Salad bar insert

A salad bar insert is disclosed which includes upper and lower panels which are bonded together. The upper and lower panels define openings sized to receive containers of salad foods. In addition, the upper and lower panels define a sealed interior volume which surrounds the various openings. Three-dimensional salad food replicas are secured in place to the lower panel inside this chamber, such that the three-dimensional salad food replicas are visible from above through the upper panel. The insert of this invention can readily be wiped clean, and it allows a salad bar to be assembled simply and easily, with minimal labor requirements.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates to a salad bar insert which can be used to display 
salad bar foods in an inviting and attractive manner. 
Salad bars have become an important part of a wide variety of restaurants. 
Typically, salad bars include containers of a number of salad foods, such 
as lettuce, tomatoes, green peppers, onions, and the like, as well as 
several salad dressings. Salad bars are designed to allow consumers to 
make their own salads by selecting foods and dressings. Thus, the consumer 
actually works with the salad bar in preparing his salad, and the 
appearance of the salad bar is therefore important. A salad bar which is 
presented attractively and neatly can be an asset to a restaurant, both in 
terms of creating a pleasing atmosphere, as well as in terms of inviting 
consumers to try the salad bar. 
One approach which has been taken in the past in assembling a salad bar is 
to place containers of salad foods in a mound of flaked ice inside the 
cold pan of a refrigeration table. The flaked ice is disposed around the 
containers, and it provides a clean, refreshing aspect to the salad bar. 
In order further to improve the appearance of the salad bar, it has been 
common practice to decorate the flake ice with vegetables such as kale. 
The flaked ice approach to building a salad bar has the advantage of 
presenting an inviting and appealing salad bar. However, this approach can 
be labor intensive, both in the initial assembly and final disassembly of 
the salad bar, and in the maintenance required to keep it clean. Of 
course, consumers will drop and drip foods from containers onto the flake 
ice as they make salads. Considerable attention and time can be required 
to maintain a flaked ice salad bar in a clean and appealing condition, and 
the labor costs of building and maintaining a flaked ice salad bar can be 
considerable. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
It is a primary object of this invention to provide a salad bar insert 
which is inviting and appealing to consumers, yet which can readily be 
cleaned by simple wiping. 
According to this invention, a salad bar insert is provided for a salad bar 
of the type which includes a table and a plurality of salad food 
containers. The salad bar insert of this invention defines a plurality of 
openings and a display region situated between the openings. Each of the 
openings is sized and shaped to receive a respective one of the 
containers, and the openings are distributed such that the display region 
is visible between the containers. The display region has an upper surface 
which is adapted readily to be wiped clean, and the insert further 
includes a plurality of three-dimensional salad food replicas which are 
held in place inside the salad bar insert beneath the upper surface of the 
display region. The upper surface, which is transparent, serves to protect 
the salad food replicas from dirt and wear yet the replicas are clearly 
visible from above the salad bar insert through the upper surface. In use, 
the salad bar insert is secured in place on a table, and the insert serves 
to retain the salad food containers in place in the openings. The 
preferred embodiment described below rises above the major horizontal 
plane of the salad bar surface. 
It has been found that the combination of an inset and three-dimensional 
food replicas provides an appealing salad bar. The salad food replicas 
cooperate with and serve to set off the salad foods in the containers in a 
distinctive, refreshing, and inviting manner. Yet the distinctive 
appearance of the salad bar insert of this invention is achieved in a 
manner which minimizes labor costs. The salad bar insert can readily be 
cleaned by wiping with a towel, and a salad bar which incorporates the 
insert of this invention can be assembled merely by placing the filled 
salad food containers in the openings defined by the insert. Thus, both in 
terms of assembly and maintenance, salad bars utilizing the insert of this 
invention require a minimum of labor. 
Furthermore, the salad bar insert of this invention can provide significant 
cost savings in materials and capital expenses. The cost of flaked ice and 
vegetables such as kale which are used to make a flaked ice salad bar is 
completely avoided. Furthermore, in many cases, a restaurant which 
utilizes the salad bar insert of this invention will have no need for a 
machine to make flaked ice. For many restaurant requirements, cubed ice is 
preferable to flaked ice. In the past, many restaurants have been required 
to have cubed ice machines for most restaurant purposes as well as a 
flaked ice machine for salad bar requirements. Often, by substituting the 
salad bar insert of this invention for flaked ice salad bars, the need for 
a flaked ice machine can be avoided. 
The invention itself, together with further objects and attendant 
advantages, will best be understood by reference to the following detailed 
description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
Turning now to the drawings, FIGS. 1-3 show various views of a salad bar 
insert built in accordance with the present invention, and FIG. 4 shows a 
cutaway view of the insert of FIGS. 1-3 in use. 
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the insert 10 of this embodiment is a panel 
which is rectangular in shape and which defines a plurality of openings 
22, 22a. The single large opening 22a is used to retain a container for 
lettuce or other greens, and the small openings 22 are used to retain 
other salad food containers. The region between the openings 22, 22a forms 
a display region 24, which is described in detail below. 
As shown in FIG. 3, the insert 10 is formed of a upper panel 20 and a lower 
panel 30. In this embodiment, the upper panel 20 is formed of a 
transparent plastic sheet about 3/16" thick, while the lower panel 30 is 
formed of an opaque, vacuum formed plastic about 1/8" thick. The upper 
panel 20 defines openings 22, 22a, while the lower panel 30 defines 
correspondingly situated walled openings 32. The insert 10 is assembled by 
cementing the upper panel 20 to all adjoining surfaces of the lower panel 
30 to form a sealed interior volume or chamber 34 in the area of the 
display region 24 between the openings 22, 22a. Preferably, the insert 10 
is constructed such that the chamber 34 is sealed against leakage or 
contamination by dust or other materials. A rim strip 40 surrounds the 
perimeter of the insert 10. In this preferred embodiment, the rim strip 40 
is formed of stainless steel in four sections, one for each side of the 
insert 10. The rim strip 40 simultaneously serves two functions. First, it 
serves to secure the upper and lower panels 20, 30 together mechanically, 
to increase the strength and rigidity of the insert 10. Second, the rim 
strip 40 serves as a lip or flange to mount the insert 10 over a 
refrigeration table, as shown in FIG. 4. 
Before the upper and lower panels 20, 30 are cemented together, a wide 
variety of salad food replicas 50 are cemented to the inside surface of 
the lower panel 30, such that they will be positioned inside the chamber 
34 under the display region 24 of the finished insert 10. 
These salad food replicas 50 are three-dimensional, life-like replicas of 
salad components. Each is colored in a realistic manner, and the overall 
effect of the salad food replicas 50 as seen through the transparent upper 
panel 20 is that of a bed of lettuce which completely covers the display 
region 24, and a plurality of cherry tomatoes, slices of green pepper, 
mushrooms, red cabbage, onion, cheese and the like, which are distributed 
randomly over the bed of replica lettuce. In this way, the salad food 
replicas 50 seen in the display region 24 surround the openings 22, 22a 
with a replica of a salad. 
In the presently preferred embodiment, the salad food replicas are supplied 
by Iwasaki Industries of Torrance, Calif. Table 1 presents the quantities 
of salad food replicas which are used in one presently preferred 
embodiment of the insert 10, which measures approximately 50 inches in 
length, 22 inches in width, and 2 inches in depth. 
TABLE I 
______________________________________ 
Identification of Types 
and Quantities of Salad Food Replicas 
Used in Presently Preferred Embodiment 
______________________________________ 
Bacon Bits 27-30 
Red Kidney Beans 26-29 
Beet Slices 11 
Carrot Slices 12 
Cauliflower Pieces 6 
Celery Sticks 18 
Chedder Cheese Strips 21/2 oz. 
Croutons 30-33 
Cucumber Slices 10 
Green Pepper Slices 16 
Mushroom Slices 25 
Onion Slices 20-23 
Radish Slices 21 
Lettuce Pieces 6 lbs. 
Red Cabbage Strips 21/2 oz. 
Cherry Tomatoes 14 
______________________________________ 
FIG. 4 shows an end view in partial cutaway of a salad bar 60 which 
utilizes the insert 10 described above. This salad bar 60 includes a 
conventional refrigeration table, and is of the type designed to form a 
free standing salad bar in the center of a room. The salad bar 60 defines 
a cold pan 62 which includes a horizontal refrigeration surface. The salad 
bar insert 10 is suspended over the cold pan 62 by the rim strip 40. 
Typically, the first step in assembling a salad bar utilizing the insert 10 
of this invention is to clean the cold pan 62 and then to place the clean 
insert 10 in place over the cold pan 62. Then a number of salad food 
containers 64, each containing a respective salad food, are placed in 
respective ones of the openings 22,22a. Typically, lettuce or other greens 
are placed in a large bowl in the opening 22a, while salad foods (such as 
peppers, olives, green peppers, radishes, bacon bits, croutons, cheese and 
the like) are placed in containers in the smaller openings 22. Of course, 
the particular salad foods used in the various containers 64 form no part 
of the present invention and can be chosen as desired. 
Each of the containers 64 defines an upper lip 68 which prevents the 
container 64 from passing through the insert 10. In addition, each of the 
containers 64 defines a flattened bottom 66 which is designed to rest on 
the cold pan 62 in thermal contact with the cold pan 62. 
In order to maintain the salad foods in the containers 64 in a cold, crisp 
condition, it has been found preferable to form the salad food containers 
64 out of a thermally conducting material, such as stainless steel. In 
assembling the salad bar shown in FIG. 4, each of the containers and its 
associated salad food is first refrigerated, then all of the refrigerated 
components are placed in respective ones of the openings 22,22a to 
complete assembly of the salad bar. If desired, the salad food containers 
64 can be provided with plastic coated upper lips 68 to give them the 
appearance of crockery. 
From the foregoing description it should be apparent that a salad bar 
insert has been described which provides the illusion of fresh, 
three-dimensional, realistic salad foods surrounding the various salad 
food containers. Salad bars utilizing the insert of this invention can 
quickly and efficiently be assembled as described above. In addition, the 
time and effort needed to maintain a salad bar which incorporates the 
insert of this invention in a clean and attractive condition is minimal. 
This is because the upper panel 20 is provided with a relatively flat and 
featureless upper surface which can readily be wiped clean. Thus, the 
insert of this invention combines the advantages of easy cleaning with the 
attractive appearance of three-dimensional salad food replicas. Moreover, 
the insert of this invention acts as a thermal barrier, which closes the 
cold pan 62 around the containers 64. 
Of course, it should be understood that a range of changes and 
modifications to the preferred embodiment described above will be apparent 
to those skilled in the art. For example, the shape of the insert and the 
size, shape and number of the openings in the insert can all be varied as 
necessary to meet the requirements of individual applications. 
Furthermore, the construction techniques described above are not essential 
to all forms of this invention, and it may be preferable in some 
applications to build the salad bar insert of this invention out of other 
materials using other construction techniques. For example, the walls of 
the openings can be formed by cylindrical components which are secured to 
upper and lower surfaces. Alternatively, the three-dimensional vegetable 
replicas can be imbedded in a transparent material. It is therefore 
intended that the foregoing detailed description be regarded as 
illustrative rather than limiting, and that it be understood that it is 
the following claims, including all equivalents, which are intended to 
define the scope of this invention.