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Commentary: Restaurants and the new calorie police

It is too early to completely reformulate consumer favorites into healthier items, but not too early for some menu evolution.

March 29, 2011

By Cari Price, corporate development chef, Food IQ

For years, national media broadcasts have revealed the shocking news about calorie-laden restaurant meals, warning their audiences of menu items packed with sodium, saturated fat, cholesterol and calories. David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding, bestselling authors of "Eat This, Not That!," also have done their part in keeping consumers informed of the "20 Worst Foods in America." Each year, this list calls out restaurants and overly indulgent menu items by name, and often generates quick response by operations to reformulate those items or excise them from the menu.

Prompted by major national health concerns such as the prevalence of high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, cancer and obesity, local and state governments have, in recent years, begun implementing mandatory nutrition disclosure on restaurant menus. Since 2008, these health issues — which can be linked to poor nutrition and an increased frequency of eating out — have led the state of California, New York City, Philadelphia, Seattle and many more to take action.

As of this writing, we are just days away from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's unveiling of federal menu labeling requirements. As part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, passed by the Obama administration, national chain restaurants with 20 or more locations will soon be required by law to display calorie counts on all standard menu items.

As nutrition transparency looms for restaurants across the country, consumers seem to be contemplating a change as well. Mintel, in its Emerging Restaurant Concepts, December 2010 report, noted that "62 percent of consumers say they plan to eat healthier when dining out." Chefs, too, have identified nutrition and health as being a top 20 trend in the National Restaurant Association's "What's Hot in 2011" survey.

Are these trends enough to make you launch a healthier menu development for your brand? Not so fast.

Eric Giandelone, Mintel Menu Insights director of foodservice research, offers this advice: "Government and consumers want healthier menu options, but restaurant-goers are also very concerned about value and how their food tastes. Keeping both parties satisfied might be a challenge as we move into 2011."

Before you jump into the healthier menu fray, recognize that consumers are saying one thing and doing another. Recently, the American Journal of Preventive Medicinestudied purchases at Taco Time restaurants where, in the chain's King County, Wash., location, a labeling law went into effect two years ago. In another location, menu boards didn't list nutritional information. The results were surprising: Mandatory menu labeling did nothing to promote healthier food-purchasing behavior.

Also Technomic's 2010 Healthy Eating Consumer Trend Report found that "nearly half of all consumers want healthier menu items, but only about a quarter of them actively consider nutrition when dining out." By far, the majority of consumers are unwilling to turn into self-policing calorie watchdogs, scouring your restaurant's menu for the lowest possible calorie items — but they will repeatedly see the calorie counts of frequently ordered items and might think twice about indulging in them.

If you do take on a healthier menu positioning, be smart. Yes, you could follow a popular recent trend, developing new items to fit within a certain calorie threshold, such as Fazoli's new line of Mini Bakes, all less than 400 calories. Or you could take a less traveled path similar to Macaroni Grill, reformulating the majority of menu items to be healthier ... an action recommended only after you've been "called out" multiple times on one of those dreaded "worst foods" lists, or when you suddenly discover that you're neglecting a big health-conscious consumer base.

Working toward a healthier menu

This brings us to the first step toward creating a "healthier" menu: Know your consumer. As Technomic found, consumers' definitions of healthy eating can vary greatly. One group might value food origin as healthy, concentrating on local or regional foods; another may evaluate healthiness based solely on calorie and/or fat content. Yet another might search out nutrient-dense, high calorie foods whose vegetables or whole grain content offsets the calorie count.

According to Technomic's consumer research manager Helly Weikel, one constant to expect is this: "Consumers definitely expect restaurants to offer something they consider healthy, and they expect them to be able to do it in a way that still tastes really good. The expectations are really high."

No doubt about it, we're still learning what this healthy eating phenomenon is all about. What we do know is that there are no easy answers. Let's let it evolve before we tackle the risk and expense of reformulating our consumers' favorite products. But in the meantime let's not sit still: Keep our menus evolving. Start by giving consumers healthy options. And, as we select a new strategic menu path, we must never forget that good taste comes first!

Cari Price is the corporate development chef at Food IQ. The company's goal is to help restaurant operators create food with impact. Food that starts with true insight into a concept's business, its customers and its competition, and ideas with the culinary skill, experience and vision that help restaurant operators connect with their audience.