Healthy options don’t appeal to all

From tacos topped with pico de gallo at Taco Bell and whole-wheat linguine at Olive Garden to braised kale and baked sweet potatoes on many menus, there’s definitely a healthy selection of more nutritious options at restaurants today.

But that doesn’t mean diet-conscious dishes are leading the charge at the cash register.

“We’re committed and it’s our responsibility to make these options available, but they’re not big sellers,” says Jonathan Blum, chief public affairs and global nutrition officer for Yum Brands (Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut).

Taco Bell’s Fresco menu items with less than 350 calories and less than 10 grams of fat are a dietitian’s dream, but sales are skinny compared to cheese-covered Mexican classics. Blum says, “Consumers aren’t demanding healthier choices as much as we’d like.”

Speaking at the National Restaurant Association’s annual trade show in Chicago, Blum and other industry leaders discussed the current state of nutrition.

“We’re integrating nutrition into the menu development process, but it’s not always easy,” says Steve Hilton, vice president of global government and public affairs of McDonald’s. To address recommended calorie levels for children, McDonald’s shrunk the portion size of fries in Happy Meals several years ago, but Hilton says, “There were a lot of parents and children not happy about it.”

Registered dietitian Cheryl Dolven, director of health and wellness at Darden Restaurants, says choice and innovation lead menu development for healthy options, but customers don’t want indulgent foods to disappear.

“Moms tell us, ‘I feed my kids broccoli and grapes at home, so when we dine out, we want to enjoy the fries and a soda,’” she says. “We have to listen to how they use our restaurants. It might be only four times a year.”

Menu labeling

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is finalizing regulations to require restaurants to make nutrition information available nationwide. Dolven says it surprised her that 50 percent in focus groups reacted negatively to the concept: “They said, ‘I don’t need to be told about what to eat.’ And in fact we don’t know if the information will change diet behavior. About 60 studies have been done and half show menu labeling changes what people order and half show it didn’t.”

It does help with quick comparisons. Checking websites, which already list nutrition information, reveals that the burger you want actually can have fewer calories than the entree salad you thought you were supposed to order. Case in point: Five Guys Burger at 700 calories vs. Wendy’s Spicy Chicken Caesar Salad at 780 calories. But calories and fat alone do not tell the whole health story. The salad has more fiber than the burger.