Striving4Zen

With a few exceptions, few restaurants go out of their way to publish the nutritional information about their food, at least not in any obvious way offline. Much the way D+caf Test Strips have blown the proverbial lid open on caffeine content, however, Fatburgr is a new site that puts together in one place the nutritional facts about a variety of fast-food restaurants and chains.

Some 20 restaurants are currently listed on Fatburgr—including McDonald's, Subway and Chili's, for example—and more are being added every day, the company says. For each of them the site lists the calories, fat, carbs and fiber content for each menu item, and users can sort the list by any of those criteria. Listings can also be searched by food type, and all data is available by iPhone for those needing to make ordering decisions on the go. Fatburgr is free to use.

Besides equipping consumers with information that can help them stay healthier, of course, Fatburgr is also a nice example of what our sister site trendwatching would call transparency tyranny, leaving companies with nowhere to hide the facts they might prefer not be known. On that note, Fatburgr has even set up a "wall of shame"—though it's still empty—for restaurants that won't fork over their nutritional information. Restaurants around the world: Be prepared to open up the truth about your food, or this could happen to you! ;-)

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Labels: Calories, fast food, Fat, innovative, junk food, nutritional information, restaurants

New eatery Rouge Tomate is helping its clientele cut the fat by offering fare the restaurant hopes is as appealing to the taste buds as it is to the waistline.

Neither spa cuisine nor diet food, the menu under executive chef Jeremy Bearman (a Joel Robuchon and Daniel Boulud alum) is based on the principles of S.P.E. (Sanitas Per Escam or "Health Through Food"), a nutritional charter conceived by its Belgian owner Emmanuel Verstraeten to offer maximum health benefits and culinary pleasure.

A three-course meal can clock in at just 550 calories. Butter and cream are verboten, as are frying and grilling; vegetables are seasonal and in heavy supply and even the sodas like ginger ale, tonic and lemon-lime are homemade. But if the Rouge Tomate team has their way, you won't even notice what's not on the plate. "The main direction we give the chef is to make the food taste good," explains Rouge Tomate vice president Nil Sönmez. "And then at the end of the meal the great thing is, 'Oh, by the way, it's healthy.'"

The Location: The former Nicole Farhi store and restaurant space across the street from Barneys New York.

The Details: 10 East 60th Street; 646.237.8977; rougetomate.com

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Labels: cool new place, healthy cooking, NYC, restaurants, Rouge Tomate

GustOrganics:

Beginning as a thought in one foodie’s mind nearly 10 years ago, GustOrganics finally came to fruition in 2008.

Argentinean-born businessman, Alberto Gonzalez had a passion for food, but found he was less than thrilled when he frequently traveled to New York on business. He was surprised that one of the most sophisticated cities in the world lacked an abundance of fresh, high-quality foods.

Hoping to fill this void, he hit the streets in order to speak to New Yorkers. After a year of polling people on what they envisioned for an organic restaurant, Gonzalez compiled these various ideas into one organically green vision.

Today, GustOrganics is the first USDA certified organic restaurant in New York, and the nation’s first restaurant to use 100% USDA certified organic ingredients. GustOrganics is also certified as a Green Restaurant by the Green Restaurant Association, and stands by the motto “Good, Clean, Fair.” Gonzalez’s commitment to a green vision is apparent in every detail of the place, from its corn straws to its low-energy appliances.

Let's Eat!

Labels: cool new place, Gusto Organics, NYC, restaurants

It's no mystery why Americans are getting fatter. We're expending less energy to work, play, travel and acquire food. And we're taking more calories in.

And how!

New York City's recent law requiring chain restaurants to post calorie counts on menus has revealed some intriguing -- and appalling -- information.

Some observations:

Studies have shown that even dietitians often underestimate how many calories dishes contain, and no wonder. Applebee's Fiesta Lime Chicken packs 1,290 calories. Pizzeria Uno's Individual Chicago Classic (serves one) has 2,310. Who could eat another bite after an appetizer like T.G.I. Friday's Jack Daniel's Sampler at 2,330?

But It Sounds So Healthy …

Salads come so embellished these days they may as well be dessert. The Pecan-Coated Chicken Salad at T.G.I. Friday's (garnished with mandarin oranges, dried cranberries, glazed pecans, celery and blue cheese) is 1,360 calories. California Pizza Kitchen's Grilled Vegetable Salad is 1,020, or 1,490 with sautéed salmon.

Sandwiches can be a caloric bargain in comparison. At Shea Stadium's Metropolitan Club, the Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad is 807 calories; the Grilled Chicken Sandwich is 340. As veteran dieters know, dressing sends salads to the moon, calorically.

Lightening Up

Some restaurants have had their own sticker shock and started offering lighter options. Così had a nutritionist look for ways to save on every item. S witching to low-fat mayo brought the Così Club from nearly 800 calories to 447. Così's popular Signature Salad (with gorgonzola, grapes, pears, pistachios, dried cranberries and roasted sherry shallot vinaigrette) goes from 611 calories to 371 with reduced-fat dressing and half the cheese." Having to post this information in New York really focused us on paying attention as well," says Chris Carroll, the chain's chief marketing officer.

"A lot of restaurants use a lot of butter or oil in the preparation. Cutting that by half usually doesn't change the taste or the consistency but it dramatically changes the calories and fat," says Healthy Dining Program's president Anita Jones-Mueller. "Some restaurants are really embracing this and creating exciting new items," she adds. "And others are kind of waiting to see if it goes away."

Will posting calories prominently really make Americans think twice and order more healthy items? "Anecdotally, you hear constantly about people who've changed their choices," say Commissioner Frieden. "You go into fast-food places and you hear a lot of buzz online."

Elisabetta Politi, director of nutrition at the Duke Diet & Fitness Center, isn't so sure. "Some of our clients know so much about nutrition they could teach the classes, but does that help them control their weight? Absolutely not," she says.

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Labels: eating out, epidemic, Fat, Obesity, restaurants

If you really are what you eat, then some women will take seconds of whatever Gwyneth Paltrow's having. At least that's the business model behind Broadway East, a new restaurant in the no-man's land between Chinatown and the East River, helmed by Paltrow's former private chef, Lee Gross.

Now that he's taking his skills public, the toque is expanding his macrobiotic repertoire to include dishes like Nasketucket Bay oyster gratin and roasted chicken à la Stras Square. When possible, the kitchen will use only organic and seasonal ingredients sourced within 500 miles of New York.

Gross spent two years studying macrobiotics at the Kushi Institute in Beckett, Mass., which is where Paltrow's assistant found him and commissioned him to work for her boss. "Gwyneth was into yoga, heard about macrobiotics and was looking for someone to prepare food for her," he explains. "I interviewed on a Friday and by Tuesday I was cooking lunch for her and Madonna."

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Labels: Chef Lee Gross, cool new place, Gwyneth Paltrow, healthy dining, Kushi Institute, macrobiotic, NYC, restaurants

Labels: cool new place, healthy dining, healthy eating, NYC, restaurants

In Israel, privately owned start-up Conceptic has already installed e-Menu technology in sushi bars, pubs and family restaurants. The system is based on touch-screens already used in self-service canteens or for ticketing in airports and cinemas.

"It's about impulse-buying," said Adi Chitayat, Conceptic's chief executive. "If a person starts looking at pictures of chocolate cake, the chances are he'll order it."

Frame, a trendy sushi restaurant in Tel Aviv which has installed the system, said sales on tables with the e-Menu have increased by about 11 percent. Customers often call ahead to reserve spots equipped with the screens, manager Natalie Edry told Reuters.

At one of the e-Menu tables, information technology worker Gil Uriel and his young family were enthusiastic as they checked out pictures of the dishes on offer and squabbled over desserts.

"It's more visual," said Uriel, as his children clicked away furiously on a games function between courses. "We can still choose, we can still argue -- but it's much easier when you can all see it."

Read more....

Labels: innovative, Israel, new product, restaurants

Tea connoisseurs and novices alike will find themselves at home when they visit Sanctuary T! The newly opened restaurant and bar pays homage to the world's most widely consumed beverage, tea, and boasts innovative and inspired food and cocktail menus that utilize tea as an integral ingredient. The kitchen, led by Executive Chef Kevin Stanton, offers a wide variety of delicious small plates, both hot and cold. The bar offers an eclectic selection of wines and cocktails, all under the guidance of Master Mixologist Benoit Cornet.

Sanctuary T
337B West Broadway
212-941-7832

Labels: cool new place, NYC, restaurants

When we wrote about Florida's Healthy Bites Grill back in 2002, we even went so far as to wonder if it might become the next McDonald's. While HBG doesn't appear to be winning that coveted title, New York's Zen Burger is a new contender that has gotten off to a flying start.

Zen Burger aims to revolutionize the fast food world with natural, wholesome vegetarian foods that have the look, feel, texture and taste of meats without the negative effects on health and the environment. Serving breakfast, lunch and dinner, the restaurant specializes in meatless comfort foods that mimic those sold in traditional fast-food environments, such as the ZenSausage breakfast sandwich, ZenBeef burgers, crispy ZenChicken sandwich, ZenTuna sandwich, ZenHotDog, ZenChicken tenders, ZenShrimp and French fries.

The midtown Manhattan eatery, which just opened a few weeks ago, even recreates the ambience—if you can call it that—of the big fast-food chains, with bright lighting and a 1970s colour scheme heavy on the oranges and greens. Also available at Zen Burger are organic soups and chili, organic salads, non-dairy ice cream, organic teas and coffees, and natural sodas, as well as kids' meals complete with tiny toy. Pricing for a standard meal is about USD 7.

Zen Burger was founded by James Tu, owner of Zen Palate restaurants, and reportedly the plan is to take the chain nationwide, with the next restaurant slated to open in Hollywood in the middle of this year, according to Midtown Lunch. While vegetarians make up a still-small but rapidly growing part of the U.S. population, "flexitarians"—or those who eat a vegetarian diet some of the time, but not always—are a much larger group, and Zen Burger's real target, Tu told TheStreet.com. " The key is the taste," Tu said. "Ideally, I don't want people to know what they are eating is vegetarian."

Appealing to serious and sometime vegetarians alike, it's hard to imagine anything but a warm reception to this concept around the globe. One to get in on early?

Thanks!

Zen Burger
465 Lexington Ave, New York

Labels: health trend, healthy dining, NYC, restaurants, Zen Burger

Labels: health trend, healthy dining, Holistic Health, innovative, restaurants, tea

What: Stop by newly opened Gusto Organics for a taste of what we're hoping will be the organic crowd's answer to Cosi-eqsue food on-the-go. Think all organic grilled pizzas, empanadas, sandwiches, breakfast, drinks and desserts.

Where: 519 6th Avenue. (212) 242-5800.

Why: You'll be in and out of there faster than a trip to Whole Foods.

Thanks

Labels: cool new place, Gusto Organics, healthy dining, LOVE, NYC, restaurants

A number of chains are adding at least one whole-grain pasta choice to their menus to answer consumer demand for healthier eating options. Olive Garden has been offering a whole-grain linguine option for the past one and a half years, Buca di Beppo and Romano's Macaroni Grill provide whole-wheat penne upon request and Noodles & Company serves whole-grain Tuscan fettuccine.
Nation's Restaurant News

Labels: healthy dining, restaurants, Whole grains