The recession might be inadvertently making us all a little bit healthier. Yes, we’re definitely not spending as much on food, but as The Stimulus reports, restaurants are using some pretty tricky ways to cut down on their costs and the amount of food we’re eating. Well, some of these changes have been immediately apparent. Many chain restaurants have been introducing “mini” entrée items that cut down on calories and cost. Little known fact: in other countries these “mini” entrees are normal sized. Chipotle has introduced single tacos, Quizno’s has a $4 “tasty torpedo” sandwich and Burger King is serving mini-burgers.
In many cases, though, restaurants have been going behind our back to trick us into eating healthier. Restaurants are putting food on smaller plates to make portions appear larger and using lighter forks to make food seem heavier. This is not to mention the steak, chicken, and chicken-fried steaks that have been pared down in size. In some cases, restaurants, have even opted for vegetables instead of more expensive carbohydrate-heavy side dishes. The nerve!
Even more troubling was when last summer's difficult economy shuttered (all corporate) Bennigan’s Grill & Taverns. This made it much more difficult for someone to find a beer-battered, deep-fried Monte Cristo sandwich served with powdered sugar and raspberry dipping preserves.
This is troubling news folks. Let’s go eat away our emotions with a big vat of low calorie, soy, vegan ice cream.
