The dust has not yet settled on Salad and Go’s surprise bankruptcy and the abrupt closure of all of its locations, but a fellow Arizona-based restaurant brand is not wasting any time.
Dutch Bros Coffee is moving to buy 51 locations from Salad and Go, which collapsed this week after the ongoing cyclosporiasis outbreak proved to be the final blow for the long-suffering salad chain.
Court documents filed in federal bankruptcy court on Tuesday identified an LLC linked to Dutch Bros as the buyer of dozens of Salad and Go restaurants in Arizona and Nevada, along with additional leases for former Salad and Go locations in Texas and Oklahoma.
Dutch Bros announced the sale on Wednesday, in addition to its second-quarter earnings, after the closing bell. Shares of the coffee chain (NYSE: BROS) fell more than 13% in after-hours trading.
Salad and Go, founded in Arizona but now headquartered in Texas, had already gone through multiple waves of closures over the last year. Its Chapter 11 filings show that the company suffered financially after an aggressive 2021 expansion had left it over-leveraged.
The salad chain announced this week that it would close all of its remaining locations, with today as its final day of operations.
Limited options in search for a buyer
In shopping for a buyer for its restaurants, Salad and Go explained in court documents that it had very limited options. For instance, its restaurants are drive-through-focused and have no indoor seating for dining, a format that Salad and Go shares with Dutch Bros.
“With these criteria in mind, the Debtors determined that strategic coffee or smoothie operators were prime candidates for a transaction,” lawyers for Salad and Go said in the filing. “These operations are unlikely to need a kitchen, hood, grill, or fry area.”
It also sought a buyer that was already scaled. Dutch Bros fits that bill as well, with some 1,225 locations up and running. And it’s clearly still looking to grow.
Finally, Dutch Bros also happens to be located in Arizona, after moving its headquarters from Oregon to Tempe last year.
Salad and Go said it met with Dutch Bros and another potential buyer—described in the filing as a Dutch Bros competitor—last week. Dutch Bros won the bid and agreed to pay $105 million for the locations.
The sale is pending court approval. Dutch Bros said it expects to convert the stores next year.
Representatives for Dutch Bros and Salad and Go did not respond to requests for comment.
Which locations are Dutch Bros buying?
A court filing lists 51 Salad and Go locations in Arizona and Nevada whose leases Dutch Bros will take over. Most are in the Phoenix and Las Vegas areas. The addresses are as follows:
Arizona
910 S. Cooper Rd., Gilbert, AZ 85233
3299 E. Williams Field Rd., Gilbert, AZ 85295
5259 E. Brown Rd., Mesa, AZ 85205
9875 W. Lower Buckeye Rd., Tolleson, AZ 85353
2006 W. Pinnacle Peak Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85027
1040 W. Southern Ave., Mesa, AZ 85210
17137 N. Litchfield Rd. Surprise, AZ 85374
719 E. Bethany Home Rd. Phoenix, AZ 85014
5985 W. Chandler Blvd., Chandler, AZ 85226
251 S. Power Rd., Mesa, AZ 85206
2323 N. Scottsdale Rd., Scottsdale, AZ 85257
21429 S. Ellsworth Rd., Queen Creek, AZ 85142
21060 N. Cave Creek Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85024
12601 N. Paradise Village Pkwy., Phoenix, AZ 85032
710 E. Dunlap Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85020
1902 W. Northern Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85021
3233 E. Indian School Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85018
909 E. Broadway Rd., Tempe, AZ 85282
3425 W. Greenway Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85053
7800 S. Priest Dr., Tempe, AZ 85284
1804 E. Elliot Rd., Tempe, AZ 85284
777 W. Indian School Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85013
3333 W. Peoria Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85029
2020 W. Chandler Blvd., Chandler, AZ 85224
3229 S. 48th St., Tempe, AZ 85282
2814 S. Signal Butte Rd., Mesa, AZ 85212
5501 E. Speedway Blvd., Tucson, AZ 85712
8268 W. Deer Valley Rd., Peoria, AZ 85382
10031 E. Southern Ave., Mesa, AZ 85209
1322 E. Florence Blvd., Casa Grande, AZ 85122
13838 N. Scottsdale Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85254
4716 E. Ray Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85044
17155 N. Tatum Blvd., Phoenix, AZ 85032
1585 N. Dysart Rd., Avondale, AZ 85392
1754 W. Hunt Hwy., San Tan Valley, AZ 85143
2301 N. 44th St., Phoenix, AZ 85008
1302 S. Kolb Rd., Tucson, AZ 85710
3505 W. Baseline Rd., Laveen, AZ 85339
9121 W. Glendale Ave., Glendale, AZ 85305
2080 W. River Rd., Tucson, AZ 85704
7480 S. Power Rd., Gilbert, AZ 85297
15437 W. Cactus Rd., Surprise, AZ 85379
7980 E. Speedway Blvd., Tucson, AZ 85710
4965 S. Arizona Ave., Chandler, AZ 85248
7480 S. 59th Ave., Laveen, AZ 85339
7560 W. Lower Buckeye Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85043
1956 S. Country Club Dr., Mesa, AZ 85210
Nevada
2323 S. Decatur Blvd., Las Vegas, NV 89102
5325 S. Fort Apache Rd., Las Vegas, NV 89148
3385 S. Durango Dr., Las Vegas, NV 89117
1180 E. Silverado Ranch Blvd., Las Vegas, NV 89123
Additionally, the filing shows 14 addresses in Texas and Oklahoma that correspond to the leases that Dutch Bros will acquire. Those addresses are as follows:
Texas
3064 N. Goliad St., Rockwall, TX 75087
1460 S. Ferguson Pkwy., Anna, TX 75409
938 N. Cooper St., Arlington, TX 76011
1045 W. Warrior Trail, Grand Prairie, TX 75052
355 Lebanon Rd., Frisco, TX 75036
4751 S. Custer Rd., McKinney, TX 75070
4601 Diaz Ave., Fort Worth, TX 76107
3201 Lakeview Pkwy., Rowlett, TX 75088
1400 Coit Rd., Plano TX 75075
10002 Marsh Ln., Dallas, TX 75229
21021 Highland Knolls Dr., Katy, TX 77450
18830 Noble Seven Ln., Sugar Land, TX 77479
Oklahoma
1209 E. Kenosha St., Broken Arrow, OK 74012
11360 E. 96th St. N., Owasso, OK 74055
Dutch Bros has been among the fastest-growing restaurant chains in the country. While it has hundreds of franchised locations, most of its shops are company-owned. Last year alone, it opened 141 company-owned locations in 19 states.
This story is developing.
