This new South Hill restaurant is fast food, but it’s not going to be what you expect

Ryan and Tricia VanCleave understand the lure of fast food.

Days packed with errand running are the worst for them. They work hard to avoid hitting a drive-thru when they only have a few minutes to grab a meal, but often that’s all that’s available.

As Ryan VanCleave says, “We were always looking for the best of the worst restaurant options.”

As Tricia knows, eating fast-and-healthy as someone who must eat gluten-free — she has celiac disease — is challenging at a fast-food restaurant.

Both maintain busy careers — Ryan works for the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department and Tricia works in hospitality — and are fitness-focused as bodybuilders.

When they started talking about opening their own business, they wondered if they could make it something healthy food focused with an emphasis on dining for busy people like themselves.

That’s where Muscle Maker Grill comes in. The couple will open the first Northwest location of the national chain that’s designed for healthy, fast eating.

Construction is underway now for the South Hill restaurant that will open in the former Pita Pit space next to Boiling Crawfish and Forever Sushi. If all goes as planned, Muscle Maker Grill should open sometime in late spring or after.

The idea behind the fast-food restaurant is to take favorite fast foods, such as burgers, pizzas and wraps, and turn them into something nutritious and tasty, said VanCleave.

Before you call them fun killers, take a look at the menu.

They’ll serve cheesecake and pizza — just healthier versions of those calorie-laden fat fests.

There’s even a burger on the menu.

It’s made from grass-fed beef, with turkey bacon, reduced fat cheddar cheese and a zero-carb house sauce on a whole wheat bun. Nutritionally, it weighs in at 610 calories, 38 carbs, 46 grams of protein and 8 grams of sugar. I know all that because the restaurant supplies a fairly complete nutritional profile for every menu item.

“One of the big differences between us and other fast-food restaurants is that we’re designed for health. We’re not a fast-food restaurant with a few healthy options. Any menu item you look at has a healthy aspect to it. We have low carb, keto, gluten-free people who are on a vegan diet. It’s not limited to something a little healthy. If you live a healthy life or have a diet you need to follow, we’ll have something for you,” explained VanCleave.

In addition to the burger, wraps and skinny flatbread pizzas, there’s pasta, brown rice bowls, salads and dessert. For those eating low-carb, he emphasized they’ll have riced cauliflower available and other keto friendly options. Gluten-free eaters such as Tricia will find options that go well beyond one or two items.

While diners can do the grab-and-go thing and pick up a fast meal, they’ll also have meal prep available so that diners can take home fully-prepared meals that can be served whenever.

“You can order as many meals as you need for the week, broken down exactly how you need them to meet your fitness goals —low carb, gluten free, keto friendly, you name it,” VanCleave explained.

VanCleave noted that every dish’s macros — the nutritional content of the meal — is printed on a label on the meal package.

Muscle Maker Grill

Where: 4301 S. Meridian, Puyallup

Info: facebook.com/MMGPuyallup

Opening: Late spring 2019 or after

This story was originally published March 19, 2019 at 11:00 AM.