lunch spot! You can customize everything and they grill up the meats right on the spot! They have salmon, chicken, pork, shrimp, steak, and tofu for proteins.
Huge portions and about $ 9 – 10 for a super filling salad. As mentioned, the line can build up around lunch time but they do push people through fairly quickly, so it isnt too bad.
There isn’t any seating inside. However, there are alot of chairs outside and tables in the park across the street.

New spot right in Latta Arcade! This is a popular lunch spot during the week. It is standing room only and take-​out only. There are standard salad options or make your own! That is my favorite! I have tried several different proteins including the shrimp, pork tenderloin and the tofu.
All proteins are sauteed up fresh for you while you wait. Prices are very reasonable — about $ 9 bucks for most salads. Comparable to Dean and Deluca any day — size and freshness are very similar (but Crisp is cheaper!!)
Get there early — a line starts to form inside. You will love it! This is my new favorite Uptown lunch place. Grab your salad here and head to Romare park or to the atrium to sit and people watch. :-D