Decline in ‘Slop Bowl’ Sales Signals Warning for Restaurant Chains

YourErie ^ | Rob Taub

[nickcarraway]

Several restaurant chains are sounding the alarm about their customers’ attitudes as the country’s economy worsens due to inflation and slow hiring numbers.

Chipotle, Sweetgreen and Cava — all purveyors of “slop bowls” — have seen their stocks drop dramatically in 2025. Chipotle’s stock is down about 50% for the year, while Cava has seen a 60% decline. Sweetgreen last week revealed in its earnings that same-store sales slid 9.5% and visits fell nearly 12%.

“The 25-to-35 (year old) consumer is the most under pressure, and they make up about 30% of our consumer base,” Sweetgreen’s CFO Jamie McConnell said.

Chipotle’s CEO Scott Boatwright added the chain is not losing its consumer base to competition, but instead to grocery stores and people eating at home.

A “slop bowl,” an informal term for a bowl of mixed ingredients, has been popular for years among young adults, who are “one of our core consumer cohorts,” he said. “They feel the pinch and we feel the pullback from them, as well.”

Raymond James restaurant analyst Brian Vaccaro said customer bases for chains are also being affected by the government shutdown and by increased competition from value meals at fast-food rivals.

“The fast-casual restaurants face several issues, in particular that the softer wage and spending growth that had been affecting lower-income consumers seems to be creeping up into the middle income and young professional consumers,” Vaccaro said.

McDonald’s and WingStop also acknowledged sales have declined in areas made up largely of low-income customers.

Starting this week, Sweetgreen said it will begin promoting that it has boosted protein portions by 25%.

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TOPICS: Business/Economy; Food
KEYWORDS: business; cava; chipotle; restaurant; restaurants; slopbowl; sweetgreen

[HYPOCRACY]

Calling your food ‘slop bowls’ has nothing to do with losing customers.

[nickcarraway]

I don’t think they call it that.

[al_c]

Sad to read this. I really like Cava.

[Red Badger]

“Chipotle’s CEO Scott Boatwright added the chain is not losing its consumer base to competition, but instead to grocery stores and people eating at home.”

I’m shocked! SHOCKED, I SAY!.................

[Attention Surplus Disorder]

If you can’t get out of a restaurant for less than $20, a $10 cooked-at-home meal which at that price can be semi-extravagant, looks a lot better.

[big bad easter bunny]

expensive, low quality slop bowls could be the problem?

[Greg123456]

Never heard of Cava. We have Chipotle, Pancheros, and Abelardos.

[Greg123456]

I assume they mean burrito bowls? Slop bowls?? We are people, not hogs.

[Newbomb Turk]

Slop Bowl = Industry Term.

[proust]

Can they make slop great again?

[9YearLurker]

Well, they are serving Americans.

[dfwgator]

More and more you can get the same stuff at supermarkets for a few bucks less.

[Retgearjammer]

My wife and I started making our own pizza’s. It costs us about $6.00 to make a 16 in thick crust pizza, 1 lb of cheese, 1 lb of pepperoni home made dough, and 20 to 30 min oven time at 450 deg. Lasts us 3 days.

[catnipman]

most restaurant food is unhealthy, ESPECIALLY so-called “casual dining” and so-called fast food, containing way too much salt, unhealthy oils, and low-end carbs ...

additionally, the costs for eating this unhealthy food has skyrocketed, esp. if one knows how to cook simple and quick meals made from relatively healthy ingredients costing a reasonable amount of money ... then there’s the time factor of eating out, which probably doesn’t save much time over actually cooking at home ... and there’s the poor and/or uneven service and worries about the kind of practices are going on in the restaurant kitchen ...

[FlingWingFlyer]

Plus you don’t have to surrender a tip.

[frogjerk]

but instead to grocery stores and people eating at home.

Its expensive to eat out especially if you are not getting value. The 800lb Gorilla no one want to talk about is that the minimum wage is too damn high!

[Red Badger]

I worked in a restaurants as a teenager, let 60’s early 70’s.

So I know what happens back in the kitchen..............😁

[MrRelevant]

Never heard in my life…. Go to Chipotle fairly often. Its always rocking.

[1Old Pro]

For me, eating out has always been a luxury. I used to eat out for lunches on occasion when the business environment was conducive to that, but always preferred eating at home for lunch when possible or brought lunch when possible. Dinners out, a definite luxury/reward and typically not often. I'm cheap when it comes to eating out so I prefer to save the $50 - $100+/ meal and eat home.