Orchid Group is adding some calorie information to its menus in response to consumer demand, writes Lesley Foottit.
The group’s Free House Dining Pub menus will feature ‘under 600 calorie” dishes and The Living Room menus will highlight ‘under 500 calorie” dishes.
The company’s 14 Pizza Kitchen & Bar sites already offer an Ellipse range of oval pizzas all under 500 calories.
“We always listen to what our customers have to say and they do not necessarily want every single thing listed for its calorie content,” said head of food Sarah Thomas.
“Instead, they want a low-key, low-pressure way of finding out about the healthier or lighter options without having facts and figures thrown in their face.”
Customer feedback has shown a division with some customers wanting nutritional information and some opposed. Orchid has chosen to highlight some dishes to please both camps.
“After all, when we go for a meal out we don’t want to have to think too much about sticking strictly to the diet or avoiding certain things – we’re just there to enjoy a good meal,” said Thomas.
“There are many ways to encourage sensible eating and we do that by highlighting lighter or healthier options, not by listing hundreds of numbers that are difficult to digest. Demand for everything to be labelled in detail simply is not there. Sensible choices and high quality food are the really important factors.”
