Representatives from nearly a dozen leading restaurant companies shared their enthusiasm today for Kids LiveWell, a new National Restaurant Association kids' dining initiative.
"When the National Restaurant Association approached us with this opportunity, we jumped at the chance," said Raquel Mireles, senior manager, culinary innovation, Chili's Grill & Bar.
Kids LiveWell recognizes the importance of giving parents and children more options and information so they can make choices that are right for their families, National Restaurant Association President and CEO Dawn Sweeney said at the standing-room-only event at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.
"We know we have an important role to play in helping Americans lead healthier lives," Sweeney said. "Our vision has been to create an environment that encourages voluntary, flexible options for restaurateurs to address today's healthy living challenges -- and to develop a holistic approach to healthy living that encompasses a multitude of solutions."
Kids LiveWell, launched with Healthy Dining, a California-based organization with a nutrition-analysis company and consumer website, showcases restaurants that offer children's menu items that meet strict nutrition criteria.
Healthy Dining founder Anita Jones-Mueller walked media representatives and others at the launch through the new Kids LiveWell section of the organization's website.
"It's exciting that restaurants are rising to the challenge . so we can live each day at our best," she said. As the mother of a 10-year-old, she said she knew how difficult it was to find creative ways to get children to eat more nutritious food.
Likewise, Chef Nicole Barreira of T-BONES and Cactus Jack's, a mother of young children, said she was thrilled to come up with items for the Kids LiveWell program. "I'm hoping guests at this very moment are ordering them," she said.
The restaurant companies at the launch event are among the first 19 companies to participate in Kids LiveWell. Those 19 companies represent more than 15,000 restaurant locations.
David Coltrin, senior director, product marketing and strategy, Denny's, said he looked forward to working with Kids LiveWell to create lifelong healthy eating habits for kids.
About a dozen Washington, D.C.-area children sampled qualifying meals and dishes from 11 of the inaugural companies participating in Kids LiveWell. Ten-year-old Julia Posner of Arlington, Va., took a break from eating to praise Burger King's apple fries, Denny's pasta marinara and Cracker Barrel's corn and green beans.
She said she was glad that restaurants were adding more healthy choices for kids and adults. She said it was important that kids "were not just eating junk food all day." Kids LiveWell will help kids learn what nutrition is and make better choices, she said.
To qualify for Kids LiveWell, restaurants must offer full children's meals that include an entrée, side and beverage for no more than 600 calories. Meals must consist of nutrient-rich foods, including two servings of fruit, vegetables, whole grain, lean protein and/or low-fat dairy. They also must limit sodium, fat and sugar.
Participating restaurants must offer at least one other side dish that follows similar criteria. They also must provide nutrition information about the meal and promote the items so they are easily identifiable.
The nutrition criteria for Kids LiveWell meals is based on scientific recommendations from the 2010 USDA Dietary Guidelines, the Institutes of Medicine, government guidance for school nutrition and other health organizations.
Ype Von Hengst, executive chef and co-founder of Rockville, Md.-based Silver Diner, said restaurants had a moral obligation to give kids better food. "If we don't, we are doing them a disservice," he said.
The launch also included endorsements from Jill Berry, a blogger for DC CityMommy, and Rob Bisceglie, executive director, Action for Healthy Kids. Bisceglie said he was giving the perspective of a "foodie dad who likes to eat out a lot" with his wife and three children, ages 6, 4 and 1.
"We needed the restaurant association to do this," he said.
Learn more about the program and how restaurants can get involved at restaurant.org/KidsLiveWell.
