Even a few years later, with a teenage
daughter today, Rose Rings still laments the choices
she found on children's menus. Hot dog. Hamburger. Chicken
fingers. Most restaurants offered unlimited soft drinks
for youngsters, with main courses usually accompanied
by French fries and, in some cases, starchy rolls and
dessert.
"It's like they dumb down the food,"
said Rings, a retail manager from Worthington.
"People expect those things to be
on the menu. Why is that acceptable?"
Traditionally, the children's menu has
rarely held a choice of nutritious foods -- or variety.
But that is slowly changing.
A few chains -- Applebee's, Chili's, Red
Lobster, Ted's Montana Grill -- have added more-healthful
options in entrees and side dishes for the young. As
concerns about diet and childhood obesity grow, parents
are demanding it.
Theresa St.-Gil, a stay-at-home mom from
Lewis Center, often bypasses the children's menu when
dining out, opting instead to split an adult entree
-- from fajitas to Thai curry puffs -- with her 3-year-old
daughter, Elizabeth.
"If they have a kids' menu, we look
at it to see if there's anything on there we're comfortable
with," she said. "And then we're sitting there
going, 'Hmm, is she going to eat that?' "
St.-Gil doesn't forbid a hot dog or cheeseburger
every now and then. But she is actively engaged in finding
healthful entrees, side dishes and beverages, as when
she substitutes a side salad for the smiley-face fries
at Bob Evans and takes juice from home instead of ordering
a soda.
Dave Scarpetti faces similar compromises
with his daughter, Frankie.
The chemist from the North Side wants
his child to be exposed to a variety of foods at a young
age.
And often the 4-year-old is agreeable.
Unless she wants a hot dog.
"When you're exhausted and you just
need a break, you'll give in," he said. "When
you do have the energy, you say no.”
“I don't worry about a healthy choice,
but I would like her to experience something a little
bit better, a little more interesting."
A family favorite is HomeTown Buffet,
which, he said, allows everyone to choose from a variety
of vegetables, sides and main dishes.
The atmosphere -- sometimes lively, always
family-oriented -- doesn't hurt, either.
When feeling more adventurous, the clan
will have vegetarian meals at Whole World Natural Restaurant
& Bakery in the Clintonville neighborhood or order
sushi at Haiku Poetic Food & Art in the Short North
-- neither of which offers a separate kids' menu.
Some restaurants, meanwhile, are adapting
their offerings with young people in mind.
Ted's Montana Grill, an Atlanta chain
with locations in Dublin and the Arena District, tweaked
its children's menu in 2005, adding smaller portions
of certain adult meals, such as grilled chicken, pot
roast and salmon; plus a variety of side dishes, including
broccoli, squash casserole and garlic mashed potatoes.
The changes were made at the behest of
Chief Executive Officer George McKerrow Jr., who didn't
want his young clientele gobbling fatty foods.
"I think our society right now needs
it," said Chris Raucci, corporate chef for Ted's.
"We're trying to be on the front side of the healthy
restaurant. That's what brings people in to us."
Red Lobster revamped its menu in 2003,
adding applesauce and raw vegetables to its kiddie offerings,
which include broiled fish, grilled chicken and crab
legs served with steamed vegetables.
Also not immune to the changes are fast-food
restaurants, such as Wendy's -- with optional reduced-fat
milk and mandarin-orange slices -- and McDonald's, where
a Happy Meal might include milk or apple juice and "apple
dippers."
Several independent establishments are
garnering parental approval, too.
Northstar Cafe, which operates restaurants
in Clintonville and the Short North, doesn't have a
children's menu.
Yet the eatery, which touts its use of
organic and locally grown ingredients, will make a small
flatbread pizza, quesadilla or smaller portion of its
popular Cloud 9 pancakes -- served with bananas and
Ohio maple syrup -- upon request.
"I think parents are attracted because
everything on our menu is made with the best ingredients
you can buy," co-owner Kevin Malhame said.
The concept is working. Although Northstar
isn't billed as a family destination, strollers and
sippy cups have become common weekend sights at both
locations.
Benevolence Cafe, a vegan restaurant near the North
Market, offers a more unusual menu for little patrons.
It features a Sloppy Joe made with a textured-vegetable
product, homemade macaroni and cheese with shredded
vegetables, and "not" chicken strips -- tofu
slices breaded, baked and arranged in a circle with
carrot sticks.
Other entrees have raisins or applesauce
as sides.
But what do the kids think?
"I rarely see a child come in here
who hasn't been exposed to eating fruits and vegetables
on a regular basis," said Chad Whitaker, general
manager of Benevolence. "But you have to make it
fun. Kids aren't going to eat something that isn't visually
appealing."
At Latitude 41 in the Columbus Renaissance
hotel, Chef Tony Miller developed a health-conscious
"fun menu" for the opening of the Downtown
restaurant last year.
There isn't a fry or nugget in sight.
Dishes include teriyaki chicken with steamed
rice and vegetables, a petite filet mignon with smashed
potatoes, fresh fish and a hamburger with fruit.
Among sometimes-pricey adult offerings, the fun-menu
items range from $5 to $8.
"It's neat. We're kind of ahead of
the curve," Miller said. "A lot of people
have the tendency to downplay what their kids will eat."
The reception, he said, has been positive.
"I haven't had a single complaint
where somebody said, 'Hey, where are my chicken fingers?'
"
