Lettuce Eatery
1560 Yonge Street (with other locations)
416-944-2300
Lunch for two with all taxes, tip and juice: $28

Canadians are becoming greener. We’re calling on our government to enact the Kyoto protocol and reduce industries’ emissions. We’re even driving more hybrid cars. We are fast becoming true global citizens but it’s not just the environment we’re trying to clean up, it’s ourselves as well, beginning with our bodies. We are becoming greener in all senses of the word.

Which is why Lettuce Eatery is such a hit. Launching only two years ago and having expanded into five locations around the city, it’s proving that Torontonians are starting to look at their health seriously and making better eating decisions.

Who would have thought that salad as a main course would catch on so quickly in a fast-food driven culture? Certainly not I.

Let me tell you a story. The first day Lettuce opened up in my neighbourhood, I was intrigued. A friend and I were hungry for lunch and curious to boot, so in we went. We walked down the steep stairs to be greeted by a well-lit chalkboard full of healthy salad choices. I perused the menu, grabbed my friend by the hand and said, “Let’s go.” That first visit lasted all of 47 seconds.

I eat a lot of junk, not because it tastes good, but because it’s fast and easy. In Toronto, I’m not alone. A fast lifestyle almost always comes with bad eating habits. I accept this. I know how to deal. That is, of course, before the realization that it doesn’t have to be that way. Then Matthew Corrin comes along, with a brilliant notion for those of us sick of McDonalds, Harveys, or Burger King: healthy fast food. And it’s fast. From order to pick up, it averages less than 7 minutes, and that’s with a busy lunch crowd. The place itself was designed to get you in, take your order, then get you out. It’s a very utilitarian use of space and quite efficient.

The next day my friend convinced me to give Lettuce a try, that she had a good feeling about it. If there’s anything I’ve learned over the years it’s to always go with a woman’s intuition.

My first salad was a Chef-designed salad called the Fiesta ($8.65). It consisted of Mesclun mix, Cajun chicken, roasted corn, black beans, avocado, diced tomatoes, with jack & cheddar cheese. All that topped with poppy seed mustard dressing. When I opened the neat plastic case it came in, I was overwhelmed. That’s a lot of salad! Better yet was the balance of ingredients. The black beans complemented the jack cheese and avocado very well. My choice of dressing was okay, but I think the salad would have been better served with a less stronger dressing like a light vinaigrette.

Famous Comedian and foodie, John Pinette, once mused, “Salad is the promissory note that food is about to arrive.” Not true. Salad makes a great meal.

One of my favourites is the Protein salad with lemon dressing ($8.65). Very simply, it’s spinach, bacon, tomatoes, broccoli, feta cheese, almonds, and Albacore tuna. My friend loves the 10 Vegetable Salad ($8.50), which she says is “not too much salad, you know, for a salad.”

Each time we go, we are never disappointed. Though one point of irritation: the tables are always full. Every time I’ve visited there is nowhere to sit, even at 2pm after the lunch crowd has disappeared. This is just another testament to the popularity of this great eatery.