Posted on 09/15/2011 4:25:43 AM PDT by tobyhill
Encouraged by Michelle Obama's campaign to reduce childhood obesity, the company that owns the Olive Garden, Red Lobster and four other popular restaurant chains is pledging to cut the calories and sodium in its meals and overhaul its kids' fare.
Darden Restaurants Inc. was unveiling the changes Thursday, with the first lady on hand to lend support.
The company will pledge to reduce the calories and sodium in all its meals by 10 percent over five years, and by 20 percent over 10 years. For children, French fries and sugar-sweetened beverages will become the exception and not the rule.
All kids' meals will automatically come with a side of fruit or vegetables and eight ounces of 1 percent milk unless an adult requests a substitute, Drew Madsen, president and chief operating officer of Orlando, Fla.-based Darden, told The Associated Press.
"We think it's the most comprehensive health and wellness commitment in the industry," he said.
Darden's restaurants serve more than 400 million meals annually at more than 1,900 locations nationwide. Its four other restaurant chains are LongHorn Steakhouse, The Capital Grille, Bahama Breeze and Seasons 52. The Capital Grille and Seasons 52 do not have children's menus.
(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...
LLS
When Chewbaca gets around to reducing her ass down to a size that doesn't turn the head of a Clydesdale ... maybe then Darden management should start listening.
My wife and I went to an Olive Garden in Florida a few years back for the first and only time, they served us what can only be described as "children's portions". I even asked the waitress if they were children's portions they were so small, she assured me that they were regular portions. We haven't visited another since.
Another reason not to ever eat in an Olive Garden again! Spread the word to family and friends.
No Noodles For You!
I wont be eating at any of these restaurants.
I fact I havent.
What the... so every year a little less taste and a little less food. Why don't they do it all at once. Oh yeah, people would notice. They hope to slide this by so people do not notice.
I USED to like going to Olive Garden......
I hope the bitch stays away from Outback!
Oh crap, I love Longhorn Steakhouse. Well, time for another letter to explain why I won’t be back.
they served us what can only be described as "children's portions".
They have a advert campaign declaring "Never Ending Pasta Bowls". For $12 you can eat all the pasta, sausage, roasted chicken and breadsticks you can possibly want. Conceivably for only $12/day you can pack in a week's worth of calories at one sitting.
I'm not so sure how they can't wear the "Hypocrisy" or "Disingenuous Pandering" label on this stunt.
Nevertheless, I haven't darkened their doorway for well over a decade when I learned that they are significant contributors to Planned Parenthood. I guess Olive Garden wants to kill your children before they get to the restaurant and if they survive, starve them.
Now I have another reason not to eat at Olive Garden.
None of that is going to help kids lose weight. Our children consume way too many carbs including all those GRAINS that are pushed at them. I’d like to see kids start eating more protein and good fats BUT someone would have to actually cook them and most people don’t even cook anymore!
The last thing you should do if you want to lose weight is follow the gov’t guidelines!
Same here.
No one who comprehends good Italian cooking would ever eat at Olive Garden.
Yo, since we’re getting less food are they dropping prices?
What, no!?
This is great, serve less, charge more, and pretend you’re doing the public a favor. Brilliant!
Darden Group used to be a corporate donor to Planned Parenthood. I don’t know if that’s still true. In any case, I stopped eating there long ago for that reason.
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