After the MIT-incubated concept Spyce set up shop in Harvard Square in 2021, I wrote about how an AI bot made my lunch. That automated food-assembly-line processor was then sold to Sweetgreen, and last year, the tech was acquired by the Wonder Group, a culinary empire that has been morphing and growing since its inception in 2018.
The Wonder dining experience is strange and unique. Although Wonder has opened in Belmont, Burlington, and Watertown, Kendall Square is the company’s first foray into the city. (Wonder is well-ensconced in New York City, and has approximately 130 Wonder storefronts across the Northeast.) The concept behind Wonder: a single point of entry to order a variety of gourmet dishes from renowned chefs and eateries around the country with the same quality at every location. It also allows you to get —in one order— chicken nuggets for the kids, BBQ ribs with a side of succotash and a kale and avocado poke bowl with seared ahi for the adults. The menu lists 20-plus vendors, including Bobby Flay Steak, Di Fara Pizza, Tejas Barbecue and Streetbird chicken, with culinary categories including breakfast, BBQ, Korean, salads, chicken, and more.
You order Wonder digitally, and it’s a tad overwhelming — the online portal (app or website) also allows you to order from dozens of other local eateries (Dumpling Daughter and Brookline Lunch, for example). Those meals aren’t part of your Wonder order. Wonder has a GrubHub integration, and you’re ordering for either pickup or GrubHub delivery. (The holding company that includes Wonder also owns Blue Apron and GrubHub.)
The Kendall Wonder storefront is a lean, clean waiting room with about a dozen seats. But this is a grab-and-go place, since hardly anyone — just me — ate there. If you haven’t ordered ahead, Wonder has kiosks on site — just as busy, festive, and confusing as the web portal. I had done my research and knew I wanted the Tejas Texas turkey sandwich and a carrot soufflé. The two gentlemen ahead of me took one look at the menu and became instantly confounded, as if caught in a Pokémon video with too many flashing lights. They ordered, with help, but still seemed perplexed.
At Wonder, all these recipes are the same, and the source components are shipped from HQ — central distribution centers not unlike McDonald’s or Dunkin’ — but gourmet. The Spyce bot makes your meal in the partially open back kitchen. But rest assured that in final prep and food wrapping, humans are involved.
So how was it? Eating alone in that small space, a bustling hive, was a little odd. Given the locale, I would say Wonder Kendall is a concept designed for taking a meal back to your office or picking it up on the way home — although the serene MIT Open Space is a perfect place to eat during these fine-weathered days. This was some of the best packaged and bagged to-go food I have received since Daily Provisions opened in Harvard Square. The hot turkey sando came twice-wrapped: foil to keep it warm and plastic to keep the juices and BBQ sauce from escaping, while the soufflé was well-housed in a small recyclable box.
The meal was impressive: the thin- sliced, brined turkey breast was moist and flavorful with smokey accents, and the bacon, lean, thick and pleasantly pliable (not crisp). With the caramelized onions, tangy barbecue sauce and white cheddar packed in thick, toasted sourdough, it was a sweet and smoky symphony. It’s addictive and the soufflé, sublime — is it a dessert, a side dish, or a meal? It doesn’t matter. You should employ any excuse to have this sweet and savory gem — though it’s often sold out.
And yes, I am curious how a Bobby Flay steak filet would come out — tacos, too — but given the quality of my order, I’m not too worried. Come for the novelty, return for the quality.
Wonder
319 Main Street, Cambridge
$$ (out of $$$$)
Have a favorite dish or dine out spot that we’ve not covered and you think we should? Email Tom at tmeek@cambridgeday.com.
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