Souplantation
Encyclopedia
Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes are the two names given the same buffet
style chain of United States
restaurant
s. The first Souplantation opened in San Diego in 1978, and the company was incorporated
as Garden Fresh Corp., in 1983. Souplantation locations were mostly in Southern California
and then expanded to Florida
and other areas under the name Sweet Tomatoes.
The restaurants include an extensive salad bar
, several soup
s, pasta
s, breads, pizza
and muffins. There are also various fountain drink
s, a fruit and dessert counter and ice cream machine. All restaurants operate on an all-you-can-eat basis.
The company has expanded across the west and southwest
and has locations in several Southeast
states including 19 restaurants in Florida. They also have stores in Illinois
, Missouri
, Kansas
, Colorado
, and Utah
.
the company had 110 restaurants in 15 states and claims to have served "265 million guests since 1978." The company also employs a "Kitchen Cabinet" of mother
s to advise it on product development and customer service
. The chain has received several awards.
s and soup
s, offering a large salad bar, homestyle soups, hot pastas, as well as breads, muffins and pizza baked on premises. They are open for both lunch and dinner.
The salad bar includes a wide variety of vegetables, fruits, nuts, croutons and other salad condiments, as well as a few prepared featured salads, which change monthly. Other sections include up to 8 soup selections, a small bakery offering muffins and pizza foccacia, a pasta section with a few different pasta and sauces and a dessert section offering fruit, puddings, and soft-serve ice cream.
Fountain beverages are self-serve and purchase of a fountain
soft drink
permits unlimited refills. As typical with buffet-style restaurants, customers are discouraged from taking home leftovers. Reduced prices are provided for children (those under two years old are admitted free) and seniors.
Although most stores are only open during the afternoon and evening, some Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes locations are also open Sunday mornings for breakfast
. The company's home city of San Diego is often a test market
for trying new ideas and innovations, and is home to Souplantation's corporate offices.
The company strongly promotes the freshness of its ingredients and the fact that everything on the menu (including soups, bakery items and pasta) is made from scratch every day at the store location. Salads are left out on the buffet for a maximum of 20 minutes, after which it is discarded and a new salad is made. The chain positions itself as a healthier alternative to fast food
and markets intensively to families with children.
Featured menu items are rotated monthly often along a theme, while the standard offering remain unchanged. Themes, named according to the type of food being served, include Asian, Greek, Italian and Customer Favorites.
Buffet
A buffet is a system of serving meals in which food is placed in a public area where the diners generally serve themselves. Buffets are offered at various places including hotels and many social events...
style chain of United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
restaurant
Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
s. The first Souplantation opened in San Diego in 1978, and the company was incorporated
Incorporation (business)
Incorporation is the forming of a new corporation . The corporation may be a business, a non-profit organisation, sports club, or a government of a new city or town...
as Garden Fresh Corp., in 1983. Souplantation locations were mostly in Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
and then expanded to Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
and other areas under the name Sweet Tomatoes.
The restaurants include an extensive salad bar
Salad bar
A salad bar is a buffet-style table or counter at a restaurant or food market on which salad components are provided for customers to assemble their own salad plates...
, several soup
Soup
Soup is a generally warm food that is made by combining ingredients such as meat and vegetables with stock, juice, water, or another liquid. Hot soups are additionally characterized by boiling solid ingredients in liquids in a pot until the flavors are extracted, forming a broth.Traditionally,...
s, pasta
Pasta
Pasta is a staple food of traditional Italian cuisine, now of worldwide renown. It takes the form of unleavened dough, made in Italy, mostly of durum wheat , water and sometimes eggs. Pasta comes in a variety of different shapes that serve for both decoration and to act as a carrier for the...
s, breads, pizza
Pizza
Pizza is an oven-baked, flat, disc-shaped bread typically topped with a tomato sauce, cheese and various toppings.Originating in Italy, from the Neapolitan cuisine, the dish has become popular in many parts of the world. An establishment that makes and sells pizzas is called a "pizzeria"...
and muffins. There are also various fountain drink
Fountain drink
A fountain drink is a soft drink, prepared locally from a supply of flavored sweetened syrup, carbon dioxide, and water, either manually, in a device called a soda fountain, or in a vending machine which is essentially an automated soda fountain that is operated using a soda gun...
s, a fruit and dessert counter and ice cream machine. All restaurants operate on an all-you-can-eat basis.
History
The first Souplantation restaurant opened on Mission Gorge Road in San Diego in 1978. It was the idea of Dennis Jay who was a bartender at the Bull & Bear in El Cajon. He had a dream and talked with two friends of his. One was an attorney and the other a bail bondsman. This restaurant and a second one were purchased in 1983 by Garden Fresh Restaurant Corp., founded by Michael Mack to operate the chain.The company has expanded across the west and southwest
Southwestern United States
The Southwestern United States is a region defined in different ways by different sources. Broad definitions include nearly a quarter of the United States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah...
and has locations in several Southeast
Southeastern United States
The Southeastern United States, colloquially referred to as the Southeast, is the eastern portion of the Southern United States. It is one of the most populous regions in the United States of America....
states including 19 restaurants in Florida. They also have stores in Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, and Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
.
the company had 110 restaurants in 15 states and claims to have served "265 million guests since 1978." The company also employs a "Kitchen Cabinet" of mother
Mother
A mother, mum, mom, momma, or mama is a woman who has raised a child, given birth to a child, and/or supplied the ovum that grew into a child. Because of the complexity and differences of a mother's social, cultural, and religious definitions and roles, it is challenging to specify a universally...
s to advise it on product development and customer service
Customer service
Customer service is the provision of service to customers before, during and after a purchase.According to Turban et al. , “Customer service is a series of activities designed to enhance the level of customer satisfaction – that is, the feeling that a product or service has met the customer...
. The chain has received several awards.
Format
Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes restaurants specialize in fresh saladSalad
Salad is any of a wide variety of dishes, including vegetable salads; salads of pasta, legumes, eggs, or grains; mixed salads incorporating meat, poultry, or seafood; and fruit salads. They may include a mixture of cold and hot, often including raw vegetables or fruits.Green salads include leaf...
s and soup
Soup
Soup is a generally warm food that is made by combining ingredients such as meat and vegetables with stock, juice, water, or another liquid. Hot soups are additionally characterized by boiling solid ingredients in liquids in a pot until the flavors are extracted, forming a broth.Traditionally,...
s, offering a large salad bar, homestyle soups, hot pastas, as well as breads, muffins and pizza baked on premises. They are open for both lunch and dinner.
The salad bar includes a wide variety of vegetables, fruits, nuts, croutons and other salad condiments, as well as a few prepared featured salads, which change monthly. Other sections include up to 8 soup selections, a small bakery offering muffins and pizza foccacia, a pasta section with a few different pasta and sauces and a dessert section offering fruit, puddings, and soft-serve ice cream.
Soda fountain
A soda fountain is a device that dispenses carbonated drinks. They can be found in restaurants, concession stands and other locations such as convenience stores...
soft drink
Soft drink
A soft drink is a non-alcoholic beverage that typically contains water , a sweetener, and a flavoring agent...
permits unlimited refills. As typical with buffet-style restaurants, customers are discouraged from taking home leftovers. Reduced prices are provided for children (those under two years old are admitted free) and seniors.
Although most stores are only open during the afternoon and evening, some Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes locations are also open Sunday mornings for breakfast
Breakfast
Breakfast is the first meal taken after rising from a night's sleep, most often eaten in the early morning before undertaking the day's work...
. The company's home city of San Diego is often a test market
Test market
A test market, in the field of business and marketing, is a geographic region or demographic group used to gauge the viability of a product or service in the mass market prior to a wide scale roll-out...
for trying new ideas and innovations, and is home to Souplantation's corporate offices.
The company strongly promotes the freshness of its ingredients and the fact that everything on the menu (including soups, bakery items and pasta) is made from scratch every day at the store location. Salads are left out on the buffet for a maximum of 20 minutes, after which it is discarded and a new salad is made. The chain positions itself as a healthier alternative to fast food
Fast food
Fast food is the term given to food that can be prepared and served very quickly. While any meal with low preparation time can be considered to be fast food, typically the term refers to food sold in a restaurant or store with preheated or precooked ingredients, and served to the customer in a...
and markets intensively to families with children.
Featured menu items are rotated monthly often along a theme, while the standard offering remain unchanged. Themes, named according to the type of food being served, include Asian, Greek, Italian and Customer Favorites.