• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

Restaurants Losing Atkins Diet Craze

Posted on: Wednesday, 16 March 2005, 18:00 CST

BLOOMINGTON -- Last year was the year that restaurants attempted to respond to Americans' fickle diet plans.

It seemed as if, for a while anyway, everyone knew someone on the Atkins plan, the South Beach Diet, a low-fat diet or the perennially popular Weight Watchers plan (now offering cyber check-ins).

Such diets were spurred not only by the ever-expanding American waistline but also by enormous book and CD sales, new diet food products and a lot of press.

Restaurants scrambled to be user friendly to dieters of every type. Menus were revised to include "Atkins" friendly items or low- carb lunch plates. Big chains became more upfront about nutritional counts in their food.

Vegetables, long consigned to being nothing more than a colorful afterthought plopped on a plate, became a popular stand-in for -- gasp -- french fries.

And then the momentum began to fade.

The NPD Group, an independent marketing information company, found the percentage of American adults on any low-carb diet in 2004 peaked at 9.1 percent in February and dropped to 4.9 percent by early November.

South Beach Diet creators were quick to shun the low-carb label.

"We are not low carb. We are good carb," Dr. Arthur Agatston, a cardiologist who developed the diet, pointed out to a reporter.

By year's end, it seemed clear that while diet fads continue to come and go, a remnant of 2004 is here to stay -- namely healthier menu choices.

In December of 2003, TGI Friday's became the first national chain to jump aboard the low-carb train by officially partnering with Atkins Nutritionals, Inc. A special section of the menu offers menu items that have the official Atkins stamp of approval and a listing of Atkins net carbs. Other items can be "Atkin-ized" by trading the spuds for broccoli.

"In 2004 we went beyond that," said Greg Ray, manager of the Bloomington Friday's. "We've expanded our offerings to include diet- friendly items which we call 'Guilt Free Choices.' These are items that have 10 grams of fat or less and 500 calories or less." Examples include grouper served with broccoli and a barbecue jack chicken dish.

"More and more people are opting for veggies instead of fries," Ray said. "I think people have gotten away from Atkins but healthier choices are here to stay."

Biaggi's Manager Craig Cahan agreed. "There's definitely a trend to low-carb," he said.

Biaggi's, which updates its menu regularly, now has a specific low-carb menu. Chicken Pietro, for example, is made with a grilled chicken breast marinated in Dijon mustard, rosemary, garlic, honey and a touch of balsamic vinegar. It's served with portabella mushrooms and seasonal vegetables.

"The big (Atkins) trend is over," Cahan said, "but in the end some of it becomes a staple." One of their most popular dishes is mashed cauliflower, which can be substituted for mashed potatoes in any entree. "Our chef makes everything fresh anyway," Cahan said, "so it's easy to go low carb if that's what you want."

Red is in

Like food, wine goes in cycles, too. Right now red wine is, well, red-hot.

Perhaps this is related to its heart-healthy status. "We're selling a lot of Shiraz and Syrah wines," Cahan said. Both are reds.

Looking back at 2004, Cahan said Bloomington was still number one in sales among the 18 Biaggi's restaurants. "We're doing more and more private parties and catering," Cahan said. "It brought us a lot of new business in 2004."

Lancaster's, another upscale Bloomington establishment, also is seeing an uptick in red wine consumption. Server Shannon Tobin said, "People are drinking a lot more red wine than white wine these days."

Tobin estimated between 10 percent and 20 percent of her customers ask for "no starch.""That's what we write on the ticket no starch," Tobin said. "People say they want no rice or bread or potatoes but they do want extra-extra vegetables. They're especially happy if it's asparagus," she said.

And even when people don't specifically request "no starch," Tobin noted they are often eating that way. "You wouldn't believe how many plates come back with everything eaten but the starch," she said.

The bar scene

The low-carb trend even hit the bar business in 2004. Chris Hubbard, manager of Cheeks in Bloomington, said, "lots of people order burgers with no bun. A lot will say, 'No fries, no chips, no bun' but others will skip the bun and still eat the fries."

"People know what they want when they come in here," Hubbard said "Our menu is small." He sold more salads than ever in 2004 and saw another trend as well. "Our sandwiches come with lettuce, onion, tomato and pickle," he said, "and a lot of people ask for a side of ranch and turn the condiments into a side salad."

Avanti's owner Rich Zeller is another who thinks the Atkins craze is fading.

"People come here for their favorites," he said, "like gondolas, grilled mozzarella, pizza and pasta." He didn't see an increase in salad sales in 2004, a year in which overall sales remained constant with sales in 2003. The one big change is the new turkey gondolas, Zeller said, "and they are selling really well."

Eddie Garcia, manager of Shannon's Five Star, saw a short period where "people were ordering burgers without the buns" but it's pretty much over.

"Every now and then, someone will ask for a vegetable instead of a potato but not very often," Garcia said. "People are still getting burgers and fries or else the Blue Plate Special which is meat, potato, vegetable and a roll."

Central Station's Chef Mike Goodwin said his restaurant is coming out with a new menu in the spring that is lighter and healthier. "We don't have much that's fried," Goodwin said, "so we're pretty healthy to begin with."

About half the customers want veggies instead of potatoes these days. "What I notice is that the dishes with lots of butter and heavy cream generally aren't selling well," Goodwin said. "They're coming off the menu."

Chris Stolfa, owner of CJ's restaurant, has seen some changes, too. "People do eat healthier now," he said. He notices customers are ordering more broiled fish with steamed vegetables or boneless, skinless chicken breasts fixed in healthy ways.

Stolfa didn't specifically change his menu last year. He offers low-carb specials as an option at lunch. "We'll have chopped sirloin with fruit or cottage cheese, for example, on the special board.

"I notice the low-cal or low-carb specials are very popular in the summer months," Stolfa said, "but sales fall way off in the winter. I think it's the weather."

Whether it's the weather, the latest diet craze or the new movement to get America to slim down, this much is certain. To keep their customers happy, restaurants must continue to evolve to meet the ever-changing tastes of their customers.

Who would have ever thought that steamed broccoli could make so many people happy?

Source: Pantagraph

More News in this Category