Restaurant Review: Energy Kitchen (Hoboken, NJ and Montvale, NJ plus 11 locations in NY and 2 in FL)

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Restaurant Review: Energy Kitchen (Hoboken, NJ and Montvale, NJ plus 11 locations in NY and 2 in FL)

I spent quite a bit of time in NYC with some cousins visiting from Spain in December and noticed more than one location of a new quick serve restaurant: Energy Kitchen. I stopped in quickly at one point and found out that they had a gluten free menu. I never did get to try them during those two weeks but was pleased to find out that they had a Hoboken, NJ location.

Sirloin Burger on Canyon Bakehouse Gluten Free Bun
(brought my own) with Gluten Free Fries at Energy Kitchen

Last week I decided to look up the Hoboken address and finally give them a try. I was shocked to find that they had recently opened a location in Montvale (14-A Chestnut Ridge Road, Montvale, NJ 07645) about a mile from my office! Needless to say this has quickly become my new favorite lunch place! [There really aren’t many GF options near work so I bring my lunch almost every day – still it’s nice to have the option to go out!]

They have both a Gluten Free Menu and an allergen chart listing the 8 major allergens as well as which items are vegan in each store. Neither menu is online. Both lists appear to be a work in progress (for example, French fries are new and not listed yet), but this is better than most restaurants.

According to their website none of their menu items contains more than 500 calories and their menu is chock full of healthy options. (When was the last time McDonald’s offered you a black bean and mango salad? Brown Rice? Edamame? Yeah, me neither.) Energy Kitchen even bakes their French fries! (So no contaminated fry oil, they just spray the fries with Canola oil and bake them.) [They have snack bags of Pirate's Booty too, but sadly only dairy containing flavors.]

Overall, the food is good and good for you. The chain is centered around NYC for now, but they appear to be expanding out into the suburbs and also have a couple of locations in Florida. I hope they continue their expansion as it’s nice to have another fast food/quick serve option when out and about.