Immigrant Food at Union Market

My wife and I had brunch on the patio at the White House location today and it was fantastic! We had a mezze platter appetizer, Havana sandwich and shakshuka & arepas entrees, and tres leches for dessert. All were spectacular, as was the service! Highly recommended!

I thought this place was great! I got the West African Gumbo, and it was very flavorful. It was a good sized portion, and it did not take long for them to make. There were hints of spicey and sweet, and they all went so well together. Their menu is marked with gluten free and vegan options, which I appreciated. In addition, the staff for absolutely lovely. I gave a 4-star because it was a little pricey (but I feel like that’s pretty normal for the area), and they don’t have a structured ticket system for food. They just call out the food name, and it’s based off honor code that you’re grabbing the menu item you ordered. They don’t give you a ticket number or anything, so people’s orders may get easily confused.

Dietary restrictions: Vegan and gluten free options

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: West African Gumbo

Highly recommend! A wide variety of delicious food options. Friendly, accommodating, hospitable and inviting. Large portions for a reasonable price.

Ordered the immigrant poke bowl and it looks nothing like some of the pictures I see on Google. The bowl itself tasted pretty bad, I traveled quite far based on the reviews and going back hugely disappointed! The overwhelming taste was the bitter taste of some of the salad greens.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 1

Service: 2

The food, the service (especially), the atmosphere, the important mission--I recommend them all. I dined solo at the Ballston location last night and hope to return on future trips.

Great value for money

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

This is one of my favorite places in Union Market but I had one of the most frustrating experiences when I tried to eat here today. According to their hours, they close at 9pm. However tonight when I stood in line, they abruptly closed at 8:20 by wordlessly putting up an “closed” sign without making eye contact and then reopened the line without telling the people who had been waiting. We got back in line and were turned away for a second time. Waited for a total of 20 minutes to be turned away again 20 minutes before their 9pm close time. Instead of being honest or letting us know, they ignored us until we asked. Incredibly frustrating, ruined a great place.

Atmosphere: 1

Service: 1

I enjoy the food here, but I had a disappointing experience with one of the staff members. The person seemed uninterested in their work and didn’t communicate with me. When I asked if my order was on the counter, they appeared annoyed. This negatively impacted my visit.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 4

Service: 1

Extremely mid, very expensive

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 3

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Immigrant Poke Bowl

The falafel sandwich and the Cuban sandwich were everything that I could hope for. I wish I had been able to eat more.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Falafel Bocadillo

I got the Cuban Sandwich it was tasty and had a good amount of meat and bacon. I liked the tang of the sauce and the bread was the right amount of soft.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 5

Review of Immigrant Food at Union Market

I recently had an extremely unpleasant experience at Immigrant Food located in Union Market. This review is not about the food, but rather about the service, specifically the behavior of the person working at the counter.

I ordered a samosa and a couple of drinks through the self-order system. When I asked if my drinks were ready, the person at the counter rudely yelled at me, saying it was self-service and that I needed to open the fridge and take the drinks myself. While I understand the concept of self-service, the way he communicated was completely inappropriate and unprofessional.

He was the only person there, managing both cooking and serving, which might explain his frustration. However, it does not justify his rude and aggressive behavior towards customers. His attitude was so unpleasant that I felt compelled to take time out of my busy schedule to write this review.

In response to his yelling, I told him to put his head in the fridge to cool off. I don’t take too well to being yelled at, especially when it’s completely uncalled for.

It’s disappointing to encounter such hostility, especially when visiting a place that should be welcoming and enjoyable. I hope the management at Immigrant Food addresses this issue and ensures that all customers are treated with respect in the future.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

Recommended dishes: Indian Samosas

It's great for what it is...mostly lunchtime dishes like sandwiches and bowls. I wish some of their bowls were hot entrees...seems like some lost potential there. The cauliflower nuggets were good but too salty. The Viet bowl would be much better served hot over the noodles, minus a bucket of raw greens.

Food: 4

Sandwich was good but $18 for a sandwich is ridiculous

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 5

Service: 2

I ordered the Viet Vibes and there was no flavor on the plate. It was extremely dry, and I had to ask for two more portions of sauce. The chicken was tasteless. Very disappointing.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 2

Service: 4