The popular Fiesta Bowl features brown rice, chicken and avocado. Try it with a watermelon agua fresca to quench your thirst. Photo: Emily J. Davis
Lily Smith, co-founder of Crisp and Green, grew up and went to high school in Wayzata. The fast-casual restaurant opened here last November. (A second location opened in Minneapolis in March.)
Crisp and Green provides a healthy and fast dining option for a wide range of guests. “We knew that this was really something that the Twin Cities needed,” Smith says. Wayzata was ideal for the business’s first location. “It’s a place where people are health-conscious, and a lot of people who work there needed healthy and fast options. We were confident there would be a demand for healthy, fast and fresh food.”
Fast-casual means that guests are able to quickly get a meal and can tailor their dining experience depending on their schedule. Guests can dress up, meet friends for lunch and sit in the seating area for an hour, or run in after hitting the gym and grab something to go.
“We have a ton of regulars, and it’s fun to take those moments on the line to converse with guests,” says Smith.
The menu provides options for a variety of tastes and dietary needs. Smith says the Fiesta Bowl is their most popular, with brown rice, roasted chicken, avocado and fajita peppers among many other ingredients. She also recommends trying one of their many agua frescas, waters infused with seasonal fruits.
“All types of people can find something they like,” Smith says. Crisp and Green hopes to serve as a bridge for guests to eat healthy and show what “eating healthy looks like every day.” Smith wants guests to expand their horizons, beyond the traditional salad, salad, salad.
