Here's what it's like to eat at Cava, the salad chain plotting rapid expansion across the US

Sat, 07/27/2024 - 06:28

The interior of the Cava restaurant in Chicago, showing the counter which is full of ingredients as well as a line of customers waiting to order — Cava sells customizable salad and grain bowls.
Grace Dean/Business Insider

Cava is plotting an ambitious expansion across the US. It opened 72 restaurants last year.
I visited the Mediterranean salad chain's first Chicago restaurant and had to wait for an hour to order.
But the ingredients were very flavorful and there was a lot of choice. Here's what my experience was like.

Cava, the Mediterranean build-your-own-bowl chain, is plotting an ambitious expansion across the US.

It opened 72 net new restaurants in fiscal 2023 and expects to open at least 50 in 2024. About 90% of new openings will be in suburban areas, away from the traditional office hubs you might associate with chains like Cava that sell quick, healthy lunches ideal for desk-workers.