As a restaurant publicist for 22 years, I have to say no. I think when people dine out, they are making the CHOICE to have someone else cook FOR them. If you want to watch fat, calories, salt, etc. you should talk to the restaurant ahead of time. Many chefs are willing to acommodate their guests. Restaurants who have a conscious are already using trans fat-free oils, etc. All you have to do is talk to them and you should be fine. Although I only deal with independents, chains usually do post their nutrition info online and it can be very surprising. So just watch what you order and eat healhy. You can, it's pretty easy!

No way. Want to eat healthy, you know what to order or stay home.

Ohh my God!Should farmaceutical companies include on condoms "how do we must to do sex with our wifes..."
Even I believe that a moderated life it's better for healthy, We can not become slaves of the body industry or put cufs in everything we against...
we don

I guess most agree. No. and No!!!! Let's just enjoy our tasty food and exercise!

One of the traits of the foodservice industry which makes it so incredibly dynamic and exciting has been the very low barriers to entry. Anyone can go and cook something up and enter the business, either selling it to retailers or opening their own small shop or restaurant. There are, of course, health standards they need to abide by, so as not to poison their customers, but beyond that it's been a very freeflowing and exciting industry.

By mandating that restaurants have calorie information on their menu it creates a large barrier to entry for smaller players who may not have the time or expertise to calculate every menu item - let alone daily specials - into a nutrition chart. Customers should know what's in their food based on the ingredients they are eating. It should not be up to the restaurant to have to do the math.

What ever happened to good old common sense? I don't need to be provided with the calorie count to know that the simple grilled fish is a healthier option than the cassoulet.

Making the disp;la of this information mandatory does seem draconian, yet it could give the consumer a useful tool for making better choices. Calories are not the only important factor: fat and fiber are important, too. Weight Watchers members are taught to convert this information into "points", and they have an allotment of points to "spend" each day. For example, Starbuck's offers literature on their beverage content (in a pamphlet called "Nutrition by the cup"). A venti whole milk latte is 340 cal, with 18 g fat. If you make it with skim, that's 290 cal with 210 cal and 0 g fat. In the example above, the whole milk latte would be 8 "points" versus 4 for the skim. I have 20 points to spend a day, so I can now make an informed decision. By the way, research shows that we tend to order more food when at a "healthy" restaurant...so eating right doesn't always solve the problem.

No. Are we talking about "required by regulation?" Sounds like, should we require fastfood companies to be truthful to the nutritional content of products sold? If not, then require managers of these establishments to formally ask their patrons if they should do so.

For an incredible eye opener about what it is that we really eat . . . read "In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto"
by Michael Pollan. Then for the nitty gritty on calories (etc) in restaurant and prepared foods, read "Eat This Not That" by David Zinczenko.

No, but they should on the receipt. Nutricate - www.nutricate.com