Consumers are showing increasing interest in health and wellness, including the nutritional content in restaurant food. In fact, three of four say they try to eat more healthfully in restaurants now than they did two years ago. The new nutrition disclosure law for chain restaurants will make it easy for consumers to find nutrition information, and many restaurants are already showcasing their healthful menu options.
National Restaurant Association member Darden Restaurants just announced that it joined California-based Healthy Dining to list its brands’ nutritious menu items on the HealthyDiningFinder.com website, which was launched in collaboration with the Association and developed with partial funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
All of Darden’s concepts — Red Lobster, Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, The Capital Grille, Bahama Breeze and Seasons 52 — are members of Healthy Dining. Guests at any of the 1,800 locations can find a variety of Healthy Dining-approved dishes on the site.
"Our menus provide a wide variety of choices that appeal to a broad range of taste preferences and dietary needs," John Caron, Darden's chief marketing officer, said in the company’s news release. "Those include dietitian-approved Healthy Dining menu choices, giving our guests even more ways to meet their individual nutritional goals."
Nutrition information for all menu items at Darden Restaurant locations — including those found on HealthyDiningFinder.com — is available on the brands' websites.
The National Restaurant Association and Healthy Dining recently announced an expanded partnership to promote the restaurant industry’s proactive efforts to offer more healthful cuisine.
“HealthyDiningFinder.com is a great tool for restaurants to highlight better-for-you options on their menus and provide the nutrition information their guests want in a convenient online format,” said the Association’s President and CEO Dawn Sweeney.
The new health care reform bill creates a national nutrition-disclosure standard for chain restaurants with 20 or more locations. It requires them to post calories on menus and menu boards and provide additional nutrition information upon request. More information on the new menu-labeling law is available in the Advocacy & Representation section of our website.
Our members — and members of any state restaurant and hospitality association — receive a 20 percent discount with Healthy Dining. Learn more at www.HealthyDiningFinder.com.
