PS. as of today… they are closed probably for another month.
Shiki W.
Place rating: 3 San Francisco, CA
Small and bright, this little smoothie joint is the only place to get a good Vietnamese sandwich($ 4.75) on Piedmont Ave. It’s owned and operated by a nice Chinese lady. It’s nice and quiet in there, which is swell for a bookworm like moî so I can sit down with my latest purchase from Spectator’s and enjoy a sandwich and salad in peace. Check out the Chinese herbal and diet teas they sell too! Major plus if you’re into teas like me!
Jae R.
Place rating: 4 Oakland, CA
I love this place, they are so friendly and helpful, and they will make you a fresh juice anyway you want it, even if it is not on the menu! I also love their chicken soup, it seems so simple fresh and wholesome.
Andrew C.
Place rating: 3 Oakland, CA
Banh mi on Piedmont Ave? You betcha! Green Apple Smoothies & Crepes has, in addition to their namesake smoothies & crepes, 4 banh mi to choose from. Pork, meatball, chicken, and veggie. They also have some soups on the menu and you can get your wheatgrass fix here when you want to pretend you’re your cat ;-) I should have snapped some indoor pics because the menus are completely changed with a picture menu of their food above the register and the smoothie menus are now along the side wall. At $ 4.75 their Vietnamese sandwiches are a bit under-stuffed and over-priced(for the local banh mi market). The roll was nice and toasted, but the filling was a little lacking in the diakon & carrot deparment. I liked the meatball more than the pork; the pork was a little gristly. See my pic of both sandwiches. You do get a side salad with your sandwich and you can request no salad for a $ 0.50 discount. I’m trying to limit my leafy greens intake so I got one with salad and one without. The salad was pretty basic and mine needed a little more dressing. I guess $ 5 for a sandwich and salad is pretty good for the neighborhood and it’s nice to have options. I may try their crepes and soups, but will make the drive down to International or head downtown if I’m having a banh mi attack. I can get 3 for what I paid for 2 here and have some change for a drink! I’m cheap like that! Pork Banh mi: 2.5 stars Meatball Banh mi: 3 stars
Aric W.
Place rating: 4 Berkeley, CA
I just had a vegetarian sandwich from there and it was great. It was grilled mushrooms and had that great spice. I liked it and it was 5 bucks with a little salad so not bad.
Christine P.
Place rating: 2 Hercules, CA
I was excited to find out this place serves bubble tea. I love boba but was sadly disappointed when I ordered one. The drink itself was gritty and watered down and the tapioca balls were mushy. I decided to give the place a second chance because I love tapioca drinks so much but boo… same result! That’s too bad because I like to support the small, local businesses. After reading some of the reviews, I might go back and try a smoothie if I’m ever in the mood for one. My co-worker tried a Vietnamese sandwich but she didn’t give it her seal of approval so that makes me kinda scurred to try it. Instead, if we’re in the mood for a Vietnamese sandwich, we’ll just drive to Chinatown and order one(or two) from Cam Huong.
Jess k.
Place rating: 4 Corvallis, OR
Today I was really craving a smoothie, and I was in the area, so I stopped into this place. My friend is always raving about their Vietnamese sandwiches, so I decided to get one of those too. I ordered a papaya-tonic smoothie. A good papaya taste with coconut flakes, completely blended and in a good consistency. It seems like they have a lot of varieties of smoothies and juices, which all sound delicious. I’ll definitely come back to try some others. I also ordered a Vietnamese pork sandwich, which came with a side salad. Nothing special about the salad, but the dressing was pretty good! The sandwich was great, with a freshly sliced jalapeño nestled into the bread. The only thing that I wasn’t jazzed about was that the bottom of my bread was a little soggy, but whatevs! The rest of the bread was crunchy in a good way! This place tries to be a sit down restaurant, but I’m not really sure why that’s not working for them. They have several tables, which can seat four people, but it just seems daunting/sterile/uninviting to eat the food there. Maybe it’s the lighting?
Burry B.
Place rating: 1 San Jose, CA
this is the oddest crêpe i have ever had. its square, overly thick crêpe, and not hot through and through. salad that came with it not very appetising visually. i just tried it, and the ginger sweet dressing thing is not good. price a bit more than the usual crêpe shop as well. $ 7.75 for a crêpe i’m only finishing because i’m literally starving. you know what they say, food tastes better when you’re starving and this does not. the chicken seems many many days old and was actually microwave reheated before going into my crêpe. also, the vietnamese sandwiches aren’t real traditional vietnamese sandwiches. they are translations that don’t hit the mark if you’re looking for a true traditional vietnamese sandwich. the soups on the menu also look the not so good side of instant. they have all the makings of producing good food, but just do not.
Robert K.
Place rating: 4 Columbia, SC
I, too, love this place. The Vietnamese sandwiches are good, especially the meatball sandwich. And the side salad is fresh and well dressed. The best part is the relatively cheap price. I usually eat here once a week, and have never been disappointed.
E. Y. G.
Place rating: 3 Pinole, CA
Small little place near my job. I was jus happy to find a place that sells Tapioca drinks. I am crazy about those little balls. Ordered the Taro/coconut drink and a Nutella crêpe. Delish!!! Take out is perfect. I would feel too awkward sitting in there.
Hilda Z.
Place rating: 1 Oakland, CA
Wow, are bubble teas really worth $ 4? I’ve seen this place on Piedmont for a while and was curious about the food and drinks. Okay, so I only tried a tapioca bubble drink(which I often crave), and I was kind of disappointed. It was not made properly. The first 4 sips were fine, then I got a lot of powder. Yeah powder. I mixed it around but it kind of took a while to dissolve. Not good. Sorry, I feel like I’m being picky but I’ve had tons of bubble tea drinks and that one was just – blah.
Trish s.
Place rating: 5 Naples, FL
I always go here… the people are great and the smoothies are always good… they even have a nice little patio in the back to sit down and enjoy your smoothie.
Deb N.
Place rating: 3 Palo Alto, CA
Ordered the avocado and Cheddar crêpe and a pineapple and OJ juice. Came out to $ 7.50. The crêpe was good size but so so, there was a sweet sauce in the crêpe that was a little odd, like mayo and ketchup. Then ordered the nutella crêpe, since I was splitting it with a friend, they made two small ones, that was really nice of them. $ 3
Chelsey B.
Place rating: 1 Pittsburgh, PA
I really wanted to like this place. I really did. Nonetheless, I was extremely disappointed with the crêpe I had. I ordered an avocado, cheese and tomato crêpe thinking it was a safe choice. Boy was I wrong! I am not a big fan of honey mustard and the whole crêpe was drenched in it(the menu didn’t mention honey mustard on crepes at all). The avocados were brown and mushy also. The only good thing about my experience is that the crêpe was about $ 4. I threw most of it away, but at least it didn’t set me back much.
Mary R.
Place rating: 4 Berkeley, CA
This isn’t a sit down restaurant but there are a few tables and on a quiet Wednesday evening, we came here to try it for the first time. The woman was super nice and brought us our crêpe, drinks and utensils. She didn’t just scream out a number and expect us to pick it up. The chicken avocado crêpe came with honey mustard — YUMmy! The mango juice was a little too tart for my liking and the Vietnamese sandwiches are pricey($ 4+), but the smoothie was thick and beats the chains(JJ)! I’d come back to support this small family business.
David J.
Place rating: 1 Oakland, CA
I can’t believe this place has four stars. I have tried it twice and both times I was disappointed. Their crepes are rediculously bad, their smoothies are no big deal, and their service is bad also. Green Apple should change its name to Bad Apple.
Angela C.
Place rating: 4 Berkeley, CA
One thing: TAPIOCA! they make it there fresh! My favorite one lately is the green tea w/soymilk and they actually brew some fresh green tea and add it to the soy mik and tapioca! yum! Today i got a carrot-apple-celery-ginger juice, YUM! only place I know on Piedmont that serves fresh juices/smoothies. I haven’t tried the crepes, but they look decent. I hope they stay in business, It seems too slow most of the time! give them a try!!!(especially after coming from piedmont springs next door!) For what I get there, i give them a 4 stars. Note to the owners: PLEASE take those gross looking pictures of your sandwiches down, they are hurting your business more then helping. and who wants a big stick of celery INSIDE there sandwich?
Kat C.
Place rating: 5 Oakland, CA
i LOVE this place, and their smoothies. this is my favorite treat in Piedmont. i can’t typically frequent smoothie places because they use dairy in all the smoothies(which i’m allergic to), or they jack up the sugar content with added fruit juice(which is SO bad for you and makes me feel like crap). but joy of joys, Green Apple has SOYMILK and lets me CUSTOMBUILD my smoothie! no cow milk or sherbert or ice cream in my smoothie! no super-sugary fruit juice! just what i want, no more, no less. the couple that run it are very sweet, unassuming, and kind. they usually have their baby at the store with them, who is super cute! the husband always remembers what i want, even when i haven’t been in for a while. also, unlike a previous reviewer stated, they definitely take credit cards.
Erica H.
Place rating: 4 Sweden, ME
I agree with the review about the wheatgrass at this place. The one I tried was with the ginger and apple juice. It was invigorating in an unexpected way; kind of like getting pinched in the behind when you have your back turned. I talked with the guy who manages the place and he seemed to be very open to making gluten-free crepes. He said they break easily. I said I’d rather have a broken crêpe than a wheat crêpe. I didn’t take him up on it though as I had other plans for a meal. So they get stars from me for their refreshing refreshments and their willingness to be accomodating. I didn’t try the crepes so I don’t know about those. They have an interesting crêpe selection.
Stacey B.
Place rating: 1 Oakland, CA
This place appears to be run by a couple of aliens who don’t have the normal human senses of seeing, hearing, and tasting, nor can they speak or notice anything. I decided I wanted to try the new crêpe place for brunch and got my boyfriend and his friend to go along. Friend said, that new place, oh, it’s not good, I tried it, not good at all. Hmm. I should have listened, but I had decided it was where I must go. The man and woman who work there and presumably run the place were not friendly or nice. The guy was at the register when I went to order. I asked for my vegetable crêpe and small smoothie, then said«AND» to him and turned and said, «honey what are you getting?» to my boyfriend, with my wallet out. Before he could give his order, mine had been totaled, separately. So I paid mine and then just waited to pay his, but I think it was completely obvious that I was intending to pay for both. He ordered a crêpe and large smoothie, which I paid for. Our total was $ 22.65 combined, which seems slightly high, especially at a place that only takes cash. Our friend got a crêpe and smoothie too. Except for saying my total, the guy at the register didn’t seem capable of speaking — no hello, or welcome, or what can I get for you, or anything at all, just standing there staring at us and then saying a number. The tables are all for two people, but we were able to move two together. Since we were the only people there(yeah, at 12:30 on a Saturday in a busy shopping district), it wasn’t a problem. First came our smoothies. I had ordered a small but received a large, my boyfriend vice versa. We didn’t bother to complain and I just shared some of my large with him. I got a Papaya Tonic, and he got a Coconut Zinger. Both tasted bad. The flavors weren’t blended, there were chunks of ice in it that weren’t blended in, it was not good. I love smoothies, I’ve had them at many different places, this was probably the worst. The menu at this place is very simple. Crepes and smoothies. Each crêpe comes with salad. Next the woman brought our salads. Three small bowls with lettuce, tomato, corn, and this weird gloppy yellow dressing. I asked what kind of dressing it was, and she mumbled that she didn’t know. If you work at a restaurant that serves only three things — crepes, one kind of salad, and smoothies — how can you not know what the dressing is? Then she came back with one crêpe and mumbled something. Apparently she mumbled what the dressing was AND which crêpe it was, but it was unintelligible to us. On her third try, she was able to communicate that it was the mushroom ham crêpe for our friend. We never did figure out the dressing. It would make sense for a server to look at a person when speaking and to use a volume that’s audible in an empty restaurant, but whatever. Then the other two crepes came out. Mine came with a side of a bright orange dressing in a little plastic cup. There was a huge black hair across it. It was noticeable the second it was put on the table. How could she not have seen it? Black on bright orange? She either didn’t notice(really weird) or didn’t care(not good). My crêpe was bad. The vegetables probably would have been good, but all I could taste was pepper, way too much pepper. I ate about a third of it and couldn’t continue. We all agreed that this place is just bad. Bad food, bad service, gross obvious hair on the food. We won’t be back.