03/18/08 Mandated Menu Labeling

Planning a nice evening out at your favorite restaurant with plans to indulge yourself on the dessert menu? Better do it now while you can still enjoy the experience; before mandated menu labeling comes to your town. Several governing bodies in cities across America are considering requiring restaurants to print detailed nutritional information on their menus. Although their intentions seem admirable, to fight the on going battle against obesity; how practical is it really and who will it actually benefit in the long run. The cost alone for restaurants having to make their menus fit the bill would be astronomical. Are restaurants going to be required to hire dieticians to ensure that the nutritional information is correct and the portion sizes are controlled? I can already hear gavels pounding in courtrooms across the nation in lawsuit after lawsuit over menu misrepresentation. Can't we trust people to decide for themselves whether to have the broccoli or the chocolate mousse? I believe I already touched on that in a previous Food Forethought, it's called personal responsibility. Bon Appetite.