A new Toronto based, fresh food concept plans to open later this year on the 16th Street Mall.  Freshii is taking over the currently vacant former 980 SF Colorado Collection location at Republic Plaza.  Started in 2005, the concept opened with lines out of the door and has expanded throughout Canada.  Just recently, they entered the U.S. market with a location in Chicago.  Downtown Denver will be the first Colorado location with others planned in New York, Washington D.C. and Houston.  Their vision, simply stated is: Fresh Food, Custom Built, Fast.

“Freshii is focused on becoming the most convenient choice for healthy and fresh meals and snacks served quickly in a cool, clean, and environmentally sustainable setting for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks in between.”

Their lunch menu has a lot of options including salads, bowls, wraps, burritos, soup and even frozen yogurt.  A nice feature is the ability to custom build your selection and know the nutritional value of each one as you go.  Along the sustainability route they purposely open smaller stores to minimize their impact on the environment, buy from farms with environmentally responsible growth methods, use packaging made from corn or potatoes and even let you bring in your own bowl to use (they wash it for you).  I like that they have a BBQ Chicken Salad on the menu and that they educate consumers using a rating system indicating which choices of dressings/toppings are the healthiest.