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Sweetgreen launches more chicken items as turnaround effort continues. Chicken Sesame Crunch Salad launched nationwide while Korean-inspired chicken is in test Bret Thorn, Senior Food Editor, Nation's Restaurant News March 26, 2026 Sweetgreen's Chicken Sesame Crunch salad Sweetgreen Sweetgreen has launched three new chicken options this week as the chain struggles to turn around sales. The Chicken Sesame Crunch Salad, launched systemwide, is inspired by the Chinese chicken salads of Southern California and features roasted chicken, Napa cabbage slaw, shredded kale, chopped romaine lettuce, shredded cabbage, raw carrots, crispy chow mein-style noodles and house-made "sesame crunch" made by tossing sesame seeds with maple and salt and baking it into a kind of brittle. It comes with a new orange juice-based citrus-sesame vinaigrette and is priced starting at $14.65. At select locations, excluding New York and Midwest markets and with limited availability in Los Angeles, are two new Korean barbecue items. The KBBQ Chicken Bowl features chicken in a Korean barbecue-style glaze with white rice, romaine lettuce, spicy broccoli, Napa cabbage slaw, cucumber kimchi and an apple kimchi sauce that was developed last year in a collaboration that Sweetgreen did with New York City fine-dining restaurant Cote Korean Steakhouse. It's priced at $15.95. The KBBQ Chicken Plate has the same chicken with a double portion of rice along with spicy broccoli, cucumber kimchi, Napa cabbage slaw and apple kimchi sauce for $15.45. "KBBQ Chicken taps into bold heat, rich sauce, and strong contrast in flavor," Sweetgreen chief commercial officer Zipporah Allen said in a statement. "By pairing our antibiotic-free roasted chicken with bright elements and a savory glaze, we're bringing a globally inspired flavor to the menu in a way that feels fresh and distinctly Sweetgreen." The new items come a month after Sweetgreen started testing chicken wraps precisely where the KBBQ items are not being offered - New York, the Midwest, and select Los Angeles. The wraps are priced starting at $10.95, and at an event launching the Chicken Sesame Crunch Salad in New York, co-founder Nic Jammet told Nation's Restaurant News that they were performing well. In January, Sweetgreen launched a "functional health" menu in collaboration with Mark Hyman, founder of the science-based health platform Function. This innovation all comes as the chain struggles to improve its value perception among declining sales. For the quarter ended Dec. 28, 2025, same-store sales were down by 11.5%. At that time it operated 281 restaurants systemwide. Senior Food Editor, Nation's Restaurant News Senior Food & Beverage Editor Bret Thorn is senior food & beverage editor of Nation's Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality. Hi is responsible for spotting and reporting on F&B trends across the country for both publications. He is the co-host of a podcast, Menu Talk with Pat and Bret, which features interviews with chefs, food & beverage authorities, and other experts in foodservice operations. From 2005 to 2008 he also wrote the Kitchen Dish column for The New York Sun, covering restaurant openings and chefs' career moves in New York City. He joined Nation's Restaurant News in 1999 after spending about five years in Thailand, where he wrote articles about business, banking and finance as well as restaurant reviews and food columns for Manager magazine and Asia Times newspaper. He joined Restaurant Hospitality's staff in 2016 while retaining his position at NRN. A magna cum laude graduate of Tufts University in Medford, Mass., with a bachelor's degree in history, and a member of Phi Beta Kappa, Thorn also studied traditional French cooking at Le Cordon Bleu Ecole de Cuisine in Paris. He spent his junior year of college in China, studying Chinese language, history and culture for a semester each at Nanjing University and Beijing University. While in Beijing, he also worked for ABC News during the protests and ultimate crackdown in and around Tiananmen Square in 1989. Thorn's monthly column in Nation's Restaurant News won the 2006 Jesse H. Neal National Business Journalism Award for best staff-written editorial or opinion column. He served as president of the International Foodservice Editorial Council, or IFEC, in 2005. Thorn wrote the entry on comfort food in the Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America, 2nd edition, published in 2012. He also wrote a history of plated desserts for the Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets, published in 2015. He was inducted into the Disciples d'Escoffier in 2014. A Colorado native originally from Denver, Thorn lives in Brooklyn, N.Y. Bret Thorn's areas of expertise include food and beverage trends in restaurants, French cuisine, the cuisines of Asia in general and Thailand in particular, restaurant operations and service trends. Bret Thorn's Experience: Nation's Restaurant News, food & beverage editor, 1999-Present New York Sun, columnist, 2005-2008 Asia Times, sub editor, 1995-1997 Manager magazine, senior editor and restaurant critic, 1992-1997 ABC News, runner, May-July, 1989 Education: Tufts University, BA in history, 1990 Peking University, studied Chinese language, spring, 1989 Nanjing University, studied Chinese language and culture, fall, 1988 Le Cordon Bleu Ecole de Cuisine, Cértificat Elémentaire, 1986 Subscribe Nation's Restaurant News Newsletters Content Spotlight

Sweetgreen brings sunshine to spring menu with the new Chicken Sesame Crunch. 03/24/2026 07:00 Sweetgreen is welcoming spring with the launch of Chicken Sesame Crunch, a bright, citrus-forward salad that reimagines a beloved California classic with bold flavor and craveable crunch. The new salad features antibiotic-free roasted chicken, napa cabbage slaw, organic shredded kale, chopped romaine, shredded cabbage, raw carrots, crispy noodles and sesame crunch, all tossed in a juicy citrus sesame vinaigrette. Packed with 35 grams of protein, the Chicken Sesame Crunch delivers vibrant flavor and satisfying crunch together in every bite. Chicken Sesame Crunch brings an exciting new flavor profile to Sweetgreen's salad lineup, offering a fresh take on one of the brand's signature menu formats. Its debut also kicks off Sweetgreen's "Spread the Sunshine" campaign, inspired by the salad's citrus-forward notes and the optimism of spring. Designed to bring warmth and positivity after a long, gray winter, the campaign celebrates the idea that Chicken Sesame Crunch is sunshine in a salad; a salad meant to bring a little brightness to the table. "Chicken Sesame Crunch brings together bold citrus flavor, satisfying crunch and real, thoughtfully sourced ingredients. This salad is sunshine in a bowl, vibrant, craveable and full of flavor," said Zipporah Allen, Chief Commercial Officer at Sweetgreen. To bring the campaign to life, Sweetgreen will host Spread the Sunshine activations in New York City during launch week, transforming select restaurants into citrus-inspired spaces designed to capture a sunny California afternoon. From 12-3pm, guests who order in-store can receive a free Chicken Sesame Crunch, experience bright visuals and playful photo moments while enjoying treats inspired by the salad's hero flavors of citrus and sesame, along with limited-edition merch, all while supplies last. * Tuesday, March 24 from 12-3pm Sweetgreen's Park Avenue location (2 Park Ave., New York, NY 10016) * Wednesday, March 25 from 12-3pm Sweetgreen's Bowery location (347 Bowery, New York, NY 10003) For additional details on the activations, guests can follow @sweetgreen on social media. For additional details on offer, see www.sweetgreen.com/sweet-rewards/ Chicken Sesame Crunch launches nationwide beginning March 24 and will be available at Sweetgreen locations across the country as a limited-time offering. Guests can order the new salad in-store, through the Sweetgreen app, or online at order.sweetgreen.com. About Sweetgreen: Sweetgreen (NYSE: SG) is on a mission to build healthier communities by connecting people to real food. Since 2007, the brand has reimagined what fast food can be: fresh, flavorful, and built on real relationships with growers. Sweetgreen's supply chain spans the country while remaining rooted in partnerships with local farmers. Today, Sweetgreen serves seasonal, chef-crafted menus across more than 285 locations nationwide, creating spaces where food, people, and purpose come together. Year: 2026 Related tickers. | Ticker | Price | Day's Change % | Price Change | | SG | $5.21 | -0.29 | -0.01 |