Fresh, local food lovers in Mesa, Arizona, are about to go MAD for MAD Greens, as the latest location of this fast casual is coming to Mesa’s Dana Park Village Square on Wednesday, February 17. MAD Greens at Dana Park is the fifth Arizona location of this farm-fresh restaurant concept specializing in premium made-to-order salads, fresh juices, panini, wraps, and soups. Even tastier, this grand opening also doubles as a fundraiser for the Boys & Girls Club Grant Woods Branch, which will have representatives on-site collecting donations.
The Mesa grand opening is MAD Greens’ third in five weeks thanks to a recent $13 million investment from Colorado-based 9th Street Capital. With this new funding, MAD Greens is poised to double in size in 2016, adding 15–17 new restaurants across Colorado, Arizona, Texas, and two unannounced markets.
MAD Greens’ most important assets are its talented team members, and to ensure the restaurant’s 2016 expansion plans preserve and protect the company’s unique culture, MAD Greens recruited industry veteran Todd Madlener to become vice president of operations. Madlener, a 30-year, casual-dining veteran, brings a wealth of industry experience to MAD Greens. Madlener has been working for Red Robin Gourmet Burgers for the past 21 years in multiple positions, where he most recently directed Red Robin’s franchise operations team supporting Red Robin’s brand and operational efficiencies across 100 restaurants.
“MAD Greens gives me an opportunity to go back to my roots and join an emerging regional brand with great values and a strong foundation in fresh, better-for-you ingredients,” Madlener says. “At Red Robin, I was honored to work with wonderful people inside the organization to a vast array of franchisees throughout the U.S. and Canada—all of whom have made considerable contributions to my career. I am very excited to be joining a great team at MAD Greens.”
Madlener says one of his priorities this year will be celebrating team member and manager success stories while working with the operations team to ensure all managers have the tools they need to support MAD Greens’ hourly team members and efficiently operate the restaurants in their respective markets.
“Rapid growth can be a risk and many organizations lose their way. We have to fiercely protect the culture the company was founded upon,” Madlener says. “With the support of 9th Street Capital and AC Restaurant Group, we are committed to growing with grace, surrounding ourselves with people who share our values and can make a positive impact, while never losing sight of the vision Marley and Dan had for MAD Greens when they started the concept in 2004.”
