Dish

THINKING GREENS: The two young creators of the New York-based Chop't Creative Salad Co., known for its focus on prime ingredients, have selected Washington for their first venture outside the Big Apple. As early as late July, the company's fourth Chop't is expected to start tossing greens in a former Marvelous Market space at 730 Seventh St. NW in Penn Quarter.

"We appreciate D.C. as a food town," says co-owner Tony Shure,32, who hatched the idea for "chef-designed" salads when he and business partner Colin McCabe, also 32, were attending college in Madison, Wis. (Even in weather that was 30 degrees below zero, they noticed fellow students standing in line for something they perceived to be healthful: frozen yogurt.)

Chop't, which lets customers choose from a dozen or so signature salads or come up with a design of their own from about 60 toppings and 30 dressings, sounds like the leafy equivalent of the city's myriad upscale sandwich purveyors, but with more passion for freshness. "We have two things that come from a can -- hearts of palm and artichoke hearts -- and they're both organic," McCabe says. Otherwise, turkey and beets are roasted in-house, and dressings are made daily from scratch and in small batches. Among the salad selections, all of which are prepared by the staff, are Big Sky Cobb, featuring trout; Palm Beach Shrimp; and the Steakhouse, rounded out with fried onions and tomatoes. Dressings fall into three categories: Classic, Exotic and Spa (zero fat).

In New York, the average tab per person is $9.50, including beverage and tax. Shure and McCabe expect that figure to be somewhat lower here. They also hope most of their customers opt for carryout: The newest Chop't will have a mere 40 seats.

-- Tom Sietsema