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What to eat

What should I order at Sweetgreen?

A salad shop is not automatically a light lunch. At Sweetgreen the grain base, the dressing and the crunchy toppings are what decide the bowl.

Build on greens rather than a grain base, add two proteins, and ask for the dressing on the side. Sweetgreen's ingredients are genuinely good, which is exactly why it is easy to build a bowl that is much larger than it looks — a warm grain base, a creamy dressing and three crunchy toppings add up quickly on top of vegetables that felt like the whole point.

Best choices

  1. 1Greens base rather than a grain or half-grain baseThe base is the largest single decision in the bowl and the one made first, before you are paying attention
  2. 2Two proteins — chicken plus tofu, or chicken plus an eggProtein is what makes a salad a meal rather than a side; one portion often is not enough to do it
  3. 3Dressing on the sideThe creamy dressings are where a green bowl quietly changes character; on the side you use maybe half
  4. 4Roasted vegetables over crunchy toppingsRoasted sweet potato or broccoli adds substance; tortilla chips and crispy onions add mostly texture
  5. 5Avocado as the one rich addition, chosen deliberatelyIt is worth having — just as the thing you picked rather than one of four

Watch out for

  • The grain base is generous and is added before anything else, which makes it the easiest thing to not notice
  • Creamy dressings poured in-bowl coat everything; the same amount on the side goes much further
  • Crunchy toppings — tortilla strips, crispy onions, spiced nuts — are the ones that stack without registering
  • Parmesan crisps and cheese are per-scoop additions and they are not small
  • A 'warm bowl' is usually grain-based by default; ask for greens if that is what you wanted

Also asked

Is Sweetgreen actually healthy?

The ingredients are, and that is not the question — the question is what you built. A greens base with chicken, roasted vegetables and dressing on the side is a straightforward, substantial salad. The same shop will happily build you a warm grain base with a creamy dressing poured through it, cheese, avocado and two crunchy toppings, and that is a much bigger bowl that still looks like a salad. Nothing there is bad; the build is the whole decision.

How do I get more protein at Sweetgreen?

Order two proteins. A single portion of chicken on a large bowl of leaves is often not enough to make it a meal, which is why people leave hungry and reach for something at four o'clock. Chicken plus tofu, or chicken plus a jammy egg, changes the bowl into lunch. It costs more, and it is the difference between a salad and a meal.

Should I get the grain base or greens?

Greens, if you want the bowl to be what it appears to be. The grain base is added first and in quantity, so it is the largest component before you have chosen a single topping. A half-and-half base is a reasonable middle if you want some warmth and substance without the full portion.

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