Sweetgreen Vegetarian Soups | DuPont Circle

It's a cruel twist of fate–and of the calendar–that the time of year when everyone resolves to eat healthier is also the season when cold salads sound least appealing.

Sweetgreen has a new solution.

The locally focused chainlet has long served vegetarian soups as an alternative or supplement to its creative salad combinations. But the owners wanted a hearty, winter-friendly way for people to eat a quick, healthy lunch.

After testing different combinations, the restaurant launched warm grain bowls this week. The "Make It Grain" option mixes equal parts organic quinoa, wheat berries and barley as a substitute for salad greens. The warmed combination has crunch from the quinoa and deep, roasted nuttiness from barley.

To keep that familiar texture, the restaurants toss in your choice of lettuce for added crunch.

The combination works for any of the house salads, including the chickpea-filled Chic P ($8) with falafel, the Curry Gold ($8.25) with cranberries, and the Sabzi ($7.50) with beets, white beans and radishes.

This month, the special salad ($8.50) uses shredded kale in lieu of lettuce, then tosses in roasted portobello mushrooms, crumbled goat cheese, chopped peppers and roasted sweet potatoes with pesto vinaigrette and a spritz of lemon.

Sweetgreen, 1512 Connecticut Ave. NW (at Dupont Cir.), 202-387-9338; see sweetgreen.com for additional locations