Photo by Jon Anderson
Caleb Cano
Caleb Cano is an assistant manager of the Chopt Creative Salad Co. at The Summit. He lives in Chelsea.
Q: How long have you been working for Chopt?
A: Coming up on two years soon.
Q: Have you been in the restaurant business very long?
A: I’m only 21 years old, so restaurants are really all I have worked.
Q: Where else have you worked?
A: Wendy’s, for like two years.
Q: How do you like working for Chopt?
A: It’s very rewarding. I started out at the bottom, and I’m an assistant manager, so I really enjoy it. And I enjoy customer service.
Q: What do you like best about the restaurant business?
A: I like the customer service. I enjoy the customer interaction. I enjoy getting to know them. I enjoy getting to see a full lobby of people you just served. That’s always been my favorite thing.
Q: What’s your favorite salad that y’all make?
A: Probably the Mexican Caesar. I enjoy the warm bowls — the rice bowls — a little bit more than the salads, to be honest. My favorite one of those is the hummus harissa. It’s like a Middle Eastern chili paste.
Q: When you’re not working at Chopt, what do you like to do?
A: I’m a soccer coach … of the Briarwood high school club team. It’s 18-year-old and 17-year-old boys.
Q: Did you play in high school?
A: I did. I played at the Briarwood high school … club team. I was homeschooled.
Q: What else do you like to do when you have spare time?
A: I’m a big music guy, so I like music, concerts. Movies, too.
Q: Who is your favorite musician or band?
A: Right now, it’s Kendrick Lamar.
Q: Favorite song of his?
A: “Peekaboo.”
Q: You say you like movies. What type of movies?
A: You always have the Marvel movies. Recently, I’ve enjoyed the “Final Destination” movie. “Sinners” was really good.
Q: What’s your favorite movie of all time?
A: I’m going to go with “The Incredibles.”
Q: What do you like about that?
A: As a kid, it was just my favorite movie to watch.
Q: There aren’t very many restaurants like Chopt. Do you get a lot of customers who are unfamiliar with Chopt?
A: Yes. Every day. Lots of new customers.
Q: What do most people find surprising about what Chopt has?
A: I want to say gluten-free options. A lot of people are looking for that, and pretty much everything is gluten-free here. There are a few crunchy toppings or fried chicken that’s not. All the dressings are gluten-free.
Q: What’s the average price of your salads?
A: With chicken, probably $15.
Q: How about your warm rice bowls?
A: Sitting around $15 as well. A lot of those come with chicken, so they’re priced a little higher as far as their base.
