Salsarita's build-your- own-soup program lets guests choose from among 25 selections including rice, chicken and salsa

So when the 85-unit chain began looking for ways to expand combo-meal and healthful choices, a customized build-your-own soup option using existing ingredients and equipment was the easy answer.

Launched in January, build-your-own soup, which replaced chicken tortilla soup, has increased soup sales 40 percent. About half of the guests ordering soup choose it as a $2.89 entree, with a side of chips and salsa or guacamole included in the price. The rest go for a combo meal, paying $2.99 to add soup and a drink to an entree.

Previously Salsarita's didn't have a soup or salad option with its combo meals. While the original combo—an entree bundled with chips and a drink—has always done well, comprising 45 to 60 percent of sales, “Guests let us know that they really wanted some healthier combo options, too,” says Charles Ratterree, executive vice president for the Charlotte, N.C.-based chain.

To build their own soup, guests move along the ingredient line telling servers which of the 25 selections they want in their bowl. Each 12-ounce bowl gets at least 4 ounces of assorted ingredients, but there's no limit to the number of ingredients they can pile in. Thus far, rice, black beans, chicken, salsa and a sprinkling of cheese are the favorite soup inclusions. Eight ounces of a veggie-based broth is ladled over all to finish.

To get the broth just right, Salsarita's experimented with different consistencies and flavor profiles. The vegetarian base they finally selected is flavored with onion, cilantro, jalapeño and tomato.

First tested at Salsarita's national convention in mid-2007, the soup program got a very positive reaction from franchisees. “That was important to us, because switching over from a made-ready soup to a build-your-own represents a significant operational change,” Ratterree concludes.