(This column is posted at www.StevenSavage.com, Steve’s Tumblr, and Pillowfort. Find out more at my newsletter, and all my social media at my linktr.ee)
It was only in the fall of 2025 that I became acquainted with the term “Slop Bowl” – references to the “bowl meals” from Chipotle, SweetGreen, and a huge amount of fast casual dining. I’d not heard of it, I’m guessing it was a regional thing, and I also found it a bit insulting for the food. So as a break from my usual deeper speculations, I want to talk food, namely I dislike the insulting term and reference “Slop Bowl.”
Do I have opinions on food? Of course. I love to make food and cook, and I also like to be efficient and effective. So I have opinions on “Slop Bowls.”
Namely, I say, don’t go insulting them.
First, the average Slop Bowl is usually a damn sight healthier than your average fast food. I mean most Slop Bowls are basically salads, burrito bowls, or just reasonably nutritious stuff. Hell, Poki Bowls are Slop Bowls by some definition. If people are getting their “Green, a bean, a grain” for a meal? Good. It beats most of the other options.
Secondly, Slop Bowls are convenient. People don’t need to unwrap three boxes of food or a sandwich that may fall apart. You got a bowl. That’s it. One stop shop for a meal, easily portable, easy to stack, easy to clean up after.
Fourth, Slop Bowls are historical. Isn’t a stir-fry essentially a Slop Bowl? How many soups, stews, and meals through history were just “a container of stuff” that was a meal? Single-serving casserole meals are just a slightly more structurally sound slop bowl – a slop plate? Humans have always found ways to toss stuff into one meal.
Fifth, and finally, Slop Bowls are easy to make. Before I heard the term, before I ate fast casual bowls, I made them. I still make them albeit I called and call them something different. This has included:
- Brown rice, shredded spinach, mashed tofu, mixed with Korean fermented peppers and soybeans.
- Salads of beans or tofu, steamed broccoli or “refrigerator slaw”, some pickled vegetables, and a dressing (usually a mix of soy sauce, vinegar, and chili paste).
- Full-service stews that are basically filled with veggies and beans (garbanzo is a favorite).
- Nachos that are covered in stir-fried cabbage and refried beans with salsa. Yeah, aren’t Nachos just a slop bowl in a way?
- Assorted curries – c’mon, slop bowl.
As much as I like different foods, as much as I like different forms of food, I keep returning to “bowl meals” again and again when I want to keep things simple and healthy. And why not? We humans have always wanted to earth healthy, reduce cleanup, and do it fast.
So let’s not insult the Slop Bowl. Let’s salute it as a part of human history for very good reasons.
Steven Savage