Fresh Griller is tasty, healthy and affordable

The concept of fast casual restaurants has exploded of late and one of the newest ones on the horizon is Fresh Griller. I was pleasantly surprised to find them a refreshing change to the usual soup, sandwich, salad place dotted everywhere around Orange County.

The decor has a comfortable, fresh feel and when you see how affordable it is, you won’t believe it. They also don’t have commercial sodas opting for a private line using cane sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup. My favorite was the Rooibos tea they have on offer.

Everything at Fresh Griller is $6. You can choose a salad, wrap or a bowl and build it from there.

Start with romaine lettuce or kale, or, you can opt for half and half. Then choose your toppings from white rice, brown rice, squash blend, Mediterranean beans, pepper/onion blend, ginger pico de gallo, Thai kale slaw.

Then, add your protein, or stay vegetarian if you wish.

Next, choose from the sauces: aji verde, BBQ, wasabi ranch, teriyaki, sweet ginger chili, balsamic vinaigrette and a new spicy chipotle still to be named. I asked for a little of each to try. I liked everything except the teriyaki and the BBQ. The wasabi ranch was especially good and it surprised me because I normally hate ranch. This one had a nice yogurt/buttermilk blend with a nice tart finish.

We chose one of each to try starting with the salad. I chose kale as the base with a little brown rice, steak, some peppers and the zucchini, carrots and corn.

Then we got a bowl with brown rice and topped it with everything vegetarian. Not only was it colorful but it was nice and flavorful.

Those of you wanting a wrap, we chose one with chicken and aji verde sauce. Your ingredients are wrapped in a lavash, which I like better than a tortilla. I would get one without rice because I don’t like carbs inside a carb wrap.

The Thai kale slaw was absolutely fantastic. I enjoyed it so much. The flavors are sweet and tart and made you craving for more.

If you want something sweet at the end of the meal, opt for the parfait ($2.50). Pineapple and apple chunks are drizzled with lemon juice and topped with yogurt. There is a little tub of granola which you can add to the yogurt when you are ready to eat it. I loved the crunchy component to the sweet tart of the fruit and yogurt. This would make for a wonderful breakfast item also (too bad they don’t open for breakfast).

This is a quick, tasty and healthy option for lunch. The portions are very generous and I am not able to finish one portion in a sitting. It is also great value for your hard earned money.

This week I’m giving you the opportunity to win a $15 gift card to check them out. Leave me a comment telling me why you would be interested in checking them out. Entries close on Sunday.

Fresh Griller
2 Hutton Center Drive
Santa Ana, CA 92707