Salad and Go will serve its final customers on Wednesday, August 5, before permanently closing every remaining restaurant in Arizona and Nevada. The Gilbert-founded drive-thru chain announced the shutdown after filing voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy petitions on August 4.
All 70 locations are affected, including approximately 63 in Arizona and seven in Nevada. For customers, the immediate questions involve final operating hours, unused gift cards and loyalty balances. For employees, the announcement creates uncertainty over jobs, final wages and benefits.
Salad and Go closure at a glance
- Final service date: Wednesday, August 5, 2026
- Restaurants closing: All 70 remaining locations
- States affected: Arizona and Nevada
- Tucson locations: Seven
- Bankruptcy filing: Chapter 11 on August 4
- Founded: Gilbert, Arizona, in 2013
Operating hours could differ between restaurants on the final day. Menu selections, mobile orders and delivery may also become unavailable as stores use their remaining inventory.
Why the remaining restaurants could not survive
Salad and Go cited three underlying pressures: weaker consumer demand, rising costs and problems associated with its previous expansion strategy.
The chain built a distinctive alternative to conventional fast food by selling salads, wraps, breakfast burritos, bowls and drinks through compact drive-thru locations. It eventually expanded to approximately 146 restaurants across Arizona, Nevada, Texas and Oklahoma.
That rapid growth also created a larger network of leases, kitchens, distribution operations and corporate expenses. When sales and costs moved in the wrong direction, the company began withdrawing from newer markets.
CEO Mike Tattersfield described the shutdown as painful for everyone who built, worked for and supported the company. Salad and Go says it served more than 60 million meals during its 13-year history.
The warning signs appeared before this week
The complete closure follows almost a year of retrenchment. In September 2025, Salad and Go announced more than 40 store closures, mainly in Texas and Oklahoma.
In January 2026, it closed another 32 restaurants—25 in Texas and seven in Oklahoma. Those changes reportedly affected around 600 workers and included the closure of the Texas headquarters and central kitchen.
Management returned the company’s headquarters to Arizona and attempted to rebuild around its strongest markets. By then, the chain had been reduced to 70 restaurants in Arizona and Nevada. Seven months later, those remaining locations are also closing.
What the Cyclospora outbreak did—and did not do
Salad and Go said a July Cyclospora outbreak reduced confidence across the broader salad industry and compounded its financial problems. The company was not implicated in the outbreak.
Federal investigators linked one cluster to recalled iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms de Mexico. The CDC’s official Cyclospora investigation does not identify Salad and Go as an involved restaurant.
The distinction is important: the chain’s closures and financial difficulties began months before the outbreak. The food-safety scare appears to have delivered another setback to an already weakened business rather than causing the bankruptcy by itself.
What happens to gift cards and rewards?
The initial announcement did not explain whether unused gift cards, loyalty points, promotional credits or prepaid orders would be refunded. Customers should retain receipts, account screenshots and app records while awaiting formal guidance.
No public plan has been announced to keep the app or rewards program operating after the restaurants close. Customers should avoid assuming balances will transfer automatically to another business.
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Chapter 11 does not guarantee a reopening
Chapter 11 is often used to reorganize a struggling company, but it can also support an orderly sale or wind-down. Because Salad and Go is closing its entire remaining estate, the filing should not be viewed as confirmation that restaurants will reopen.
Outcomes differ across restaurant bankruptcies. A Village Inn franchisee kept its restaurants operating during Chapter 11, while the Hardee’s franchise bankruptcy affected selected locations rather than eliminating the national chain.
Salad and Go’s court process may determine what happens to leases, equipment, supplier debts, trademarks and other assets. No buyer, rescue agreement or plan to preserve individual stores had been announced.
Employees face unanswered questions
The company has not disclosed how many workers are affected by the final 70 closures. Information about severance, final wages, accrued leave, healthcare coverage and other benefits also remains unavailable.
Employees should preserve pay statements, work records and company communications. Future bankruptcy notices may explain how wage, benefit or reimbursement claims will be handled.
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