Souplantation & Sweet Tomatoes restaurants today announced the newest members of its Kitchen Cabinet, an advisory panel comprised of influential guests selected to offer insight on menu items, food trends, and marketing initiatives.

The Kitchen Cabinet, first established in 2007, is a forum for Souplantation & Sweet Tomatoes to hear more directly from restaurant guests. Since its inception the Kitchen Cabinet has offered feedback and insight that has helped direct recipe and menu creation. Each member will visit headquarters in San Diego to taste new recipes, review upcoming restaurant campaigns, and offer overall feedback on the brands.

"We are excited to welcome the newest Kitchen Cabinet members," says Joan Scharff, executive director of brand and menu strategy for Garden Fresh Restaurant Corp. "This advisory panel is so important as we develop new recipes and menu items for the restaurants. We want to meet and exceed our guests' expectations with each visit, and the Kitchen Cabinet gives us direct insight into what our guests want."

The new Kitchen Cabinet members were selected from more than 8,000 applicants who applied via Club Veg, Facebook, and Twitter. Members were chosen to participate based on their community involvement and willingness to share opinions on health and nutrition trends. Once the candidates were deemed qualified, they were randomly selected from each region to represent guest viewpoints from different markets across the country.

KITCHEN CABINET 2010 MEMBERS

Regina Doyle, Ft. Myers, Florida

Scott Mermelstein, Houston

Linda Paulin, San Diego

Jacque Zaulka, Phoenix

Misa Leal, Danville, California

Kristine Beeson, Vancouver, Washington

Douglas Cashman, Simi Valley, California

Amy Hausman, Naperville, Illinois

Connie Roberts, Tampa, Florida

Skip Dreyer, Beaverton, Oregon

Kimberly Cantu, Las Vegas