Honeygrow brings a tried-and-true concept for today and the future
The concept of fast, healthy food is not a new one. There have been plenty of variations on this theme in Centre County, and some of them are still thriving today. What makes Honeygrow, one of the newest additions to the fast-casual State College food scene, different from the others is the choice of options.
Founded in Philadelphia in 2012 by 2004 Penn State College of the Liberal Arts graduate Justin Rosenberg, Honeygrow has built a loyal following around a simple idea: fast-casual food made fresh, customized to order, and prepared with transparency. The brand specializes in stir-fries, salads, and its signature “honeybars” — build-your-own dessert bowls — served from open kitchens that put scratch cooking front and center. From self-order kiosks to a mobile app, technology has been part of the experience from day one.
People who often visit Sheetz locations will have no trouble navigating the self-order kiosks to get the exact meal that they’re craving. If you’re not familiar with these kinds of point-of-sale interfaces, it might stump you at first, but the menus are intuitive enough that you’ll quickly get the hang of it.
For our first foray into the noodle and saladscape on offer, we chose the seasonal miso garlic noodles, a bowl consisting of freshly made egg white noodles, roasted chicken, miso corn, caramelized onions, shaved parmesan, chives, and Umami Miso sauce. A fusion of eastern and western ingredients, it’s a mildly flavored meal that works as the perfect base for one of the sauces, like spicy garlic or sweet soy five spice. You can find these on the menu under ‘sides and sauces.’ We also tasted the Garlic Butter Shrimp noodles, again featuring freshly made egg white noodles, roasted shrimp, snow peas, scallions, mushrooms, toasted sesame seeds, chili crisps, and a garlic butter sauce. The chili crisps and garlic sauce add a ton of flavor to this perfectly spiced bowl. The mushrooms are lightly cooked al dente so that they retain their crunch and flavor. There’s definitely enough shrimp, and they are perfectly roasted.
On the salad side of things, there’s more shrimp to be had. The cold sesame noodle salad is an abundant mound of shredded green cabbage topped with chilled, freshly made egg white noodles, roasted shrimp, carrots, edamame, scallions, cucumbers, jalapeños, pineapple, crispy onions, and cilantro. It’s served with an Asian sesame ginger dressing. The fresh-tasting salad combines different textures, like the crunch of cabbage and crispy onions, with the smoothness of the noodles and edamame, while the pineapple adds a sweet note. We recommend getting extra dressing for this salad, at least one additional serving, to fully bring out the flavor.
For a filling yet gluten-free option, try the OG Cobb. It features chopped romaine lettuce, roasted chicken, hard-boiled egg, crispy bacon, apples, grape tomatoes, avocado, and crumbled blue cheese, and is served with white balsamic vinaigrette. Make sure to combine this salad well, as the combination of flavors here is definitely more than the sum of its parts.
As is increasingly the case with fast-casual dining these days, customization is an option on all stir-frys, salads, and dessert bowls. The menu is broken down into all of the ingredients, so you know exactly what’s in your bowl, which ingredients are vegetarian or gluten-free, and the cost of each item. This way, you can control how much you’re spending as well. Additionally, you can opt for half the sauce or dressing, one more serving, or two more servings, either tossed or on the side.
Speaking of sides, get the freshly baked focaccia bread to soak up any leftover dressing or sauce. It’s made in small batches using a handcrafted approach, with all-natural ingredients, no preservatives or additives.
You can round out your meal with a sweet treat, or come in just for one of these. They’re definitely not super-indulgent or decadently huge, but they are full of fresh fruits and other toppings. Need more sweetness? There are three types of honey to choose from. We tried the seasonal chocolate mousse with strawberries, blueberries, streusel crumble, and whipped cream. It’s light and indulgent at the same time. Add some milk chocolate chips for added chocolatey crunch.
The whipped cheesecake base is perfect for piling up strawberries, blueberries, and streusel crumble. You have the option to add fresh apples, roasted apples, and grapes at no additional cost.
If you’re a picky eater or like unusual combinations, this is a great place to order exactly what you want. To be honest, creating a stir-fry or salad from scratch might be fun but daunting given all the options, but starting with one of the house recipes and customizing it from there is easy enough.
Situated on the corner of Pugh Street and Beaver Avenue, this location seems to be the perfect spot in an area that has recently seen a lot of improvement and increased traffic. The modern, practical interior is perfectly suited to today’s fast-paced lifestyle without sacrificing quality. It’s accessible and inclusive. It’s telling that it took a while to find it.
State College general manager Patrick Joy describes the debut as years in the making. “It’s a huge deal,” Joy says. “They’ve been trying to open one up here since 2012. They just want to be able to support it and make sure it’s exactly what it has to be to support the community, the students, the locals, everyone. We’re just really glad that it’s open. I’m really happy that my team’s here. They all stuck with me through the whole process.” The restaurant’s staff is largely made up of students who were hired well before the opening date but stayed on through construction delays.
Honeygrow’s State College location is open daily from 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. and participates in the company’s rewards program, continuing the brand’s mission to deliver fresh, customizable meals with local roots and broad appeal.
Founder Justin Rosenberg said earlier this year, “Opening in State College is a full-circle moment for me. My time at Penn State was a major and influential part of my life, and I’m incredibly excited to bring our brand back to a place that means so much to me. We’re proud to serve this community with food that’s fresh, wholesome, and actually tastes really good.”
Honeygrow — a portmanteau of “honest eating” and “growing local” — might be your next go-to destination for fresh, healthy meals that can be personalized to fit any dietary preference. It’s certainly grown on us. T&G
Sherri Jordan and Luciano Sormani and the graphic designer/ad coordinator and creative director at Town&Gown.
