Restaurant Meals Research Articles

Consistent and changing consumption of fast-food and full-service meals and 3-year weight change in a large population cohort study

BackgroundAn average American consumes 3 meals weekly from fast-food or full-service restaurants, which contain more calories, fat, sodium, and cholesterol than meals prepared at home. ObjectivesThis study examined whether consistent and changing fast-food or full-service consumption was associated with weight change over a 3-y period. MethodsAmong 98,589 US adults from the American Cancer Society’s Cancer Prevention Study-3, self-reported weight and fast-food and full-service consumption from 2015 and 2018 were examined using a multivariable-adjusted linear regression analysis to assess the association of consistent and changing consumption on 3-y weight change. ResultsIndividuals who made no changes to their fast-food or full-service intake over the study period gained weight regardless of consumption frequency, although low consumers gained less weight than high consumers (low fast-food: β = −1.08; 95% CI: −1.22, −0.93; low full-service: β = −0.35; 95% CI: −0.50, −0.21; P < 0.001). Decreased fast-food intake during the study period (e.g., from high [>1 meal/wk] to low [≤0.5 meal/wk], high to medium [>0.5 to ≤1 meal/wk], or medium to low) and decreased full-service intake from high (≥1 meal/wk) to low (<1 meal/mo) were significantly associated with weight loss (high–low: β = −2.77; 95% CI: −3.23, −2.31; high–medium: β = −1.53; 95% CI: −1.72, −1.33; medium–low: β = −0.85; 95% CI: −1.06, −0.63; high–low full-service: β = −0.92; 95% CI: −1.36, −0.49; P < 0.001). Decreased consumption of both fast-food and full-service restaurant meals was associated with greater weight loss than decreasing fast-food alone (both: β = −1.65; 95% CI: −1.82, −1.37; fast-food only: β = −0.95; 95% CI: −1.12, −0.79; P < 0.001). ConclusionsDecreased consumption of fast-food and full-service meals over 3 y, particularly among high consumers at baseline, was associated with weight loss and may be an effective approach to weight loss. Moreover, decreasing both fast-food and full-service meal consumption was associated with a greater weight loss than decreasing only fast-food meal consumption.

Personal values, motives, and healthy and sustainable food choices: Examining differences between home meals and restaurant meals

People are increasingly eating out in restaurants, where meals tend to be higher in calories, less nutritious, and contain more meat. In this paper, we argue that differences in the motivational processes underlying people's food choices could help to explain why food choices made in restaurants are typically unhealthier and less sustainable than at home. Using online survey data from 301 Dutch participants, we compared the influence of stable personal values and transient food choice motives on the healthiness and sustainability of meals chosen in a hypothetical choice task, which was geared to the home and restaurant consumption contexts. As expected, participants opted for unhealthy and meat-based meals more often in the restaurant than the home context. Conservation values related negatively and self-transcendence values positively to choosing sustainable meals both in the home and in the restaurant context, although the relation with self-transcendence values was significantly weaker in the restaurant context. Also, taste and social eating were considered more important for choosing restaurant meals, while health was a more important motive for food choices at home. Finally, model comparisons revealed that motives were better predictors of healthy meal choices in both contexts, while the influence of values and motives on sustainable meal choices was more similar. In conclusion, the results from the present study enhance our understanding of differences between choosing home and restaurant meals by providing an account of the values and motives associated with the healthiness and sustainability of home and restaurant meal choices.

Eating habits and physical activity of Saudi women before and during the COVID-19 pandemic

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the lives of many people have been affected, and their lifestyles changed, including their eating habits and levels of physical activity. Objective: This study aimed to assess lifestyle changes among Saudi women before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: The study used a cross-sectional descriptive design. Participants were recruited via social media (WhatsApp, Twitter, and Facebook), and the data were collected in March 2021 through Godin–Shephard Leisure-Time Physical Activity questionnaire and eating habits questionnaire. Chi-square and t-tests were used for data analysis. Results: The number of participants included in the analysis was 979. The results of the study showed no statistically significant difference in the BMI (t = 1.29, p = 0.15) or physical activity (t = 1.49, p = 0.135) when comparing the time before and during the pandemic. However, there were changes in their eating habits, including changes in the relative frequency of eating home-cooked meals and ordering from restaurants. Ordering restaurant meals per week decreased from 78.2% before COVID-19 to 47.5% during the pandemic. Moreover, there was a marked increase in anxiety reported about food hygiene from outside sources, from 14.7% before COVID-19 to 63% during the pandemic. Regarding physical activity, 41.7% said the pandemic had moderately affected their physical activity. The home was the most common setting for exercise both before and during the pandemic, but the percentage of participants exercising exclusively at home was almost doubled during the pandemic, from 46% before the pandemic to 81% during the pandemic Conclusion: Dietary habits have changed in a good way during the pandemic; participants increased their consumption of home-cooked meals rather than eating restaurant meals. Also, the participants were more anxious about food hygiene during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mediterranean Diet Adherence in Community-Dwelling Older Adults in Spain: Social Determinants Related to the Family.

The Mediterranean diet (MD), a well-established quality diet model, and regular physical activity are associated with reducing the appearance or progression of several chronic diseases and reducing morbidity and mortality. However, reduction of these goals, adherence to the MD, and regular physical activity occur at all ages, including older individuals in Mediterranean countries such as Spain, where at least adherence to the MD is culturally rooted. Objective: To evaluate the degree of adherence to the MD and physical activity in older individuals. Methods: The sample comprises 679 older adults aged 60 and over who attended activities in municipal centers for older adults in Valencia. Adherence to the Mediterranean diet, frequency of physical activity, and anthropometric assessment were used. Results: High adherence (score ≥ 9) to MD was observed only in 23.7% of the study sample. Smoking habits or having meals in fast-food restaurants on a weekly basis were significantly (p < 0.05) associated with lower MD adherence. Age, BMI, marital status, and physical activity were not significantly associated with MD adherence. Physical activity was significantly (p < 0.05) lower in individuals who were divorced or widow/ers and in those taking care of their grandchildren several times a week. Conclusions: Adherence to the MD in a big Spanish city is low among older individuals. Socio-family factors seem to play a role. Public health and governmental strategies should reinforce adherence to the MD among older individuals as a gold standard for nutrition.

Food waste-Energy-Water-Emissions (FEWE) nexus in the food service sector: Comparing a restaurant meal from imported ingredients versus an imported ready-to-eat meal

The food service sector (FSS) is expanding due to the tendency of people to eat out. The growth of the FSS raises sustainability concerns about different activities across the life cycle of food systems. Analysing energy and material flows in the food systems enables decision-makers to prioritise procurement, kitchen management, and menu design. This study adopted Food waste-Energy-Water-Emissions (FEWE) nexus framework based on the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology to evaluate the environmental impacts of two different systems of FSS. The effects of pasta cooked at Landmark Mandarin Oriental Hotel (LMO) in Hong Kong using imported ingredients were determined. Then the impacts of the pasta cooked at Artisan Food Company (ART) in Australia and shipped to Hong Kong as a ready-to-eat meal were found. Lastly, we discussed the FEWE nexus trade-offs among the impact results. The ART meal's indirect global warming potential (GWP) causes higher carbon emissions than the LMO meal. Also, the indirect cumulative energy demand (CED) of the ART and LMO meals showed no energy footprint difference. Similarly, indirect water consumption (WC) of the ART and LMO meals do not differ. The direct CED of the ART meal is higher than that of the LMO meal. While the ART meal has higher direct GWP than the LMO, the direct WC of the ART and LMO meals do not differ. Moreover, the indirect ART food waste (FW) is less than the LMO one, while direct FW for both ART and LMO meals is negligible. Conclusively, the localisation of meal preparation in Hong Kong results in better environmental performance than importing ready-to-eat meal.

Management of healthy food environment improvement through restaurants and other settings by prefectures and cities of cabinet order

Objectives In Japanese nutrition policy, emphasis is placed on healthy food environment improvement through restaurants and other settings by prefectures and cities of cabinet order (cities). This study aimed to clarify the actual status of management implementation by prefectures and cities.Methods A mail survey of 47 prefectures and 106 cities throughout Japan was conducted in October 2020. Management implementation, including the existence of a healthy food environment improvement system (system) for restaurants and other settings, was confirmed. Local governments that had implemented the system were asked about the scope, dissemination efforts, process evaluation, and improvement of the system.Results Of the local governments that responded, 39/42 prefectures (92.9%) and 57/82 cities (69.5%) implementing the system were included in the study. A total of 84.6% of prefectures and 14.0% of cities assessed the nutrient intake of local residents within the past five years. The median number of dietitians in the main office of the department in charge of healthy food environment improvement was two in both prefectures and cities. A target for healthy food environment improvement was set by 69.2% of prefectures and 54.4% of cities. The scope of the system was restaurant meals for 94.9% of prefectures and 100.0% of cities as well as ready-made meals for 87.2% of prefectures and 93.0% of cities. A total of 69.2% of prefectures and 66.7% of cities collaborated internally or with other local governments, while 15.4% of prefectures and 15.8% of cities entrusted system dissemination to external organizations. A total of 87.2% of prefectures and 89.5% of cities assessed the number of registered stores/companies, while 17.6% of prefectures and 21.6% of cities assessed the number of restaurants and other settings in the entire jurisdiction. A total of 33.3% of prefectures and 40.4% of cities established a renewal system, while 71.8% of prefectures and 33.3% of cities improved the system.Conclusion Although underreporting due to the COVID-19 pandemic is possible, in local governments that had implemented the system, few cities assessed nutrient intake, and approximately 50-70% of prefectures and cities set targets for healthy food environment improvement. While approximately 90% of each local government assessed the number of registered stores/companies, those that assessed the number of stores/companies in the entire jurisdiction as a population size were approximately 20%. Approximately 30-40% of each local government has established a renewal system.

The effect of dietary behaviors on the nutritional status and associated factors of Yemeni students in Saudi Arabia.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has undergone a significant transformation in eating habits and the native diets have been replaced with Western diets. The present study investigated the effect of dietary behavior on nutritional status and associated factors of Yemeni students studying in Saudi Arabia. The socioeconomic characteristics, food habits, daily food intake, and anthropometric measurement (BMI) were used to assess the nutrition status of 240 adults (120 males and 120 females) Yemni students with the ages ranging from 18 to 35 years studying at King Saud University, Saudi Arabia. The majority of students were married, had higher education level and reasonable income and eat three meals a day. Higher number of female studnets skipped breakfast compared to male students. Energy intake, i.e., vitamins and minerals was lower than the dietary recommended intake (DRI) for both male and female students. The majority of males were overweight compared to females. Most of the socioeconomic characteristics and food habits had positive or negative correlation with body mass index (BMI). Overall, the results revealed that the majority of Yemeni male students had poor eating habits compared to females, resulting in obesity. High income, number of meals per day, breakfast consumption, restaurant meals, consumption of soft drinks, sweets, and potato chips were identified as factors associated with the nutritional status of male and female students included in the study.

Family Food Insecurity, Food Acquisition, and Eating Behavior Over 6 Months Into the COVID-19 Pandemic

ObjectivesDescribe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related employment and food acquisition changes for food-secure and food-insecure households. Examine associations between food insecurity, parent food acquisition, and child eating. MethodsA nationally representative cross-sectional survey with parents (N = 1,000) in Fall 2020. Measures included sociodemographics, food retail regulations, food insecurity, frequency of meals, changes in parent employment, food preparation, and food acquisition because of COVID-19. ResultsParents that reported recent food insecurity were more likely to report COVID-19-related employment changes (eg, job loss, reduced hours) and food acquisition changes. Food insecurity was modestly associated with more frequent in-person restaurant dining (B = 0.12, t(999) = 4.02, P < 0.001), more frequent restaurant delivery (B = 0.13, t(999) = 4.30, P < 0.001), less frequent homecooked meals (B = −0.14, t(999) = 4.56, P < 0.001) but was not associated with take-out (B = 0.02, t(999) = 0.62, P = 0.54). Conclusions and ImplicationsFood insecurity was associated with employment changes, parent food acquisition, and children's consumption of homecooked and restaurant meals during COVID-19. Future work could explore resources that help parents acquire affordable, nutritious food.

COVID-19 in the Construction Sector

This section analyzes the influence of COVID-19 in the construction sector. Construction workers’ high vulnerability to the spread of the virus motivated this entry. The construction sector’s peculiarities and some work procedure characteristics in this sector make telecommuting impossible in most activities. In addition, most of the states and national governments declared the construction sector essential activity due to its high economic impact. The working conditions in this sector are very special: constant trips to work in groups, work group execution with little interpersonal distance, group travel, stays and accommodations away from home, meals in restaurants or work canteens, lunch in restaurants or work canteens, etc. Due to all of this, the contagion rate was very high during the pandemic months. Even today, it is still considered one of the most dangerous sectors for these purposes. With all this in mind, here we discuss why it is difficult to minimize the spread of the virus for construction workers, summarize how to assess exposure risk grades for construction job tasks, and provide possible protection requirements for the different exposure risk grades.

Wines from the hinterland: comparing availability of local wines on wine lists in two New Zealand tourism destinations

PurposeThis paper aims to situate restaurant experiences and in particular the wines available on wine lists, within the wider context of wine tourism. This is done by examining the wine lists of restaurants in two New Zealand destinations, focusing in particular on the showcasing of “local wines” and the factors behind these offerings, and outlines the potential implications for hospitality managers and a wider academic audience.Design/methodology/approachThe population of restaurants in each destination was identified using online directories, from which a sample of wine lists, comprising 84 in Christchurch and 43 in Queenstown, was systematically analysed to identify number of wines, regional origin, price and other information. Following this, key informant interviews in restaurants in each destination explored decision-making factors in stocking local wines, including consumer base, existing networks and reputation and additional challenges and opportunities.FindingsRestaurants in each destination offered more New Zealand than foreign wines on their lists, though significant regional differences are apparent. Queenstown restaurants offered slightly fewer imported wines and significantly more local (Central Otago) wines than Christchurch restaurants. The global awareness of Central Otago pinot noir is a factor in this wine list representation, but there are also other influences, including the greater concentration of overseas visitors (pre-pandemic) and more significant visibility and greater opportunities for wine tourism experiences within the destination.Originality/valueThis paper represents an important addition to academic research on wine marketing in the on-premise sector of emerging wine regions. This paper also highlights the potential significance of restaurant meals – including wine choices – in overall wine destination experiences and demonstrates differences in approach between restaurants in wine regions of similar size but with different reputations, international visitation and wine tourism infrastructure.

Culinary Solitude in the Diet of People with Functional Diversity.

This qualitative ethnographic study identifies how problems in the feeding process of a group of people with functional diversity influence different eating situations. The study, which was carried out in the Autonomous Community of Castilla La Mancha, Spain, is based on interviews conducted at the headquarters of the different participating associations for functionally diverse people, at the participants’ homes, and in public spaces. The study included 27 subjects aged between 18–75 years. Their functional diversity had caused significant changes in their sociability, particularly in contexts associated with food consumption. The analysis identified three main themes: social ghettoisation and culinary loneliness; stigma, shame, feeling like a burden, and loneliness; and exclusion or self-exclusion at the dining table. Our participants’ narratives underscored the importance of acknowledging the significance of changes in eating-related sociability due to functional diversity. For the study subjects, grief, loneliness, and shame contributed to disassociating food consumption from social celebrations, withdrawing from restaurant meals, or conversations while eating to avoid other people’s stares.

In retrospect – my life in food

In retrospect – my life in food

Determination of Vitamin K in Korean Processed Food and Restaurant Meal

Yejin Kim, Keono Kim, Keup-rae Kim, Jun Ho Kim, Donghui Lee, Siyong Kwon, Junsoo Lee, Keum-ll Jang, Byung Hee Kim, and Jeehye Sung. Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition 2022;51:56-63. https://doi.org/10.3746/jkfn.2022.51.1.56

The "Healthy Meals" web app for the assessment of nutritional content and food allergens in restaurant meals: Development, evaluation and validation.

ObjectiveThe development and the evaluation of the Healthy Meals web app designed for professionals from different disciplines related to food, aimed to assess the nutritional and food allergen content of restaurant meals, was described.MethodsApp evaluation concerned: (1) usability, scored on a 7-point scale by 6 restaurateurs and 10 nutritionists through the Computer System Usability Questionnaire; (2) quality, scored on a 5-point scale by 10 nutritionists through the Mobile App Rating Scale; (3) validation, by two nutritionists through differences in entered nutrient contents. Ratings reliability was assessed by the interclass correlation coefficient.ResultsUsers agreed with the web app usability (mean 5.6/7 points, SD 0.9), with moderate reliability among ratings (interclass correlation coefficient = 0.57; 95% CI, 0.18 to 0.82). The web app showed good objective quality (mean 4.0/5 points, SD 0.4), with excellent reliability among nutritionists (interclass correlation coefficient = 0.91; 95% CI, 0.85 to 0.96). For web app validation, no significant differences were observed between the two nutritionists’ data, with excellent reliability (interclass correlation coefficient = 0.98; 95% CI, 0.97 to 0.99). App data entry was identified as a point to improve.ConclusionsThe Healthy Meals web app designed for professionals related to food, such as restaurateurs, demonstrated to be usable, of good quality and valid for dishes nutritional assessment and food allergen identification. Points to improve were identified, while app effectiveness should be tested in trials.

Another lazy person looking for a meal.

She sat on the hospital bed munching on a sandwich someone brought her and told me her story. Oh, they sometimes judge her when she comes into the emergency department. What's the occasion tonight? Pain in her feet? An ache in her back? What's the real reason: looking for food and a warm place to get rest? She's told that she wouldn't be on the street if not for the alcohol. Some have even asked if maybe she's homeless by choice. Here's the thing: almost no one would choose to check in to Hotel Dark Alley That Smells Like Old Garbage where she gets to sleep on the ground. But most people don't choose between their house and the street. It starts differently. It starts with a person much like herself: with a job and a townhouse and, even with her best efforts, just not enough money. One month, she realized: she can sleep in her car, but she can't drive her townhouse to work. That's when she packed her bags and moved into her car. She kept her job for a while, but it wasn't that simple. Every night she spent an hour looking for a safe place to park. The back seat of a car wasn't the same as a mattress at home. Every sound startled her. Her back started to hurt. Between that and no shower to count on, she started looking ragged. Her boss wasn't happy, and her costs were just rising. No townhouse meant no cooking. She relied on restaurant meals, and that was most of her paycheck. Then the paycheck wasn't coming: she fell asleep at her desk and found herself fired. This is where it got complicated. She budgeted out her last paycheck to pay for food. But there wasn't enough money for car payments, and then her car got towed. She grabbed her belongings out of the car—as many as she could carry in a bag heaved over her shoulder. This is where she checked into Hotel Dark Alley That Smells Like Old Garbage. Her back really aches now that her bed is the street. And her feet are sore from the walking she does in damp socks and worn shoes. She begs for a few dollars when she can. People look past her or tell her to go get a job. What's the chance of her getting a job when her clothes smell like trash and she can't remember the last time she showered? It's not looking more likely than someone handing her a dollar. And as for the money she does get, she's spending a few dollars on a beer. People judge her for throwing that money away. But she isn't choosing between a townhouse and drinking. It's between a burger and a beer. That's what she thinks they don't understand. To those who judge her, she wishes they would realize: when they see someone homeless. Someone begging. They're not looking at someone just lazy who prefers being out on the street. They're looking at a person with so much between herself and dignity that if she can afford a cold beer to relax for a few hours, she'll take it. And she is thankful for those in the emergency department who accept her as she is. She is grateful to the providers who bring her a meal and talk about her problems like they really matter. Even if they can't help her feet or her back but can make her feel like a human for a few hours, as they have tonight: she'll take it.

Supervised Learning for Arrival Time Estimations in Restaurant Meal Delivery

Restaurant meal delivery companies have begun to provide customers with meal arrival time estimations to inform the customers’ selection. Accurate estimations increase customer experience, whereas inaccurate estimations may lead to dissatisfaction. Estimating arrival times is a challenging prediction problem because of uncertainty in both delivery and meal preparation process. To account for both processes, we present an offline and online-offline estimation approaches. Our offline method uses supervised learning to map state features directly to expected arrival times. Our online-offline method pairs online simulations with an offline approximation of the delivery vehicles’ routing policy, again achieved via supervised learning. Our computational study shows that both methods perform comparably to a full near-optimal online simulation at a fraction of the computational time. We present an extensive analysis on how arrival time estimation changes the experience for customers, restaurants, and the platform. Our results indicate that accurate arrival times not only raise service perception but also improve the overall delivery system by guiding customer selections, effectively resulting in faster delivery and fresher food.

Demographic, Lifestyle, and Dietary Factors Associated with Red Meat Consumption Among A Cross-Section of New York City Residents

Introduction: Red meat reduction policies have become the focus of public policy in New York City (NYC). To inform on who might be impacted the most by these policies we sought to identify factors associated with red meat consumption among NYC residents.Methods: We studied non-institutionalized adults in the cross-sectional 2013-2014 NYC Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The outcome was self-reported weekly red meat consumption. We used multivariable linear regression to assess the association of red meat consumption with age, gender, race/ethnicity, US nativity, education, marital status, percentage of ZIP-code in poverty, physical activity, smoking, alcohol, restaurant meals, and dietary components (dark-green vegetables, other vegetables, fresh fruit, poultry, fish/shellfish, sugar-sweetened soda (SSS), and sugar-sweetened fruit drink (SSFD)).Results: Among 1,495 subjects, higher frequency of red meat consumption was associated (-coefficient; p-value) with younger age (-0.08; p=.03), male gender (0.47; p&lt;.001), and greater weekly consumption of alcohol (0.08; p&lt;.001), poultry (0.16; p&lt;.001), fish/shellfish (0.15; p=.01), SSS (0.14; p&lt;.001), and SSFD (0.06; p=.005). Red meat consumption was also associated with race/ethnicity (p=.002), wherein Asian race/ethnicity had highest consumption and ZIP-code percent in poverty (p=.003) wherein those in ZIP-codes with ≥30% in poverty consumed the least red meat.Conclusion: Demographic, lifestyle, and dietary factors were associated with red meat consumption frequency in NYC. Public health efforts in NYC should consider these associations and differences from associations in national data when designing and evaluating outcomes from programs targeting reducing red meat consumption in NYC.

Perceptions and Feasibility of Actions Related to Sodium Reduction among Restaurant Owners and Cooks in Seongnam, South Korea: Comparison According to Stages of Behavioral Change.

With the increase in meals eaten outside the home, sodium reduction in restaurant foods is essential for reducing sodium intake. This study aimed to assess the stages of behavioral change for reducing sodium and the differences in perceptions among restaurant staff by stage. Restaurant owners and cooks (n = 313) in Seongnam, South Korea were surveyed on their stage of behavioral change, practices, and perceptive factors related to sodium reduction in restaurant meals using a questionnaire. The proportion of behavioral change by stage was 20.4% in the maintenance and action (MA) stage, 32.3% in the preparation (P) stage, and 47.3% in the pre-preparation (PP) stage, which included contemplation and pre-contemplation stages. The items that represent differences among the groups were recognition of social environment for sodium reduction, practice of weighing condiments and measuring salinity, and feasibility of actions related to low-sodium cooking. Logistic regression analysis was used to estimate odds ratios for practice and perceptive factors by using stage of behavioral change as the independent variable. Factors associated with being in the MA stage were weighing condiments, measuring salinity, and high feasibility of actions related to low-sodium cooking. Recognition of sodium labeling and anticipation of better taste by reducing sodium increased the odds of being in the P stage rather than the PP stage. These results suggest that customized stepwise education and support are needed for the efficacy of restaurant-based sodium reduction programs.

Fuzzy based intelligent decision support model for restaurant menu management

Restaurants operate in a dynamic highly competitive business environment with slim profit margin, changing customers, and costs incurring from materials and labour. Despite a solid demand for restaurant meals, the restaurant industry has a high failure rate, especially within the first three years of commencement. As the most important marketing, sales, and operational tool, a menu list must be well designed and well planned for profitability and competitive advantage. Menu Analysis (MA) or Menu Engineering (ME) refer to the broad range of techniques and procedures applied for effective marketing and operational decisions on menus. Choice of dishes is the food and beverage manager or the decision maker’s (DM) challenge which is a critical strategy decision. Quantitative or precise measures required for accurate evaluation of the effectiveness of a menu item is difficult to obtain. This pioneer study presents a Menu Management Decision Support Model (MMDSM) that applies Fuzzy Multicriteria Decision Making (FMCDM) approach to deal with the inherent imprecision in input using qualitative linguistic input values and obtain reliable outputs with increased decision options. Improving the widely used ME model with two inputs, the MMDSM includes four input parameters of Profit Factor, Popularity, Contribution Margin, and Sales Price related to each Menu Item. The MMDSM is successfully tested with a case study having one hundred and sixty-one Menu Item details from a U.S. restaurant. The results are verified by conducting a sensitivity analysis and the model can be developed into a commercial application.

Switching up sides: Using choice architecture to alter children's menus in restaurants

U.S. children's frequent consumption of restaurant foods has been associated with low vegetable consumption. Use of choice architecture in restaurants has been shown to increase children's orders of healthy sides, but what children consume when healthy sides are included is unknown. The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether altering the choice architecture of children's meals by restructuring the menu, using optimal defaults and vice-virtue bundles, would impact ordering of side dishes and consumption of a vegetable side dish during a restaurant meal. Families with a child between 4-8y attended three dinners at a university-based restaurant. Children's meals included choice of entree (macaroni-and-cheese or chicken tenders) and default side: all carrots (150 g; Menu-1), small fries (50 g)/large carrots (100 g; Menu-2), and small carrots (50 g)/large fries (100 g; Menu-3). Participants could opt-out of the default side for: only fries (Menu-1) or only fries or carrots (Menus-2/3). All foods were pre- and post-weighed to determine consumption. Descriptive statistics examined children's ordering behavior. Repeated measures ANOVA examined differences in consumption of study foods. A paired samples t-test examined differences in french fry consumption (Menus-2/3). Forty-eight children (6.2 ± 1.3 years; 25 male) participated. Most children remained with the default side (Meal-1: 90%; Meal-2: 88%; Meal-3: 85%). Significant differences were seen in children's consumption of french fries (t = −2.57, p = .014) where children ate more during meal 3 compared to meal 2. There were no significant differences in carrot consumption. Use of optimal defaults led to increased orders of healthy sides and steady consumption across the meal conditions. However, use of an optimal, vice-virtue bundle led to a decrease in consumption of french fries. Further investigation of optimal default use on children's menus is warranted.