Coffee Chain Leads Auction as Court Review and Landlord Objections Remain
- Fast-growing 7 Brew, a drive-thru-only coffee shop, has submitted the top bid for 73 sites of the defunct Salad and Go chain.
- The locations are in Arizona, Nevada, Oklahoma and Texas.
- The deal isn’t final. Until Sept. 17, landlords and other parties may file objections with the bankruptcy court that is liquidating Salad and Go assets.
The drive-thru coffee franchise 7 Brew has submitted the highest offer for 73 Salad and Go sites: about $143.2 million. The 73-site portfolio is made up of 41 locations in Arizona, 20 in Texas, and six each in Nevada and Oklahoma, according to court documents. The drive-thru salad chain filed for bankruptcy in early August.
A lawyer involved in the bankruptcy process said 7 Brew’s bid will cover payments to creditors of defunct Salad and Go.
The deal isn’t final yet, QSR Magazine reported. There will be a Sept. 21 court hearing to consider the transfer of leases and contracts to 7 Brew. Landlords and other parties can object through Sept. 17, the magazine said. A lawyer for multiple landlords said objections would be filed.
Other Bidder: Dutch Bros
In a Monday auction, 7 Brew and Dutch Bros were to compete for the real estate. Dutch Bros chose not to bid over 7 Brew’s opening bid, bankruptcy court documents indicated. That leaves Dutch Bros as the backup bidder.
7 Brew’s bid is split between two groups of Salad and Go restaurants, according to a report posted on RestaurantDive.com. Under the bid, 7 Brew will pay about $125 million for 49 of the Salad and Go locations and more than $18 million for 24 additional sites.
Fast-growing 7 Brew already has about 800 locations in 38 states, QSR Magazine said. The company opened a net of 562 shops across 2023, 2024 and 2025. It earned $1.2 billion in sales last year and posted a $2.6 million average unit volume, according to the magazine.
Dutch Bros Bid Early
In reporting about the auction this week, QSR Magazine noted that Dutch Bros early on had offered $105 million for 51 drive-thru restaurants in Arizona and Nevada, plus 14 leases in Texas and Oklahoma. The bankruptcy proceedings allowed for a higher offer to be made, however, giving 7 Brew a chance to swoop in as it did.
Dutch Bros is entitled to a $3.8 million termination fee, plus reasonable and documented expenses, if the 7 Brew transaction closes, the magazine stated, and the final portfolio could still change if leases preclude 7 Brew from operating on a certain site or sites.
About 7 Brew
7 Brew Coffee may be the fastest-growing coffee chain in the United States, according to Placer.ai, a cloud-based analytics and intelligence platform. That source noted that the chain exploded from 14 locations in 2022 to around 500 locations by October 2025. 7 Brew’s growth has been boosted tremendously by Blackstone’s equity investment in 2024 and a 160-store franchise agreement with the multi-unit, multi-brand franchisee Flynn Group, Placer.ai said.
Arkansas-based 7 Brew was founded in 2017.
