A new salad concept is plotting growth out of Tampa with an eye-catching design that promises to up the ante on the drive-thru experience.
The first Greenlane opened in Tampa, Fla., in June and now has second and third units under construction, with the goal of reaching up to four this year. The concept has no dine-in service—all sales are through the drive thru, a walkup pickup window and delivery.
But this is no pre-packaged salad.
Greenlane is being developed by venture capitalist Chris Burch, whose Burch Creative Capital has invested in a wide portfolio of retail (Voss Water), fashion (Tory Burch, Staud, Baublebar) and hotel brands (Nihi Sumba), but this is his first restaurant concept.
To create something new in a space that Burch and co-founder Erica Spector Wishnow (a Dunkin’ and Taco Bell franchise operator) felt was wide open, they partnered with consultants and brand builders The Culinary Edge, which has worked with national brands that include Starbucks, First Watch and Buffalo Wild Wings, and is known as the brains behind the growing chicken concept Starbird.
Their goal was to create a drive-thru-focused concept with the quality level of a Sweetgreen or Just Salad, for example, but at a QSR price point that would appeal to families on the go.
Greenlane offers made-to-order salads and wraps for prices under $10.
Salads can be wrapped in a tortilla to make them easier to eat while driving. |Photos courtesy of Greenlane.
There’s a Golden Greek, for example, with chicken or tofu, grape tomatoes, cucumbers, feta, kalamata olives, red onion and pepperoncini on a bed of lettuce with red wine vinaigrette. The Mexicali has chicken or tofu, charred corn and poblano peppers, black beans, red cabbage, grape tomatoes, cilantro and tortilla strips on romaine, with a chipotle ranch dressing.
Any salad can be made as a wrap to make it easier to eat while driving.
Salad/wraps can also be built to order through the app, and the menu also includes cookies, pretzel breads (sweet and savory) and drinks, like slushies, speciality iced teas, and kid-friendly bento-box-style “Bunny Boxes” that will also no doubt also appeal to adults as a quick snack.
The only oil used in dressings is olive oil. Steak and shrimp are alternate proteins, and tuna and salmon may also make visits as LTOs, Wishnow said.
The concept is positioned somewhere between the 115-unit, Phoenix-based Salad and Go, a drive-thru-only chain where salads are around $6, to the $12-$15 per bowl Sweetgreen, which is only just starting to grow drive-thru “Sweetlane” units.
But Wishnow said Greenlane is aiming more to compete in the QSR space against drive-thru-heavy brands, like Burger King or Chick-fil-A.
At Greenlane, for example, salads can be made and out the drive-thru window in about 2 minutes and 40 seconds, she said.
“It’s a lot about training and having a streamlined menu,” she said. “We’re very careful about what we’re putting on the menu.”
Salad and Go has kept prices down in part by using a commissary model, with salads assembled fresh in units but ingredients prepped in central kitchens. That’s something Greenlane may consider down the road, Burch said.
The dinner daypart can be a challenge for salad concepts, prompting some chains, like Sweetgreen, to offer non-salad options to build later day sales. But Burch said so far Greenlane has done well during the dinner daypart—perhaps in part because it’s in Florida.
Burch, whose businesses tend toward affordable luxury, said he’s also looking to build a bit of style and panache into the Greenlane brand.
“When you really think about it, the average woman, the average man, they want to have something that’s healthy and delicious and reasonable,” said Burch. “We have competition that is much more expensive. We’d like to think that we’re offering equally quality salads with really fair pricing and a great store design. So when people drive thru, they feel good, and they feel happy and they feel innovative and disruptive. And that’s really working.”
@gogreenlane Green means GO🚦because Greenlane is officially open in Tampa! 🎉 Grab delicious and nutritious salads through our confenient drive-thru… at fast food prices! 🤯 #Tampa#TampaBay#TampaFL#TampaRestaurant#TampaRestaurants#FastFood#TampaEats#TampaFoodie#TampaFoodies#Salads#HealthyEating#DriveThru#GoGreenlane#ThingsToDoInTampa#TampaLife#UniversityofTampa#MacDill♬ Lazy Sunday - BCD Studio
In addition to menu development, The Culinary Edge was tasked with designing a concept that offered “an experience that would make you feel different,” said Graham Humphreys, CEO of the San Francisco-based consulting group.
Working with architectural partner Zebra, the 1,200-square-foot Greenlane has a lenticular design—like those images that change as you look at it from different angles, he noted.
From one side, the buildings appear to be green, but as you drive around the observer sees the color and graphics seem to change. There are playful bunny statues (it’s rabbit food) that Burch said will likely play a bigger role in design and branding as the concept grows.
“I love animals. They make people happy,” said Burch.
The exterior of the buildings is meant to offer a “second wall of emotion,” he added. “We want to be noticed when people are on the highway. We don’t want it to be just a bland building.”
For now, there are no plans to franchise. Burch is planning contiguous growth, expanding initially in Florida as the brand builds awareness. He is looking for potential celebrity collaborations. The brand has already gotten a mention on TMZ with a visit by NFL player Rob Gronkowski.
It has only been about six months, so all the founders can say on sales so far is that they have been consistently growing week-over-week. But the fact that the concept will likely go from one to four by the end of 2024 indicates there are high expectations.
Humphreys said the goal was to create a game changer.
“We were seeking to provide a salad which was … qualitatively going to be something different than anything you could get in a drive thru and, certainly, in the QSR segment, or even the elevated QSR segment,” he said. “We believe that was possible and that there was a gap in the market to provide that, and that’s what we we’re shooting for.”