If you haven’t been to Panera Bread in awhile, it’s time to go back. I plan to go often, all because of one new and wildly-innovative menu. It’s not a particular soup, salad, or sandwich that I’m excited about…. it’s calories. Panera Bread now has calorie information posted on the menu boards right where you order. I’ve heard talk for years about restaurants being required to post nutritional info on their menus; it’s supposed to be part of the new healthcare plan. But you can go in Panera today and have all the information you need to make healthy dining choices.
I was reading an article about restaurants being required to post this information the other day in a recent Cooking Light magazine. Research shows that this information may not always lead to picking healthier or lower calorie meals. However, in areas of the country where restaurants are already required to include calorie info on menus, restaurants are choosing to find lower calorie substitutions for their more embarrassingly high calorie menu items.
Whether restaurants choose to make their menus healthier, or they simply provide us with the information we need to make smart eating decisions for ourselves and our families, I plan to support Panera Bread and like-minded restaurants that make the menu minefield a little easier to navigate.
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