Health Food Hub City Greens is Replacing The Former Halal Guys Uptown

Branding for City Greens, a popular local salad chain founded by two Tulane University alums, has appeared in the former location of Freret Street’s Halal Guys, the NYC food cart turned mega-chain that closed in September.

Halal Guys made its New Orleans debut almost three years ago, opening its first New Orleans store in the CBD in 2016. The Freret Street location opened in 2017, but was largely panned by customers for lackluster quality and service. When the Freret Street location first closed, a representative reached by phone at the corporate offices was under the impression that it and “maybe even more than four” locations in the New Orleans area were still open, while only two Halal Guys cafes ever opened in the New Orleans area.

Ben Kazenmaier and Abhi Bhansali opened the first City Greens downtown at 909 Poydras Street in January 2012. A location in Elmwood followed in October 2014, and a third opened in Old Metairie in June 2016.

Known for its seasonally-oriented offerings, City Greens has its own farm, located in Cottondale, Florida, that produces the mixed greens, arugula, Bibb lettuce and microgreens used in the chain’s salads, and also sources products from Northshore farm and chef-favorite Covey Rise. Plans for a fourth location have been in the works since 2016.

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• Meet the Company Taking the Halal Guys Global [E]
• The Halal Guys Is Bringing Late-Night Chicken & Rice to Freret in February [ENOLA]
• The Halal Guys Shutters on Freret [ENOLA]