Chop’d offers fresh, Lent-inspired options with a tasty twist
Published:Thursday | March 27, 2025 | 12:06 AMAinsworth Morris/Staff Reporter
With Lent upon us, Chop’d – a popular Kingston spot for salads, wraps, and bowls – is offering specials and a buffet for those looking to enjoy healthier, meat-free meal options during the season.
Highlights from the menu include the bang bang bowl, cashew crunch and tofu bowl, protein power wrap, and the honey hummus spiced pumpkin and lentil sandwich.
The bang bang bowl features shrimp and vegetables, with the option to add extra proteins from the menu. The cashew crunch and tofu bowl is served with fresh cashews, tofu, and a mix of vegetables, with additional protein available upon request.
For March, Chop’d has introduced a special menu item: the protein power wrap. Tested in February with great reviews, it includes chickpeas, hummus, cheese, and vegetables, making it a vegetarian-friendly option. However, protein lovers can add chicken, salmon or shrimp.
Explaining more about their wholesome buffet, Kathy Evelyn, group foods manager at Uncorked – operators of Chop’d – shared with Food that their daily menu is primarily designed for vegetarians, starting with a vegetable soup. But, meat and seafood lovers can customise their meal by adding protein options of their choice.
“[Our menu] is 90 per cent Lent-friendly, because everything is fresh. It’s a salad bar, so we are mostly focused on vegetables. All our proteins are add on choices, so we have some seafood options that are standard on the menu. We have salmon [and] shrimp. We have tuna salad, which is a little difficult to get right now, so we are introducing a salmon salad which is available to make into sandwiches and wraps as well as [an] add-on to a salad,” Evelyn said.
She went on, “We feel like we can be a go-to place for Lent options, because it’s very easy to come in here and have most of what we offer and still [be] in the guidelines of celebrating Lent.”
Chop’d is also offering a special sweet heat jerk bowl for March, paying homage to Jamaica. This dish combines spicy and sweet jerk chicken, served with rice and/or lettuce, giving customers a flavourful option with a local twist.
Adding to the variety, the salad bar has introduced a Vietnamese noodle bowl, which began in February and has been receiving great reviews. It features rice and a gluten-free option, and due to its popularity, it may soon become a regular menu item.
“What we try to do is for each month, we have a few specials to test out things that might be very well-received by the community and may end up on our menu. We want to expand our menu and offer the community what they’re looking for, so we test out things as a special, and if they do very well, chances are, they’ll make it on to the standard options eventually,” Evelyn explained.
Customers can expect the menu to get a refreshing update two or three times a year, with fun specials inspired by what’s happening in Jamaica, local holidays, and the freshest seasonal ingredients at the market.