Tag Archives: restaurants

Our Favorite Vegetarian Restaurants in Madison

In a state known for cheese, the likelihood of finding a decent vegetarian restaurant is non-existant. Isn’t it? That’s not the case in Madison, Wisconsin, home of Camp Randall Stadium, the Aldo Leopold Nature Center, and a surprising vegetarian dining scene.

Diners who love their veggies will be happy with the variety of food they can find in Wisconsin’s capital. With everything from burgers to baked goods available, the hard part of vegetarian dining in Madison isn’t trying to find a restaurant, it’s deciding which one to try first.

Enjoy our picks for the coolest vegetarian restaurants in Madison, Wisconsin – and be sure to tell them we sent you.

The Green Owl

“Vegetarian cuisine for people who love food” is their motto, and The Green Owl certainly delivers. One of the only exclusively vegetarian restaurants in Madison, The Green Owl serves up meatless dishes like the popular BBQ Jackfruit sandwich, using the fruit as a substitute for the traditional pork. The restaurant also hosts specialty dinners like a vegan Thanksgiving.

Yelp Rating – 4 out of 5 stars (more…)

Posted on December 11, 2023 by Elizabeth

Our Favorite Vegetarian Restaurants in Tulsa

Think of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Images of fully-vegetarian and vegetarian-friendly restaurants probably aren’t the first things that come to mind. You might not even think of Tulsa as a place to find quality vegetarian eating, but we’ve put together a list that will definitely prove you wrong. Whether you want your veggies raw, full of Asian flavor, or atop a pizza, you’ll satisfy your meatless desires in Tulsa.

In a state known for old-school comfort food you may be surprised to find the variety of veggie-friendly places. Most of these restaurants also have options for the carnivorous crowd, so if you just can’t give up your meat, there’s still plenty for you to try.

Enjoy our picks for the coolest vegetarian restaurants in Tulsa, Oklahoma – and be sure to tell them we sent you!

Café Samana

While its neighborhood is not where you would expect to find quality vegetarian and vegan eating, at Café Samana that’s exactly what you get. Though it specializes in vegan and vegetarian cuisine, there are menu options for die-hard carnivores, too. However, even they might be convinced to try the tempeh, which is known as some of the best in town.

Yelp Rating – 4.5 out of 5 stars (more…)

Posted on December 11, 2023 by Elizabeth

Our Favorite Vegetarian Restaurants in Wichita

When you think living and eating the vegetarian lifestyle, cities like Portland and Seattle immediately come to mind. But Wichita? Out here in beef country? You probably aren’t expecting much green to eat when you land here. This city is always surprising, and the number of vegetarian-friendly restaurants that are not only good, but totally worthy of your money and appetite, are growing more and more abundant all the time.

Often using locally sourced ingredients and catering to the more common carnivorous appetites that abound here in Kansas, Wichita’s veggie eateries rival some of the best places to eat in the country. Plus, every meal comes with a side of that sweet Midwest hospitality!

Enjoy our favorite vegetarian restaurants in Wichita, Kansas — and be sure to tell them we sent you.

The Flying Stove

One of the most fantastic food trucks in the country, so says Forbes, always features at least one vegetarian option that would appeal to the most meaty of eaters. Their menu rotates frequently, and rarely brings back the same thing twice. Fresh local ingredients made monthly specials like the Black Bean and Quinoa burger and Mexican Fruit Cartel big hits with their hungry, traveling legion of fans. And the truffle fries – made with fresh thyme and truffle oil – fuhgettaboutit it.

Yelp Rating – 4.5 out of 5 stars (more…)

Posted on December 11, 2023 by Natalie K

New Mobile App Feedie Invites you to ‘Share Food. Literally’

Let’s face it, we all love taking pictures of our food and sharing them on social media. Whether it’s because the food was pretty, cheap or simply delicious, it’s likely that at least one of your meals has made its way to your social media pages. What if sharing a picture of your meal could turn into actually sharing a meal with someone in need? That’s the question the founders of Feedie asked themselves.

Feedie from Feedie on Vimeo.

Feedie is a new mobile app launched by the same people who created the Lunchbox Fund, an organization started in 2004 to help bring meals to hungry children in South Africa. Topaz Page Green, Co-Founder of the Lunchbox Fund, is from South Africa though she’s been living in New York for the last 12 years. She said that the organization was started in response to the 65 percent of children living below the poverty line in South Africa. “Nelson Mandela started a food program for children in schools,” Green said. “It reached around eight million children.” She added that while that program was a benefit, it left some kids out, something she couldn’t bear.

(more…)

Posted on October 1, 2023 by Elizabeth

Pizza Hut Now Delivering a New Whole Wheat Pizza to Meet School Lunch Nutrition Guidelines

UPDATE: NOVEMBER 11, 2024: Wichita, Kansas is now a test market for rolling out the whole wheat pizza crust to their standard menu. Available for testing only in Wichita, the wheat crust option is $1 more, “due to the premium cost on the dough,” said Kym Money, director of marketing for Fugate Enterprises. She expanded, letting us know, “This is the same crust type that we use on our School Lunch pizzas, but topped with our regular toppings. It is very good, and I am hopeful it will be a successful test.”

Pizza Hut is known for its inventive approaches to the delivery pie, but few have been as impressive as their latest innovation. Pizza Hut has never been healthier, a requirement to let them keep up with the newly mandated school lunch nutrition guidelines. The brand expressed their excitement to us about being able to recreate its world-famous pizza in a way that kids could enjoy this Americanized comfort food.

“It’s a healthier option,” says Rachel Huber, MPH, RD, senior nutritionist for the Dallas-based Pizza Hut. While pizza could never be defined as a health food, Pizza Hut has made remarkable strides to make it a better part of a child’s school-day diet.

Stores facilitating the pizza for school lunch programs now have two sets of ingredients – one for the public and one for the public schools. In order for any school lunch program to receive its federal reimbursements they must meet new nutrition guidelines that took effect for the 2024-2024 school year. Pizza Hut didn’t want to miss the huge sales opportunity that is placement in these hungry cafeterias, so they made a better pizza.

A slice of the whole wheat cheese pizza has 270 calories and 8 grams of fat. The pizza beats the school lunch guideline expectations, with 26% of the calories coming from fat – the guideline is at or less than 30%. The slice of cheese also has three grams of fiber, attributed to the 51% whole wheat crust. Pizza Hut did not share the nutrition information for the other options – sausage, pepperoni, and veggie.

To make it, they went back to the drawing board, but not square one. (more…)

Posted on August 22, 2023 by Natalie K

5 Go-To Fitter Fast Food Menu Items

Eating out as a vegetarian who says no to dairy (most of the time) is a challenge. That’s why I don’t do it often. But fast food can be a necessary evil on a busy day of errands, if I forget my lunch, or if I’m traveling. While chain restaurants are being required to post calories, calories don’t provide the whole story. Lower calorie options can be loaded with sugar and lack protein, leaving you unsatisfied and headed toward a blood sugar crash.

Eating healthy on the go means being prepared and doing your research. It helps to have a go-to list of preselected options so you can grab and go. Try these fast food finds to make eating on the go a little healthier.

Denny’s Fit Fare menu: At IDEA Personal Trainer Institute West, I had the privilege of having breakfast with Kymberly and Alexandra from FunandFit.org. When Denny’s, which was across the street from our hotel, was suggested I was skeptical. I was pleasantly surprised however by their Fit Fare menu. Since they serve breakfast all day, try the Veggie Skillet. With egg whites, broccoli, spinach, mushrooms and potatoes it has 20 grams of protein and only 330 calories. While it may not be as fast they do offer take out service. (more…)

Posted on August 21, 2023 by Pamela

Chef Sebastien Archambault’s Toasted Farro Recipe Offers DC’s Blue Duck Tavern Diners More Whole Grains

By Janis Jibrin, M.S., R.D., Best Life lead nutritionist

Ever notice how hard it is to find a whole grain in a restaurant? That’s why I was surprised—and thrilled—to see “Toasted Farro” on the menu of Washington D.C.’s highly acclaimed Blue Duck Tavern. Farro is an ancient form of wheat grown in the Middle East and Italy; it’s a wild ancestor to the cultivated wheat we use now.

I loved the dish—it was both chewy and hearty. The mild-tasting grain was infused with flavors of lemon and herbs. I managed to wrangle the recipe, below, from Chef Sebastien Archambault. A stickler for using fresh, local ingredients, Archambault grew up in France and Texas and has worked with world-famous chefs such as Alain Ducasse. I guess that unusual upbringing is what it takes to put whole grains on the menu! (more…)

Posted on August 12, 2023 by BestLifeDiet

Chipotle is Going GMO-Free Because “People Have the Right to Know What’s in Their Food”

Food costs at a restaurant are the most critical to the business’ bottom line. That’s why many restaurants cut corners and you’ll often find their kitchens piled high with nameless, low-quality ingredients to ensure they can mass produce meals at a value while still turning a profit. That’s not how it works at Chipotle though, where they say it’s “worth it to spend a little bit more.”

We spoke with Chris Arnold, PR director for Chipotle Mexican Grill, who told us Chipotle has some of the highest food costs in the restaurant industry. Even still, they are able to “invest more in quality food and still be very profitable.”

Chipotle just became the first American restaurant to work toward clearing its menu of all GMO foods, something that will equally drive food costs while improving quality. The company knows there will be cost implications, exactly how much at this time they can’t say, but it’s not uncharted territory for them. “Making decisions that result in higher food costs is nothing new to us,” said Arnold.

The brand was a supporter of Prop 37 last year, the California bill that aimed to require labeling of GMO ingredients on all foods sold in the U.S. It was then that the brand started to hold itself to the same standard it was asking of others. Arnold explained that their first move was purely disclosure, to let their customers know which foods had GMOs.

“We think people have the right to know what’s in their food,” said Arnold. (more…)

Posted on July 30, 2023 by Natalie K

The Skinny on Menu Calories: Pros and Cons of Published Calorie Counts

For many healthy-minded consumers, calorie postings on menus and menu boards greatly impact their decision when making food selections. While grabbing food on the go, it’s useful to know how this item will fit into a person’s allotted daily calories. Even though it may not feel like overeating, before you know it, you’ve consumed over half of the recommended daily calories.

For instance, see the calories in typical menu items. Seeing and internalizing the number of calories allows us to realize that snacks and seemingly healthy foods may, in fact, not be so healthy at all.

Medium fries – 380 calories
Gourmet cupcake – 300-600 calories
Grilled chicken salad with dressing – 400 calories

Our country’s obesity epidemic is growing exponentially much like the waistbands of many Americans. Just twenty years ago, no states had obesity rates above 15 percent. Today, 38 states have obesity rates more than 25 percent and the U.S. national obesity rate is a record 37.5 percent. Americans are eating more of their food outside their homes, whether dining out, purchasing prepared food, or grabbing a vending machine treat. (more…)

Posted on June 28, 2023 by GuestBlogger

5 Ways to Make Your Community a Healthier Place to Call Home

One of my favorite books is The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who’ve Lived the Longest. Author Dan Buettner looks at areas in the world, dubbed Blue Zones, with large populations of people who live past 100.

He’s taken their life lessons to create The Power 9. These nine habits create a “blueprint” to living a longer and healthier life. The interesting thing is none of the people he studied consciously followed these Power 9 or set a goal to live to be 100. They just did. Their lifestyles and communities were set up to make long life possible.

Would you say the same of yours?

My community is working on it. We are working on taking the Power 9 principles and making Springfield, MO a healthier place to live. There are a lot of exciting ideas floating around, especially after Buettner’s visit to our fair city this month. In his presentations, he gave us examples of work in other towns (and almost the entire state of Iowa) using the Power 9 to create an environment that supports overall healthy and longevity.

Do you want to make your community a healthier place to live? Here are great ways to get started from his talk: (more…)

Posted on June 27, 2023 by Pamela

Sugar is Not the Problem in the Obesity Epidemic, Where you Eat is

Health experts are giving sugar a reprieve in the case against obesity. While sugar and its many processed variations are running amok in the food we eat at home or away, fats, oils, flour and cereal are more to blame for America’s continuous bloat.

According to the CDC, 25.6% of Americans have a BMI greater than thirty, firmly planting them into the obese category. Since we tend to lie about how tall we are and how much we weigh, the figure is probably a bit generous, but it’s a 10.3% increase since 20 years ago, and that’s alarming.

A New York Times article reports that Americans are consuming 448 more daily calories— or 20% more—than they were in 1970. The Department of Agriculture says 242 of those calories are from fats and oils, 167 are from flour and cereal, and only 35 are from sugars. (more…)

Posted on May 21, 2023 by Patrick

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