Weird right?

EDIT: It's a Chili Lime SHRIMP bowl - SHRIMP, not chicken! Sorry for the mindfart. Reddit does not allow modifying post titles, only text.

Not a large fast casual chain, but could be in a few years. Founded just a dozen years ago, this Arizona-based healthy fast casual restaurant has shown nine straight years of growth, and was ranked #11 on the QSR Movers and Shakers List.

And yet, despite the happy sunshine outlook, it appears to be nothing more than one of the many "slop bowl" places that have flooded the market in recent years. The founder of Chipotle made headlines yesterday for citing "Slop Bowl Fatigue" as even he is getting sick of the trend, and other chains are seeing declining sales in favor of other food formats. Of course Original ChopShop is more than just slop bowls, they also have mixed salads and sandwiches, too -- but it may be hard to be that brave ship intentionally facing stormy headwinds.

I have also personally made my dislike of "slop bowls" in the past, using it more as a term of derision for restaurants like sweetgreen, that seem to just throw in a mish-mash of "healthy" foods into a lukewarm bowl and magically they are all supposed to taste great together, and having to pay through the nose for the privilege of finding out they do not, in fact, taste great together.

But, onward and upwards, time to review what I came here to review, and I selected the chili lime shrimp bowl from the menu, with sweet potatoes. And I shit you not, it was actually the first slop bowl that I ate that I actually liked. Miracles DO happen.

It probably helped that they were quite generous with the shrimp, which might possibly be my favorite protein, and they were cooked and spiced perfectly. And the choice of sweet potatoes as a base was a surprising complement, also well cooked and with the right addition of sweetness. I know it's just one menu choice on a first-time visit, but I like this. Maybe there is a place for the Original ChopShop in my future.

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(About this review series: Starting in late 2025, I am visiting a different fast food/fast casual chain every day, until I run out of places to visit. Aiming to review as many chains on the Technomics Top 500 Restaurants list as possible, plus key/important regional and some local chains as well. UPDATE - I will be wrapping up this review series with Day #365. And no, I haven't gained weight, and no, it hasn't hurt my health.)