The annual downtown Jacksonville restaurant tour event is coming up this Month. From August 15-28, several downtown restaurants will offer fixed menu options for $25 a person or per couple depending on the place. This is the fifth year of the event. See http://www.eatupdowntown.com/ for participating restaurants and there respective menu offers.
I have taken advantage of this event several times in the past and hopefully will be able to again this year. There are some great options this year. A must visit (and personal favorite) is Cafe Nola. It's inside the MOCA and only open on Thursdays. This year they are offering several items including Tuna Tartare, Shrimp & Grits, Eggplant Curry, and Sticky Fig pudding. Another favorite of mine is Chew on West Adams street. They are doing an appetizer and a 2 course meal instead of a desert. I saw a ratatouille and Daube of Beef a la provencal (a French braised beef stew). Looks delicious!. Also, you can never go wrong with b.b.'s or Basil Thai.
Hopefully, everyone can go to at least one of the restaurants. It is absolutely worth it. This years restaurant list is below. Click on the restaurant for the menu offering.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Is the new McDonald’s Happy Meal really more nutritious!?
This fall, McDonald’s will be rolling out a slightly different looking Happy Meal. You will see smaller fries and the addition of Apple slices (sans the caramel sauce) as a standard part of the meal. There is a fierce debate over whether this is truly more “nutritious”. It really depends on what you mean by more nutritious.
Is it going to reduce the calories and fat? Yes.
Will it add a fruit for your five a day? Yes
Is it still high in saturated fatl? Yes
Is it still high in Sodium? Yes
Would I recommend this on a regular basis? No
McDonald’s says this will reduce the Happy Meals calories by 20%. This would put a hamburger happy meal at around 472 calories (add 50 calories if you add cheese) and a chicken nugget Happy Meal at around 460 calories. While this is a significant reduction, these will still be high saturated fat and high sodium meals. To McDonald’s credit they are working on reducing sodium and saturated fat. The saturated fat amount has not been released at this point, but the burger still has about 2.5 grams of saturated fat and the chicken nuggets about 1 gram of saturated fat for chicken nuggets. And each slice of cheese is about 2.5 grams of saturated fat! It remains to be seen how much less saturated fat and sodium the smaller fries will provide.
Sometimes people fail to realize that there are cultural aspects of “more nutritious”. The fact that McDonald’s is willing to make a change is culturally significant. Sure they want our money and sure they are fending off federal regulation but this is still significant. There is no denying McDonald’s global cultural power. Kids recognize Ronald and the arches. The Happy Meal is the basis of every kid’s meal in the fast food industry. It is culturally significant that they are adding fruit as a standard instead of an option. This will teach kids that fruit is part of lunch. Millions of kids will now get apples that previously consumed very little fruit. Throw in the fact that McDonald’s will now offer fat-free milks in addition to juice boxes really allows for some more nutritious options.
McDonald’s should be applauded for their efforts on making their kids meals more nutritious. However, we need to let them know that this is a great step but not the top of the ladder. The bottom line is you are in charge of your kids’ health, not McDonald’s. If you want to give your kids a Happy meal once a month, it should be fine. Make sure your kids are healthy, at proper weight, and physically active first. To truly make it more nutritious, substitute the soda for a fat-free milk, skip the cheese, and make sure they eat their apples. And most important, make sure they know that fast food is a once-in-awhile thing. You can’t live off of it!
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