Retail·Food and drinkSweetgreen’s CEO is beefing up tein portion sizes because corporate America is demanding more from $16 sad desk saladsBy Nick LichtenbergBy Nick LichtenbergFortune Intelligence EditorNick LichtenbergFortune Intelligence EditorNick Lichtenberg is Fortune Intelligence editor and was formerly Fortune's executive editor of global news.SEE FULL BIO Sweetgreen's earnings haven't been so sweet lately.Mario Tama—Getty ImagesFaced with slumping lunch traffic from downtown offices and waning consumer interest in pricey salads, Sweetgreen CEO Jonathan Neman is leaning into America’s 2020s-era tein craze.
The fast-casual salad chain announced significant changes to its this summer—a response to shifting habits in corporate America, where employees are less ly to order dery salads for solitary desk lunches, and are demanding more value for their dollar.
Sweetgreen’s turnaround strategy includes 25% bigger portions of chicken and tofu, recipe upgrades for teins chicken and salmon, and member deals on salads as cheap as $13.
The decision s months of disappointing sales: Same-store sales have dropped by as much as 7.6% this summer, with a reported 10.1% plunge in customer traffic.
Sweetgreen also cut its annual outlook for the second quarter in a row as it struggles to keep budget-strained diners interested in salads averaging $16 a bowl.
Same-store sales are now expected to decline 4%-6% for 2025, a stark reversal from previous hopes for flat performance.
It was a bruising second quarter for the salad chain, and investors responded by sending Sweetgreen s plunging more than 25% to their lowest levels since 2023.
The stock has lost more than 70% of its value since January, and is trading well below its IPO price of $28.
“So I think it’s pretty obvious that the consumer is not in a great place overall,” Neman said Thursday in the company’s second-quarter earnings call.
Several factors have converged to force Sweetgreen’s hand. The biggest: Working habits have permanently changed since the pandemic.
Corporate lunch orders, once the backbone of Sweetgreen’s urban , have slumped as office occupancy fluctuates and hybrid schedules persist.
Affluent customers, long willing to shell out for digitally ordered salads, are now scrutinizing every expense as inflation pinches and economic uncertainty lingers.
districts, once Sweetgreen’s prime locations, are no longer packed with lunchtime regulars.
Instead, urban outlets now depend on local traffic and dinner orders—which require more substantial fare than a bowl of greens.
Sweetgreen’s own consumer surveys reveal guests want more tein—the gravitational center of a “meal” that feels worth its ticket price.
Slowing growth and mounting losses For the quarter June 29, Sweetgreen reported total revenue of $185.6 million, barely up from $184.6 million a year prior—an increase of just 0.5% and well below Wall Street expectations of $191.73 million.
Traffic sharply deteriorated even as Sweetgreen raised prices, with executives citing a “more cautious consumer environment” and headwinds in urban where office lunch traffic remains weak.
Restaurant-level fit margin dropped to 18.9% from 22.5% a year prior, squeezed by higher food costs (notably new tariffs on packaging) and rising labor costs.
The company posted a net loss of $23.2 million, widening from a $14.5 million loss in the prior year, and reported adjusted EBITDA of $6.4 million—down by nearly half from last year’s $12.4 million.
Neman cited drag from the revamped SG Rewards loyalty gram, which mpted fewer repeat visits; only one-third of Sweetgreen restaurants currently meet operational standards for speed and consistency.
The firm recently hired former Chipotle executive Jason Cochran as COO to address issues ranging from portioning to speed across both digital and in-store channels.
Sweetgreen is also closing two underperforming locations and recording a $5.3 million impairment charge.
Management cautiously optimistic, but confidence shaken Despite the rocky performance, Sweetgreen is forging ahead with expansion, opening nine new restaurants (including four Infinite Kitchens) in Q2, and plans for at least 40 new openings this year—many featuring automation and lower labor requirements.
Neman and CFO Mitch Reback stressed “actions taken are already showing positive results,” pointing to steady imvement in guest frequency from the revamped loyalty gram and enthusiasm for seasonal items.
Still, the street remains skeptical.
Sweetgreen’s stumbles have reinforced doubts whether premium salad chains can thrive in today’s value-conscious dining environment, especially as hybrid work saps the desk-lunch crowd and consumers for more affordable options.
back on the new tein portions has been swift: Guest satisfaction imved by 30% ing the July rollout of larger chicken and tofu servings.
In recent weeks, Sweetgreen has expanded its repertoire with “tein plates”—larger servings of steak, chicken, or tofu over grains, aimed at winning dinner traffic and meeting customer demand for heartier offerings.
When Sweetgreen first tested steak tein plates in Boston, the item accounted for nearly 20% of dinner orders—a sign that more substantial meals may be a key to capturing lost revenue from desk salads.
“We need to meet people where they are. For us, it’s healthier options that are still filling,” Neman said.
Steak is sourced from grass-fed, regenerative farms to keep Sweetgreen’s sustainability ethos intact. Even as Sweetgreen tweaks its , reviews and ratings remain mixed.
Some loyalists grumbled for months skimpy chicken portions.
Reddit threads catalog the question of whether portions are getting smaller for the $16 bowl, and company executives acknowledge that consistency remains a concern.
For this story, Fortune used generative AI to help with an initial draft. An editor verified the accuracy of the information before publishing.
Introducing the 2025 Fortune Global 500, the definitive ranking of the biggest companies in the world. Explore this year's list.