New customers are often surprised to find the restaurant’s interior so bright and cheerful.
The West Side Salad World has seen a steadily-growing customer base since opening last May.
Each week brings regulars and new faces alike.
The clean, bright interior is welcoming. The food is fresh, almost all is homemade, and everything on the menu is prepared with nutrition in mind.
Ryan Matt helps Randy Tillman with a carryout order during lunch.
Andy and Ryan Matt’s Mother, Diane Matt, helps out by waiting tables three days a week. Here she waits on regulars Belva and Valarie Hutchinson immediately after the restaurant opened for lunch.
ABOVE LEFT: Always supporting the West Side schools: Ryan and Andy’s Mater Dei jerseys hang beside their cousin’s Reitz jersey.
ABOVE: Brothers at work — Andy and Ryan Matt each put in about 60 hours or more each week.
The garden house salad has standard ingredients but can be made to diners’ preferences.
The turkey club wrap on garlic herb with a side of Parmesan asparagus is a healthy alternative to a traditional sandwich,
Philly steak and cheese on wheat bread with a side of steamed veggies is a flavorful selection.
Andy and Ryan Matt discuss business while working on lunch orders at Salad World, the business they opened in May 2009.
2190024 – Brothers and entrepeneurs–Ryan and Andy Matt, owners of the west-side Salad World.
For a restaurant so client-savvy, most observers would assume the owners are experienced business people with years of food service in their backgrounds.
In fact, owners Ryan and Andy Matt are 23 and 20, respectively.
The two Mater Dei graduates grew up in family-run businesses, working in their grandfather’s West Side Foxx Pools and visiting New York grandparents who also were in business for themselves.
Andy began to explain, “I always knew I wanted to open a restaurant since …”
“Since he was 3 — with his pink Easy-Bake Oven,” interjected the guys’ mother, Diane Matt.
“It was black,” Andy protested. “It was a black oven.”
“You can say ‘pink,’ though,” elder brother Ryan quickly added with a smile.
Easy banter punctuates the family’s working relationship, in this case involving Andy’s love of cooking. But serious arguments are hard to find.
Diane credits much of that to them seeing her own brothers work together. “They saw that you may not always agree, but you have a common objective and you’re not going to let petty things get in the way,” she said.
The sibling collaboration seems to be functioning smoothly. Ryan will graduate from the University of Southern Indiana in May with a degree in nutrition, a perfect complement to Andy’s culinary aptitude. This knowledge of nutrition has been invaluable in opening a “healthy cafe.”
“We’re not just serving food to make a profit,” Ryan insisted. “We’re serving food to help the community get healthier. That’s really something I like.”
In fact, a few regular customers have lost a substantial amount of weight, including one couple who the Matts say have lost 150 pounds together.
The Matts are doing all they can to encourage healthy changes in Evansville’s restaurant-goers. The menu, of course, includes a wide array of salads, from their pecan chicken salad to the salmon asparagus salad that is popular during Lent. All are made with vitamin-rich Romaine lettuce and can be made to order.
Both Andy and Ryan worked at Evansville’s first Salad World on the East Side before opening the West Side restaurant, which is the first franchise store. Though they do follow the regular Salad World menu, they also have plenty of leeway to offer their own recipes. Their summer menu, for instance, will include a spinach salad with bacon bits, cherry tomatoes and a vinegar and oil dressing.
With such popular items as turkey club wraps, steak wraps, Philly steak and cheese sandwiches, soups, and loaded baked potatoes, Salad World literally has something for everyone.
The menu is available online, and orders can be placed before leaving work and picked up on the way home. Delivery is also available in the Downtown area — and just about anywhere on the West Side.
“If you tip well enough, we’ll go as far as you want!” Ryan added with a laugh. Though he does most of the deliveries, customers never know who might show up with their food. “Even our grandma has made a delivery.”
Ryan and Andy consider family involvement essential in their early success.
Parents Greg and Diane were on vacation in Florida when Andy called to say he had purchased tables and chairs and wanted to go ahead with the restaurant. “Without Mom and Dad, we wouldn’t be here.
“They’re financially and emotionally involved.”
Diane explained that she and Greg plan to back out once the boys’ loan is paid off, but until then, she is enjoying being in business with her sons. “I haven’t seen this much of them since they got their car keys!” she said.
She cleans and waits tables three days a week. “They don’t pay me, so the good news is they can’t fire me!”
Greg has done occasional pick-ups and helps Ryan balance the checkbook each evening.
Their sister, Kaitlin, a senior at Mater Dei, will work at Salad World during the summer, as will their cousin, Bryan Will.
In addition to family involvement, the Matts strive for community involvement. They support other West Side businesses whenever possible, such as purchasing their coffee products from TJ’s Roaster. They also offer “give-back” opportunities for charitable organizations and local sports teams. One such event is taking place for the Mater Dei tennis team; it will be during lunch hours Saturday. The Salad World give-backs have a slight variation on those done at most other restaurants. Along with receiving 10 percent of sales, the group also receives all tips generated — because the team members themselves will be waiting tables.
Though business has been steady, Ryan estimates that 99 percent of Evansville has never eaten there. Once a customer comes in, the Matts are confident of their return.
“We keep saying, ‘if you have great food and service and a clean environment, people will come back,’ ” Diane said.
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