Sweetgreen plans to launch its first East Coast Sweetlane in McLean on August 20. The restaurant at 6220 Old Dominion Drive is already open. The new part is the vehicle pickup lane for orders placed through Sweetgreen’s mobile app.
This is not a conventional drive-thru where customers order from a menu board. Guests place and pay for an order before arriving, then collect it without parking or entering the restaurant.
Sweetgreen Sweetlane McLean: Quick facts
How does the McLean Sweetlane work?
Customers select the McLean restaurant in the Sweetgreen app, choose a pickup time and pay before reaching the property. The Sweetlane is designed as the handoff point for that completed order.
The distinction matters. Calling it a standard drive-thru suggests people can pull up, read a menu and place an order from the car. Sweetgreen’s format is an app-only pickup lane.
McLean will be Sweetgreen’s fourth Sweetlane nationally. The format debuted in Schaumburg, Illinois, on November 15, 2022. A later Costa Mesa, California, location pairs a Sweetlane with the company’s automated Infinite Kitchen assembly system; Sweetgreen has not said that the McLean restaurant will use that system.
Where is the Sweetgreen Sweetlane in McLean?
The restaurant is at 6220 Old Dominion Drive, McLean, Virginia 22101, in Chesterbrook Shopping Center. Sweetgreen’s official location page lists daily hours from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and a store phone number of 703-215-2944.
The McLean restaurant opened in December 2025 in a former Truist Bank building. Sweetgreen retained the vehicle-lane opportunity and moved through Fairfax County’s special-exception process before launching pickup service.
What Fairfax County approved
County materials identify the applicant as Sweetgreen Dupont, LLC and describe a 2,571-square-foot restaurant. The special-exception amendment sought permission to reduce the number of required vehicle stacking spaces to nine for the mobile-order pickup lane.
The format also fits Sweetgreen’s wider suburban strategy. Co-founder Nicolas Jammet told Axios that more of the chain’s nearly 300 restaurants are now in suburban locations than city centers, where customers are more likely to arrive by car.
When does Sweetgreen’s McLean pickup lane open?
Sweetgreen’s Sweetlane is scheduled to launch August 20, 2026. The dining room and regular pickup operation are already serving customers.
Use the app before entering the lane
The lane is intended for prepaid mobile orders. Check Sweetgreen’s app on launch day for available pickup windows and any temporary operating instructions.
See more Northern Virginia restaurant openings and McLean-area updates from DC Spot.
Frequently asked questions about Sweetgreen’s Sweetlane in McLean
When does the Sweetgreen Sweetlane open in McLean?
Sweetgreen plans to launch the McLean Sweetlane on August 20, 2026. The restaurant itself is already open.
Is the McLean Sweetlane a regular drive-thru?
No. Customers place and pay for orders in the Sweetgreen app, then use the lane to pick them up.
Where is the Sweetgreen Sweetlane?
It is at Sweetgreen’s McLean restaurant at 6220 Old Dominion Drive, McLean, Virginia 22101.
What are the Sweetgreen McLean hours?
Sweetgreen’s official listing currently shows the McLean restaurant open daily from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Hours can change.
Is this Sweetgreen’s first drive-thru?
It is Sweetgreen’s first Sweetlane on the East Coast and the fourth Sweetlane nationally, according to Axios. The format is mobile-order pickup rather than conventional drive-thru ordering.
Do I need the Sweetgreen app?
Yes. The Sweetlane is designed for orders placed and paid for through Sweetgreen’s mobile app before arrival.
AI-generated editorial concept illustrating the Sweetlane mobile-order pickup process in McLean; it is not an on-site photograph.
Draft corrected August 13, 2026 after a second review of Sweetgreen’s current McLean listing, Fairfax County materials and Axios reporting. The restaurant is open now; the fourth Sweetlane nationally and first on the East Coast is scheduled to launch August 20.
