New sweetgreen opened in Deer Park Town Center

The newest Illinois location of the health-conscious restaurant brand sweetgreen opened Tuesday in Deer Park Town Center, 20530 N. Rand Road, #438, in Deer Park.

For every bowl sold on opening day, sweetgreen donated a bowl to Northern Illinois Food Bank, which provides 250,000 meals per day in 13 counties in the region.

To celebrate the opening, sweetgreen hosted a joint ribbon-cutting ceremony at 10 a.m. with the Lake Zurich Area Chamber of Commerce and the Barrington Area Chamber of Commerce. Guests received giveaways, including floral arrangements from Lake Zurich Florist, refreshments from Healthy Hub's Energy Lit Tea Bar and sweet treats from JARS, created by local founder Chef Fabio Viviani.

The 1,999-square-foot location will accommodate 26 diners inside and 24 diners outside on the restaurant's patio. Hours are 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. The menu features a variety of bowls, salads and sides.

The Deer Park store is the 21st Illinois location. The chain was created by three partners weeks after graduating from college as a way to re-imagine fast food and not sacrifice quality for convenience, according to the company's website.

The first store opened in 2007 in Washington, D.C., and the brand has expanded to several dozen locations nationally, with concentrations in Los Angeles, New York and Chicago.

The chain's slogan is building healthier communities by connecting people to real food. Sweetgreen focuses on a plant-rich menu and expanded use of carbon-conscious ingredients toward a goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2027. Farm animal welfare is another company commitment.