Bean Sprouts, Marbles' new cafe, opens Wednesday and is part of award-winning national concept

Marbles Kids Museum's cafe will reopen Wednesday, Feb. 12, as Bean Sprouts, part of a national chain of cafes that serves family-friendly destinations.

Posted 2:00 a.m. Feb 12, 2020 — Updated 2:00 a.m. Feb 12, 2020

Sarah Lindenfeld Hall

, Go Ask Mom editor

RALEIGH, N.C. — Marbles Kids Museum's cafe will reopen Wednesday, Feb. 12, as Bean Sprouts, part of a nationally recognized chain of cafes that serves family-friendly destinations.

The downtown Raleigh museum's cafe closed on Jan. 6 so the space, which is inside Marbles' IMAX building, could get a refresh.

Starting Wednesday, Feb. 12, hours will be 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., weekdays, and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., weekends, according to Marbles' website.

Bean Sprouts launched in 2007 by two women - Kelly Parthen and Shannon Seip - who wanted to build a "hip and healthy" place for families to eat, according to the website. In recent years, the award-winning concept has been named the Best Wellness Concept by Food Management Magazine and among the top 100 movers and shakers in the restaurant industry by Fast Casual Magazine. It won the Best Food Allergy Innovation Award from AllerTrain. And the National Restaurant Association honored it with the Best Kids' Meal in the U.S. award.

The concept is now in 16 zoos and children's museums around the country, including Discovery Cube in Los Angeles, the Pittsburgh Zoo and the Cincinnati Museum Center. It also published Bean Sprouts Kitchen, which offers family-friendly recipes.

"With playfulness being one of Bean Sprouts’ HIPP (health, innovation, positivity and playfulness) core values, Marbles Kids Museum is the perfect place to plant our café," Parthen tells me. "Our organizations have such similar personalities, and we are so excited to serve yummy, good-for-you food to Marbles’ visitors!"

The menu for the Bean Sprouts at Marbles definitely has a fun twist on the usual suspects you'd find on museum menus. The menu features an entire section called "Imaginibbles," including a Grilledzilla, a grilled cheese cut to look like a monster, and a Spaceadilla, which is a spaceship-themed chicken quesadilla.

Other menu items include hot and cold sandwiches, soups, salads, pizza, snacks and treats, espresso drinks and some breakfast options. Prices for entrees range from about $5.50 off the Imaginibbles menu to $10.25 for a chicken pesto sandwich.

Snacks and treats include fruit cups, veggie tots, ice cream sandwiches and frozen fruit pops and range from $2.75 to $3.50. There's also a couple of smoothie options and gluten-free choices. The cafes also adhere to strict ingredient guidelines and use sustainable foods and compostable packaging.

You can check out the menu on Marbles' website.

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