Americans are increasingly over the "slop bowl." Chipotle, Sweetgreen and Cava  once stars of the restaurant industry are struggling as diners tire of all those pick-your-own ingredients piled atop rice or greens. Instead, lunchgoers are choosing offerings with more texture, like sandwiches and tacos, that fill them up and often cost less.

New York

Recent discussions highlight a shift in consumer lunch preferences, with traditional 'slop bowls'—meals served in bowls with rice and assorted toppings—falling out of favor. Industry figures such as Steve Ells, co-founder of Chipotle, have responded by launching new concepts that focus exclusively on sandwiches and bread-based items, signaling a move away from bowl-based meals.

This trend is also reflected in the stock market, where companies like Sweetgreen and Cava, known for their bowl-centric menus, have seen their stock prices decline after previous strong performance. Factors such as pricing and changing cultural tastes are cited as reasons for the shift, with consumers now favoring more portable, handheld foods.

Are 'slop bowls' bad for business?

Should we talk about lunch? Yeah. You want to talk about those slop bowls? Yeah. Apparently, everybody's kind of over them, those bowls where you throw some rice and some other stuff, and then you throw everything on top of it. Well, apparently, people are over it. Consumers want something different. They want something you can hold in your hand like a good old sandwich. Yeah, Steve Ells, the co-founder of Chipotle and the burrito bowl that rocketed the chain to lunchtime fame, has moved on at a Manhattan location of his new concept counter service. There's a red neon sign. It depicts a lunch bowl with a slash through it. It's a bowl-free zone, guys. They say they love sandwiches and anything as long as it can go on bread. So long live the slop bowl, or is it the end of an era? Well, first, I'd just like to point out, counter service, I love this place, by the way. And I went there a few times before I even realized it was actually owned by the co-founder of Chipotle. But the problem with the bowls is they just became so prolific, right? I mean, everyone does this. I mean, it was unique at one point. But now it's like every bodega on the corner here is doing a slop bowl. Well, it's interesting to see how that's being expressed in the stock market as well, because you think about Sweetgreen, you think about Cava, they're both down year to date. But you compare that to 2024. I mean, these were the all-stars in the stock market, up triple digits. And it's interesting just how quickly the winds have changed on specifically these two. Do you think pricing had an issue? I have to imagine. I mean, you're paying $20 for a sad salad with not that much protein on it. That's how I feel about it. You could get the new ultra-high-protein Sweetgreen, one that they offer. Oh, right. Isn't it 100 grams of protein? What do they do? They put like a foam on top or something? It's a lot of chicken. I think three scoops of chicken, some broccoli. Some crushed up crickets, perhaps. Teeny dressing also. I don't think the crickets are included. Yeah, I don't know. But it gets at this idea of why trends change, like whether it's economic or whether it's just social and cultural. We've had our fill of bowls, and now we're on to sandwiches, maybe. I always loved a sandwich. And why sandwiches? You said handheld. Not like, I don't know, a patty, an empanada, a hoagie.

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