Good morning, Gilbert. The extreme heat warning runs through 8 PM Sunday, with afternoon highs between 103 and 116, so move the outdoor plans to early morning.
- 🥗 Salad and Go has closed every location. The chain started in Gilbert in 2013. Its last day of service was Wednesday.
- 💎 Gem and fossil show at HD South Saturday. Free admission, free parking, 9 AM to 5 PM.
- 🥩 Fogo de Chão opens near SanTan Village. The Brazilian steakhouse's first Gilbert location.
- 🏫 Higley Unified will fill a governing board vacancy by appointment.
- 🏠 351 homes sold in Gilbert last month. Median sale price: $579,000.
- 🎟️ Four picks across the Valley, from Mullett Arena to Glendale.
Salad and Go, a Gilbert original, is done
Salad and Go, the drive-thru salad chain founded in Gilbert in 2013, is permanently closing all of its locations after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Key facts:
- Employees were told this week. The final day of service was Wednesday.
- The company cited ongoing financial trouble, slowing customer demand, rising costs, and broader industry pressure.
- Court filings show the company behind Dutch Bros has agreed to a $105 million deal covering 51 locations in Arizona and Nevada, plus additional leases in Texas and Oklahoma.
- Those drive-thru buildings would be converted into Dutch Bros shops serving coffee, drinks, and food.
- The sale still needs approval from a federal bankruptcy judge before it is official.
It started as one location here and grew into a chain across two states on cheap salads, wraps, breakfast burritos, and lemonade. For a town whose commercial story is usually about what is arriving, this is the rarer version: a Gilbert-grown brand that scaled out and then stopped. The buildings, in most cases, are not going anywhere.
What to watch: the bankruptcy court ruling on the Dutch Bros purchase, which determines what happens to the drive-thru sites. Details.
The weekend
A quieter slate than usual, with the heat doing most of the scheduling.
Thursday, August 6
Friday, August 7
Saturday, August 8
- 💎 Gilbert Fine Mineral, Gem, and Fossil Show. 18th year, at the Severson Center at HD South, 9 AM to 5 PM. Free admission and free parking. Produced by Les Presmyk and De Natura. Details.
- 🎸 Outside the Line at O.H.S.O. Gilbert. Second live-music night of the weekend at the same patio. Details.
- 🧠 Trivia with The Little King at Mulligan's. Western Skies Golf Club. Details.
The gem show is the one to build a Saturday around. It is indoors, it is free, and it is the kind of thing kids either walk past in four minutes or refuse to leave.
Around Gilbert
- 🥩 Fogo de Chão has opened its first Gilbert restaurant, near SanTan Village. The Brazilian steakhouse marked the opening with donations. Details.
- 🌎 A Gilbert teen has won a Sister Cities International youth leadership award. Shandiin Harrison earned the honor through Gilbert Sister Cities. Details.
- 🏠 351 homes sold in Gilbert last month, at a median sale price of $579,000, down less than 1% from a year ago. Homes sat a median of 46 days.
- 🏛️ Town council meets Tuesday, August 11 at 6:30 PM. The agenda and full packet are posted. Details.
From the schools
🏫 Higley Unified (HUSD, the district covering southeast Gilbert) will fill an open governing board seat by appointment rather than waiting for a vote. The board handles the appointment itself, so the next meeting agenda is where this gets decided. Details.
Around the Valley
Four picks worth leaving Gilbert for, all of them tonight.
- 🤠 Ole 60, Off the Grid Tour. Mullett Arena in Tempe, 7 PM. Closest of the four, and a country bill in a room built for hockey. Tickets.
- 🤸 Xfinity U.S. Gymnastics Championships, junior men's day one. Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix, 1 PM. A national championship, in town, on a Thursday afternoon. Tickets.
- 🎶 Calle 24, Eterno Tour. The Van Buren in Phoenix, 8 PM. A small room for an act this size. Tickets.
- 🎤 Don Toliver, Nitrous Octane World Tour. Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, 7:30 PM. The long haul across the Valley, so leave early. Tickets.