Salata – A New Generation Salad Bar
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Paula Murphy, Patterson & Murphy Public Relations, 713-520-7111
Mark G Hanna, Customer First, 281-870-9994
Salata – A New Generation Salad Bar
Concept does for salads what mobile phones did to rotary dials
HOUSTON…Referring to Salata as just a salad bar is like calling the Queen Mary just a boat, Notre Dame just a church or a Rolls Royce just a car.
Levels of perfection vastly vary.
The fact is, Salata “Create Your Own” has raised the stereotypical salad bar to new heights. That this lunch and dinner destination offers the ultimate salad bar experience is no exaggeration. From the contemporary, well-designed spaces, with crisp, fresh and welcoming interiors, to the bountiful array of ingredients, Salata is not only changing the perception of the salad bar, it’s elevating the status of the dish itself.
Rather than the expected serve-yourself salad bar, Salata is staffed by salad servers who create the meal as diners direct what ingredients they want, then expertly toss the culinary invention with a choice of one of nine housemade salad dressings. The result is a custom-made salad – unique to each individual diner as he or she likes it.
Owner and Concept Developer Berge Simonian says, “I developed Salata to give diners the best possible salad. For a salad to be really good, you want the ingredients to be absolutely fresh, and the dressings have to have great flavor. And then you have to toss the salad to distribute the dressing evenly. That’s when you have a great salad!”
At Salata, the Latin origin of the word “salad,” diners are offered a mind-boggling array of impeccably fresh salad ingredients. The base of any salad is, of course, greens. Salata has four choices on which to build individual salad masterpieces – romaine hearts, spring mix, spinach and its signature Salata mix.
After selecting the greens, diners can add any quantity of toss-ins, from salad stalwarts such as tomatoes, cucumbers and carrots, to more unique items such as sun-dried tomatoes, dried cranberries, bell peppers, chick peas, green peas, corn, red and black beans, black and green olives, chopped bacon, chopped egg, jalapenos, radishes, snow peas, celery, blueberries, strawberries, green apple sticks, grapes and mandarin oranges, to name just a few. There are also a selection of cheeses – bleu, feta, Parmesan and cheddar – and seeds and nuts, including pumpkin seeds, walnuts and shaved almonds. In all, there are nearly 50 items to choose from.
To transform the salad into a non-vegetarian entrée, Salata offers several delectable protein selections, all freshly prepared in-house daily. Freshly cooked chicken breast in four varieties – pesto, chipotle, herb-marinated and Asian BBQ – or seafood selections including baked salmon, marinated shrimp, krabmeat and seafood mix make for a hearty-yet-lean meal. As an accompaniment, Salata offers a choice of breads – sourdough, wheat, pesto and chipotle – served piping hot from the oven.
In addition to the have-it-your way salad, Salata also offers Salad Wraps. Guests create their perfect salad, and once mixed, it is wrapped up in a fresh flour tortilla, available in Cool Cucumber, Wheat, Texas BBQ, Thai Ginger and Southwest varieties.
The fast-casual eatery offers two savory soups daily – fresh vegetable and tomato basil – along with delectable brownies and assorted cookies.
Simonian says that any salad bar can assemble good ingredients, but it’s the salad dressings that make a salad stand out. “Our salad dressings are unique in flavor and are made fresh with quality ingredients.” Simonian’s business partner Tony Kyoumjian is in charge of maintaining the dressing supply, whipping up nine varieties for the “salad-teria” on a regular basis. Dressing selections include Fresh Herb Vinaigrette, Buttermilk Ranch, Classic Caesar, Honey Mustard, Ginger Lime, Chipotle Ranch, Fat-free Sun-Dried Tomato, Fat-Free Mango and Balsamic Vinaigrette. The flavorful dressings proved so popular with the diners that they are now made for purchase in 12-ounce bottles, sold at the restaurants and soon to be available on the website.
Simonian has been fine-tuning the Salata concept for the past decade. Simonian previously owned other fast-food, food-court concepts, but he felt that salads were the wave of the future. “All the statistics on what diners want today point to concepts that offer four trends: build-your-own options, light and healthy offerings, casual and quick service, and meals priced under $20 per person. Salata combines all four trends: The main offering is light and healthy, is served quickly in a casual, sleek environment, costs less than $10 per person, and diners get to select every ingredient themselves.”
Salata also offers catering for parties of all sizes and descriptions. Already created salads and wraps can be ordered via fax for delivery to home or office, or the Salata salad servers can set up a mini salad bar for guests to create their salad and wrap masterpieces.
There are now seven locations in Houston and two in Dallas. The newest Houston location is located in the heart of the renowned Texas Medical Center 6620 Fannin at Dryden, 713-797-0700, for to-go service and catering only. The original Salata, open since 2005, is located in Houston’s downtown tunnel system at 919 Milam, 713-739-9300. Other locations downtown include Houston Center, 1200 McKinney, 713-739-9000; Pennzoil Place, Downtown Tunnel at 711 Louisiana, 713-229-0065; and Allen Center, Downtown Tunnel at 500 Dallas, 713-739-9009. All of the downtown locations excluding Houston Center are open for lunch only, Monday to Thursday from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and Fridays 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Houston Center location’s hours are Monday to Friday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Two suburban Houston locations are open for lunch and dinner: 14515 Katy Freeway (just east of Highway 6), on the west side Energy Corridor, 281-497-3232; and in Vintage Park at Louetta and Highway 249, 130 Vintage Park Blvd., 281-826-0166. Energy Corridor location is open Monday to Saturday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; and Vintage Park is open Monday to Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Now set up as a franchise, Salata has two franchised locations in Dallas. These are located in Preston Center, Preston and NW Highway, 214-363-6991; and in the Shops at Legacy, 7317 Parkwood, 469-241-1774.
For more information, visit www.salata.biz.
