South Florida Sun Sentinel
Aug 30, 2021 5:43 PM
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Sweetgreen bills itself as a “seasonal restaurant with a mission of connecting people to real food.” The chain is expanding its SoFlo footprint into Palm Beach County with a restaurant on Rosemary Avenue in West Palm Beach. There are already three locations in Miami-Dade, including Wynwood, Coconut Grove and Coral Gables (with plans for a fourth in Sunset Harbor). (Sweetgreen / Courtesy)
Sweetgreen has set its sights on West Palm Beach. The national fast-casual chain that touts healthy seasonal warm bowls and salads plans on opening in Rosemary Square in November.
That’s after debuting in South Florida last year with three locations in Miami-Dade — Wynwood, Coral Gables and a pickup/delivery outpost in downtown Miami (with talk of another restaurant in Miami Beach’s Sunset Harbour being next).
“Between the beaches, the cycling, the golf courses, the outdoors activities, West Palm is a very active community,” explains Chris Carr, Sweetgreen’s COO. “Those communities need real food to fuel that [lifestyle]. We just felt it was a natural location for Sweetgreen.”
With 135 locations across the United States, Sweetgreen has been grabbing headlines in the L.A. Times, Washington Post and New York Times since it burst on the bowl scene in 2007 from the brains of Georgetown University buddies Nicolas Jammet, Nathaniel Ru and Jonathan Neman, who rode the wellness wave to enormous growth in just a few years.
In August the company was the talk of the tech world when it was announced that Sweetgreen was snapping up Spyce, a boutique chain of robotic restaurants started by Massachusetts Institute of Technology students.
In May Sweetgreen announced a collaboration with tennis great Naomi Osaka. Her eponymous bowl is made with warm quinoa, goat cheese, blackened chicken, baby spinach, cilantro, tortilla chips, raw carrots, avocado, lime cilantro jalapeño vinaigrette and Sweetgreen’s hot sauce for $13.50.
In the past the company has done partnerships with rapper Kendrick Lamar and celebrity chefs such as Nancy Silverton, Michael Solomonov, David Chang and Dan Barber.
The new West Palm Beach location will seat up to 60 people, 26 indoors and 34 outdoors on a patio. Sweetgreen in Rosemary Square will be at 701 S. Rosemary Ave., between the Tommy Bahama and the Casper stores.
The Tropical Starfruit Bowl from Sweetgreen, with roasted chicken, starfruit, tomatoes, shredded cabbage, basil, crispy rice, goat cheese, arugula, shredded kale and pesto vinaigrette. (Sweetgreen / Courtesy)
“We’re a mission-driven company, and our mission is pretty simple: To build a healthier community by connecting people to real food,” Carr says.
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He adds that the company will be looking to work with “small and mid-size sustainable growers…we’ll look for those opportunities [and] continue to partner with local farming.”
Sweetgreen’s rotation of seven seasonal warm bowls include combinations sold in Miami-Dade:
- The Shroomami, with roasted sesame tofu, warm portabella mix, raw beets, cucumbers, basil, spicy sunflower seeds, warm wild rice, shredded kale and miso sesame ginger dressing for $12.95.
- Citrus Shrimp + Avocado, with roasted shrimp, avocado, warm quinoa, baby spinach, cilantro, red onion, roasted sweet potato, shredded cabbage, tomato, tortilla chips and ceviche for $14.45.
- Chicken Tostado, with blackened chicken, tomatoes, raw carrots, cilantro, tortilla chips, goat cheese, warm quinoa, baby spinach, Sweetgreen’s hot sauce and lime cilantro jalapeño vinaigrette for $12.95.
Chris Carr is the chief operating officer of Sweetgreen, which plans on opening a restaurant in West Palm Beach in November of 2021. (Sweetgreen / Courtesy)
Carr says that in Miami they are selling a lot of Crispy Rice Bowls with blackened chicken, crispy rice, fresh vegetables with a spicy cashew dressing, as well as arugula, toasted almonds, raw carrots, cucumber, shredded cabbage, warm wild rice, cilantro and lime juice for $13.45.
The seven salads on menus in Miami-Dade’s Sweetgreen restaurants include options such as:
- Guacamole Greens, with avocado, roasted chicken, chopped romaine, spring mix, red onion, shredded cabbage, tomato, tortilla chips, lime squeeze and lime cilantro jalapeño vinaigrette for $12.95.
- Super Green Goddess, with shredded kale, baby spinach, raw beet, roasted sweet potato, shredded cabbage, spicy broccoli, toasted almonds, lentils, chickpeas, raw carrots and green goddess ranch dressing for $9.95.
- Buffalo Chicken Bowl, with blackened chicken, chopped romaine, shredded kale, cilantro, tomato, za’atar breadcrumbs, blue cheese, pickled carrots, pickled celery, Caesar dressing and Sweetgreen’s hot sauce for $13.95.
“Our South Florida customers are [responding] to the Kale Caesar salads, the Guacamole Greens, our classic products,” Carr says.
Customers can customize bowls as well. So far, the only side dish available in South Florida is the Cashew Pesto Sweet Potatoes for $3.95. The beverages include various kombuchas, teas, flavor seltzers and bottled waters that range from $2.50-$4.95.
