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.