Eating well at chk

1. Eating well at chk Amanda parsons, M.A., RD/LD

2. Eating well at chk • Creating an Eating Well environment within the restaurant • Eating Well success factors • Past barriers and opportunities for future Eating Well initiatives within the restaurants • Benefits of restaurant team and health promotion team working together

3. Creating an eating well environment • Establish needs and goals by asking for direction from upper management • What is their vision for the business • Budget • Health of employee/customer • Area restaurants • Industry standards for amenities/benefits

4. Creating an eating well environment • Get feedback and buy-in from staff involved rather than singularly providing rules and guidelines • Different perspective • More willing to buy-in to changes • Often the people making program a success after the initial implementation

5. Creating an eating well environment • Establish capabilities • Who is going to manage day to day processes • Avoid implementing and forgetting! • Good ideas are easy to come by, but the challenge lies in the follow through • Example: Provide Nutrition information for menu items • Is the information entered into the software accurate? • Are the cooks following a recipe? • Are serving sizes standardized? • How often does the menu rotate? • Start simple!

6. Eating well success factors • Goal is to create a culture of health and well-being • Do want to make it as simple and appealing as possible to make the “right” choice for the individual • Do NOT to make nutrition, health or wellness a mandate

7. Eating well success factors • The Restaurants at Chesapeake • Four restaurants with different concepts • Nutrition a priority and made available to fit each concept • Nutrition information posted on the employee portal, on the menu sign or ordering kiosk • Eating Well symbol also included on menu and ordering kiosk • Weight Watchers points are posted for Eating Well menu items

8. Eating well success factors • At Chesapeake’s FUEL Restaurant half of the menu focuses on Eating Well while at work. • Each healthy entrée is made to order, under 550 calories and has less than 900mg of sodium. • The menu includes smoothies, low fat thin crust pizzas, whole grain dishes such as quinoa, low fat Asian stir-frys and delicious salads. • Fuel serves approximately 250 employees at lunch. • 25% of those orders come from the Fitness Center ordering kiosk

9. Eating well success factors • Basic nutrition principles at Fuel include: • Focus on sodium: • <800 mg in salads, grains and stir-frys and <900 mg in pizza • Blood pressure was selected as a primary wellness priority • Focus on whole grains: brown rice, whole wheat pasta, whole wheat crust, quinoa, soba noodles • Focus on lean proteins: lean beef, chicken breast, shrimp, salmon, tofu • Served in a three – four ounce portion • Option to double protein for those who require more

10. Eating well success factors • Basic nutrition principles at Fuel include: • Focus on variety of vegetables in all dishes • Option to double veggies on stir-frys and grain dishes • Salad options include a variety of salad greens • Customer automatically given the option of dressing “on the side” • Dressing’s made in house are flavorful yet low in calories and sodium • Focus on filling, nutritionally balanced smoothies • Skim milk or soy milk, non-fat Greek yogurt, tofu, or protein powder add-in for protein sources • Unsweetened fruits, spinach, ground flax options for fiber

11. Eating well success factors • Basic nutrition principles at Fuel include: • Focus on trends: • Gluten free pasta and pizza crust options now available • Add-in options carefully selected: protein powder, flax seed, spinach (for smoothies) • Quinoa offered • Focus on desserts! • Homemade with whole ingredients and sold in small portions • Whole wheat brownie bites; whole wheat peanut butter cookie; quinoa cranberry oatmeal cookie

12. Eating well success factors • Basic nutrition principles at Fuel include: • Weekly Chef’s Table allows a chef the opportunity to create a featured menu item • Promoted in weekly restaurant email and throughout restaurant • Higher price point

13. Eating well success factors • Additional Eating Well principles at other restaurants: • Eating Well Special: • Daily special that meets specific nutrition criteria (calories, saturated fat, sodium) • Different Eating Well special offered daily in two restaurants • Wednesday Eating Well special is offered in three restaurants at special price • Promoted in weekly restaurant email

14. Eating well success factors • Additional Eating Well principles at other restaurants: • Salad bar (available at two restaurants): • Nutrition information posted on salad bar for all standard items • Salad dressings clearly labeled • Staff member in charge of salad bar encouraged to try new, healthy “mixed” salads from available ingredients • Pasta dishes made without mayo featuring whole wheat pasta and veggies • Hummus • Mixed fruit salad with balsamic, agave and vanilla (CHK favorite!) • Mixed grain dishes • One of the three soups offered each day meets the established Eating Well criteria

15. Eating well success factors • Additional Eating Well principles at other restaurants: • Deli: • Whole grain bread options available • Health(ier) spreads (in addition to standard offerings) available: avocado, pepper relish, creamy spreads using low-fat mayo or yogurt • Able to sub the regular deli chips for baked chips or veggie at same cost • Nutrition information provided for daily special in restaurant, sandwich components available on portal • Fruit bar: • Variety of prepped seasonal fresh or frozen fruits • Cottage cheese available at lunch • Yogurt and granola available at breakfast

16. Eating well success factors • Additional Eating Well principles at other restaurants: • Daily healthy vegetable and chicken breast hot bar • FC Grab & Go • Going green – reusable to-go containers

17. Barriers and opportunities • The Eating Well special is the only healthy option… • Created a Guide to Eating Well in The Restaurants at Chesapeake • Brochures available in the restaurant and employee portal • Perceived barrier: • Cost: healthy food will cost more for a smaller portion size • Not filling: portion size is too small to be satisfying • The group effect: more likely to celebrate making it through another week by ordering high fat/calorie food • Salad Monday’s

18. Barriers and opportunities • Opportunity to reach employees who don’t feel like they have time or energy to eat well at home in the evening or on the weekends • Customer can be reassured by the fact that they can find healthy options each day for breakfast and lunch

19. Collaborating • Working together to align goals and main purpose • Continuous Eating Well recipe development • Healthy doesn’t mean boring! • Continuous monitoring of nutrition information to ensure accuracy • Maintained as a priority among chef and staff through continued education • Continuous monitoring of sales • Most helpful for establishing trends and staying ahead of curve

20. collaborating • Keys for meeting customer expectations • Establish needs and priorities • Convenience: Fuel kiosk in FC; FC and restaurant Grab and Go; lunch hour education opportunities • Fun/Interesting: Keep educational events concise; offer samples; get employees involved when possible • Pertinent: Offer education opportunities that are relevant to audience and health promotion themes

21. Collaborating • Fitness, Health & Wellness and The Restaurants • Cooking demonstrations (“no-cook”) • Hands-on cooking classes • Quarterly Workshop Wednesday’s • Nutrition challenges • Free samples at special events • Team-building event • Share recipes for the restaurant favorites

22. IN CLOSING… • Establish clear expectations from management • Understand employee/customer priorities • Collaborate with teams with a vested interest in initiative or change • Start slowly and evaluate sales

23. Thank you!