All 97 Sweet Tomatoes & Souplantation restaurants are now permanently closed

What we know:

• As of today (Thursday May 21st, 2020), all 97 Sweet Tomatoes and Souplantation restaurants are permanently closed
• Stores were initially closed during the rise of the COVID-19 lockdown but sadly could not sustain the financial losses to reopen.
• All 4,400 team members were affected
• On the Sweet Tomatoes website there’s a heartfelt goodbye message that also speaks to gift card holders. In short, you’re out of luck unless you want to pursue legal action or dispute with your credit card company.

Below we’ll dive into the top questions surrounding the official announcement, as well as additional details that we know so far.

When did Sweet Tomatoes Open?

The first location (originally named Garden Fresh Corp) opened in 1978.

Where did Sweet Tomatoes originate?

San Diego, California

Is Sweet Tomatoes going out of business?

Sadly yes, as of today. Due to the financial distress of COVID-19.

What states have Sweet Tomatoes?

California, Florida, Oregon, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Georgia, and Colorado

Are there any alternatives still open?

As of now, Souper Salad appears to be the only true salad bar buffet restaurant still open in limited locations. However, expect to also see a growing number of existing buffet bars to start offering healthy choices as health-conscious Americans begin to look for new alternatives to Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes.

On a side note, if you’re business minded, there may be an interesting opportunity here (in the near future) to start a healthy salad bar buffet restaurant similar to Sweet Tomatoes. Perhaps you can even get a generous real-estate deal.