HEALTHY EATING: What we say conflicts with what we eat

BY CAROLYN O’NEIL

Healthy menu items win the popularity contest when surveys ask, “Would you like to see more?” But when it comes to turning those votes into vittles we end up ordering, those light items don’t make it to the plate. If you’ve ever gone out for a salad and ended up with a steak, you can relate to this.

According to new findings from Mintel Menu Insights, a company that tracks restaurant menu trends, although more than three-quarters of adults claim they’d like to see more healthy items on the menu, barely half say they usually order them.

So what’s driving us to the drive-throughs?

No surprise that taste and appetite demands trump nutrition most of the time. Mintel’s survey found that 20 percent rank food health as an important factor, while taste and hunger satisfaction, selected by
77 percent and 44 percent of respondents respectively, were more important when ordering dinner.

See the light

Just because a menu item is promoted as being healthier doesn’t mean it can’t be just as tasty and satisfying.

Lots of restaurants are upping the ante on flavor without a lot of added fat by emphasizing more farm-fresh vegetables, interesting spice blends and zesty low-calorie sauces such as salsas and citrus marinades.

Chef Scott Hemmerly’s new “farm to table” menu at Neo in the Mansion on Peachtree features gorgeous salads, including a watermelon and tomato salad with feta cheese. Vegetable side dishes are delicious creations with a just-picked taste such as an okra, corn, black-eyed pea succotash with smoked tomato broth.

Another obstacle voiced by diners is that healthy restaurant fare is more expensive. But, that’s not always the case. The last time I checked, a small order of fries costs less than a large order. And to make that burger a bit lighter, you can skip the cheese and save a bit. Split an oversize entree with a friend and your meal just cost half as much.

Trying to eat more fish? That can be pretty pricey with halibut, snapper or sea bass often being a menu’s highest-price tickets. But, there’s more than one fish in the sea. Tilapia and even Georgia’s own mountain trout often cost the same as the chicken entrees. Sharing dessert, another great way to live it up and keep your weight down, will trim your restaurant food dollar, too.

Dining out does get a lot of the blame for our nation’s battle of the bulge and that’s one of the driving forces behind government regulations to increase nutrition labeling on menus.

Mintel’s survey found that more than three-quarters of us do want to see the cost in fat and calories listed on a menu, too. Makes sense to me. How would you like to buy a pair of shoes with no price tag and you’d only find out how much it cost after it was billed to your credit card?

In order to decide which menu choice is the healthiest, we need the food facts first. Maybe then more diners will opt for the lighter choice when they see how much they’re saving.

Carolyn O’Neil is a registered dietitian and co-author of “The Dish on Eating Healthy and Being Fabulous!” E-mail her at carolyn@carolynoneil.com

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