EAST LONGMEADOW – The mother and son team who have opened Green/Wich readily admit their successful 45-year involvement in the restaurant industry didn’t quite prepare them for starting their own concept.

Marie and Eric Cromwell operate 10 franchise restaurants – KFC, Burger King and Taco Bell – between here and Boston, but Green/Wich is their first they have built from the ground up and after being open since late in December, the two owners are looking to continually fine tune their restaurant format.

For instance they added a kid’s menu after opening and will be introducing grain bowls next month for a heartier warm meal.

“It’s like building your home – it’s a really steep learning curve,” Marie said. Eric added, “With Burger King you know who you are and what you are.”

Eric explained to Reminder Publications they started looking at their own restaurant eight or nine years ago and thought about a high-end burger place.

The establishment of Max Burger and Plan B Burger Bar motivated them to try something different.

The idea behind Green/Wich came from seeing quick service restaurants in the Washington D.C. area that specialized in healthy salads, When he saw a line of 50 to 60 people stretching down a sidewalk at lunchtime, Eric thought it was a format that would be unique to Western Massachusetts.

The idea, though, needed some tweaking. Eric explained a restaurant that specializes in just salad appeals mainly to woman and requires being in a heavily populated metro area. Their solution to broaden the appeal was to include New York deli style sandwiches.

They chose one of the most visible locations in the area – the former Boston Market building at the East Longmeadow rotary. There people from the town, as well as Springfield, Longmeadow and Somers, CT, drive by daily.

The format of the restaurant is not unlike a Subway as you can have your salad built before your eyes, adding a wide variety of ingredients including proteins. The deli sandwiches include pastrami that is the same pastrami used by celebrated New York City delis such as Katz’s.

A detail such as that is the talking point for Green/Wich. Eric noted they go “the extra mile” for high-end quality ingredients. They source as much of their food as locally as possible and look for additive-free salad dressings. Pepsi installed the first fountain soda dispenser in the nation for its artisan “Stubborn” soda line at Green/Wich.

Another touch is the freshly made potato chips at the restaurant, which Marie said are made in small batches throughout the day to ensure freshness. Fried breaded avocado has proven to be a popular side dish and the restaurant offers soups as well.

An added edge to the quick service format is the availability of wine and beer.

Are the Cromwells going to create a chain or possibly franchise their own restaurant? Eric said multiple locations are the long-term goal.

For more information, go to www.greenwichfresh.com.