The smell of the fresh blueberry muffins and the rattle of the plastic trays are coming back: Souplantation will reopen in Orange County in 2027 following years of closure.<\/p>\n
The storied all-you-can-eat buffet with decades of fans devoted to its salads, soups, fluffy-doughed pizzas and muffins closed all locations in 2020. The chain\u2019s former parent company, Garden Fresh Restaurants, cited the COVID-19 pandemic in its decision to close all 97 of its buffets<\/a>, including 44 in the Golden State.<\/p>\n According to Marlee Lossing, Sweet Tomatoes\u2019 director of corporate affairs, the company has been working on a revival since the chain\u2019s acquisition in 2020.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to get it right, so we move a little slower but very deliberately,\u201d Lossing wrote via email. \u201cWe found a great opportunity to return to Fountain Valley and are so excited to welcome back our wonderful guests who have been waiting six long years for our return!\u201d<\/p>\n The first Souplantation debuted in San Diego in 1978, then spread throughout Southern California and, as it reached other states, adopted the name Sweet Tomatoes but maintained the same recipes and staff. The chain filed for bankruptcy in 2016, and then again in 2020 following pandemic-spurred restrictions against buffet-style dining.<\/p>\n The loss spread like shock waves, resulting in thousands of comments across social media and online forums, as well as multiple essays from fans young and old. In its vacuum, a handful of buffets inspired by the brand sprouted up, including Soup \u2018n Fresh in Rancho Cucamonga<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cMuch as I have missed going to the theater and visiting museums, I had been looking forward most to the reopening of sit-down restaurants, newly reminded of my gratitude for the simplest of pleasures,\u2019\u201d Following acquisition by a new operating company \u2014 ST Three LLC, headed by Mike Malone, Garden Fresh Restaurants\u2019 former vice president of operations \u2014 Sweet Tomatoes returned in 2024 with an outpost in Arizona, then Florida. Now, the company is headed back to its home state and is landing in a former Souplantation location in Fountain Valley.<\/p>\n On Monday, Sweet Tomatoes teased the return with a cryptic video depicting coastlines, poppies, palm trees and California signage followed by the words \u201ccoming soon.\u201d<\/p>\n The post drew nearly 7,000 comments from fans, including \u201cthere is a god,\u201d \u201cI\u2019ve been in mourning since 2020\u201d and \u201cI\u2019ll give my firstborn for Souplantation y\u2019all don\u2019t play with me.\u201d<\/p>\n Lossing confirmed the location with The Times and added that this could be the first of multiple new or returning Souplantation locations. The company noted that while only Fountain Valley has been announced, the company is considering California and all other markets for expansion. The Orange County restaurant will sprawl across roughly 7,800 square feet at 11179 Talbert Ave.<\/p>\n
former L.A. Times editorial page editor Sewell Chan wrote at the time<\/a>. \u201cThe first place I hoped to eat at was Souplantation.\u201d<\/p>\n