Food & Beverage

Donatos pays homage to the Green Goddess

Donatos Green Goddess salad. (Provided)

April 26, 2021

Columbus, Ohio-based Donatos Pizza is taking its menu to new and lofty heights with the addition of its Green Goddess Salad, beginning today nationally in its traditional restaurant stores, a news release said.

The entrée salad, available in three sizes, includes iceberg lettuce, baby spinach, green peppers, Roma tomatoes, pepper jack cheese, hardwood-smoked bacon, grilled chicken strips and the Green Goddess dressing. It comes as a party salad to feed 10, as well as side salads without the chicken and the aforementioned entrée salad for one.

"We are excited to add the Green Goddess Salad to our already delicious lineup of fresh salads," Donatos CEO Tom Krouse said in the release. "This was by far the highest-performing salad in testing done by our menu innovation team, and we can't wait for our customers to try it."

According to food trend and salad research, Green Goddess salads are currently found on only 1% of salad menus, but the salad's growth over the past four years — pegged at 105% — got the attention of Donatos culinary planners.

The extension of the salad category adds new variety to the Donatos menu, which includes oven-baked subs and wings, appetizers, and desserts in addition to the brand's featured product — pizza.

Donatos and its franchise partners operate 168 traditional restaurants in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Virginia, South Carolina, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, Pennsylvania, and Florida.