Oliver Plust grew up in Europe eating really good sandwiches and the corporate executive chef for Tender Greens wants to share the love. He’s doing that with three new Made-to-Crave Sandwiches at the 26 locations of the Los Angeles-based fast casual.
“I identified sandwiches as an important category that lacks presentation and creativity,” he said. “I start with very good sourdough bread and build the sandwiches with a combination of Italian and California ingredients.”
It’s all about the ingredients
Plust explains that it is not difficult to make a great sandwich, but it’s an under-appreciated category, especially in fast casual. “I come from a fine dining background and don’t use fast casual as a crutch to prevent us from taking our menu to the next level,” he said. “It’s always ‘ingredients first’ for us.”
Local sourcing is a priority, and luckily, California is a rich source. The sourdough bread comes from Larder Baking Co., founded by award-winning Los Angeles restaurateur, Suzanne Goin. It’s a crunchy, chewy loaf and each slice is grilled to order for every sandwich, then brushed with garlic herb oil.
The Di Stefano mozzarella and P. Balistereri salumi are also local, the latter made in Southern California by Pete Balistereri, who is also Tender Greens’ VP of Restaurants. Except for the preserved tomatoes, which are imported from Italy, most of the vegetables are grown locally, too.
The three Made-to-Crave sandwiches are Mediterranean-inspired—which is similar to California cuisine—and work well with the rest of the menu, said Plust. The lineup includes Salumi & Provolone, layered with salami, cotto, mortadella, provolone, kale & sunflower seed pesto, giardiniera and aioli on grilled sourdough; Chicken Pesto, featuring chicken breast, provolone, preserved tomatoes, arugula, the same pesto and aioli on grilled sourdough; and Di Stefano Mozz, layered with the mozzarella, preserved tomatoes, arugula, pesto and aioli on grilled sourdough.
Plust blends the pesto with sunflower seeds instead of nuts to make the sandwiches more accessible to people with nut allergies.
“It always starts with the product and we then worry about the bottom line at the end of the day,” he said. “These sandwiches share our vision with our customers and we can control food costs with other items.” The Made-to-Crave sandwiches sell for $10.65 to $10.95.
On the chopping block
Tender Greens had a ciabatta sandwich on the menu previously, but Plust didn’t like the way the bread performed. “It was time to move the ciabatta out and try a different bread,” he said. “The sourdough grills much better.”
It also travels better, he added—important now that 50% to 60% of orders are to-go.
Mozzarella and provolone were the only new SKUs brought in for the sandwiches; the Italian meats were already on hand for Tender Greens’ cheese board and snack box. “We always try to find multiple usage for ingredients across the menu,” said Plust.
The sourdough bread is cross-utilized in several applications, most notably on the popular avocado toast and a vegetarian open-face sandwich with carrot hummus, burrata and tomato.
The Holiday Steak Plate at Tender Greens is a steakhouse-style entree at a fast-casual price of $20./Photo courtesy of Tender Greens.
LTOs tell a story
Hot and hearty entrees are not new for Tender Greens, but the menu category was left untouched during Covid. Plust felt the timing was right to bring it back in November, and he created the Holiday Steak Plate as a limited-time offer.
“It pays homage to previous items and screams ‘dinner,’ bringing in new customers that wouldn’t have associated Tender Greens with steak or dinnertime,” he said.
The dish features grilled organic top sirloin with a red wine reduction sauce prepared like a classic demiglace. It’s sided with a sweet potato mash, roasted herb mushrooms and an iceberg wedge salad, sprinkled with local blue cheese and Nueske’s bacon. “It’s our holiday take on a steakhouse classic,” said Plust.
The Holiday Steak Plate is priced at $20. “Since it’s an LTO, we can sell it without making a ton of profit,” he said.
Going forward, Tender Greens is going to get into a more regular rhythm with LTOs, Plust said, introducing them every month or so. Next up: A new bowl arrives in January.