Bowl Slop? Cava CEO Doesn't Want to Hear It -- WSJ

Dow Jones05:52

By Heather Haddon

Cava CEO Brett Schulman is taking a stand in defense of the bowl.

Cava and other restaurant chains like Sweetgreen and Chipotle had a tough 2025. Traffic slowed, and some consumers complained of bowl fatigue and high menu prices. Cava's shares have fallen around 35% in the past 12 months.

Schulman in an interview Tuesday dismissed talk of a bowl decline. Customers don't pigeonhole food by what it's served in, he said: "They want food. They want a great meal."

Cava is sticking by its bowls, Schulman said, despite competitors pivoting to plates and wraps. Sweetgreen on Tuesday introduced wraps, a move it said would move the chain "beyond the bowl."

The Mediterranean chain reported fourth-quarter sales growth ahead of what analysts anticipated, and earnings per share in line with projections. The company released same-store sales guidance for this year ahead of some analysts' expectations. Cava shares rose 7% in afterhours trading.

This item is part of a Wall Street Journal live coverage event. The full stream can be found by searching P/WSJL (WSJ Live Coverage).

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 24, 2026 16:52 ET (21:52 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

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The full stream can be found by searching P/WSJL (WSJ Live Coverage). \n</p>\n<p>\n  (END) Dow Jones Newswires\n</p>\n<p>\n  February 24, 2026 16:52 ET (21:52 GMT)\n</p>\n<p>\n  Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones &amp; Company, Inc.\n</p>\n</font>","source":null,"html":"<!DOCTYPE html>\n<html>\n<head>\n<meta http-equiv=\"Content-Type\" content=\"text/html; charset=utf-8\" />\n<meta name=\"viewport\" content=\"width=device-width,initial-scale=1.0,minimum-scale=1.0,maximum-scale=1.0,user-scalable=no\"/>\n<meta name=\"format-detection\" content=\"telephone=no,email=no,address=no\" />\n<title>Bowl Slop? 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They want a great meal.\" \n</p>\n<p>\n     Cava is sticking by its bowls, Schulman said, despite competitors pivoting to plates and wraps. Sweetgreen on Tuesday introduced wraps, a move it said would move the chain \"beyond the bowl.\" \n</p>\n<p>\n     The Mediterranean chain reported fourth-quarter sales growth ahead of what analysts anticipated, and earnings per share in line with projections. The company released same-store sales guidance for this year ahead of some analysts' expectations. Cava shares rose 7% in afterhours trading. \n</p>\n<p>\n       This item is part of a Wall Street Journal live coverage event. The full stream can be found by searching P/WSJL (WSJ Live Coverage). \n</p>\n<p>\n  (END) Dow Jones Newswires\n</p>\n<p>\n  February 24, 2026 16:52 ET (21:52 GMT)\n</p>\n<p>\n  Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones &amp; Company, Inc.\n</p>\n</font>\n\n</article>\n</div>\n</body>\n</html>\n","isBrief":false,"type":0,"news_type":1,"symbol":"BK4585","symbol_name":"ETF&股票定投概念","start_time":0,"source_url":"https://dowjonesnews.com/newdjn/logon.aspx?AL=N","article_id":"2614972518","we_media_id":"106","thumbnails":[],"rights":null,"url":"https://stock-news.laohu8.com/highlight/detail?id=2614972518","pubTimestamp":1771969920,"columns":[],"sourceInfo":null,"weMediaInfo":{"media_name":"Dow Jones","introduction":"Dow Jones publishes the world’s most trusted business news and financial information in a variety of media.","home_visible":0,"id":"106","head_image":"https://static.tigerbbs.com/150f88aa4d182df19190059f4a365e99"},"summary":"Cava CEO Brett Schulman is taking a stand in defense of the bowl.Cava and other restaurant chains like Sweetgreen and Chipotle had a tough 2025. 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They want a great meal.\" \n\n\n     Cava is sticking by its bowls, Schulman said, despite competitors pivoting to plates and wraps. Sweetgreen on Tuesday introduced wraps, a move it said would move the chain \"beyond the bowl.\" \n\n\n     The Mediterranean chain reported fourth-quarter sales growth ahead of what analysts anticipated, and earnings per share in line with projections. The company released same-store sales guidance for this year ahead of some analysts' expectations. Cava shares rose 7% in afterhours trading. \n\n\n       This item is part of a Wall Street Journal live coverage event. 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