The Colonel's bucking the trend.
 

I was having a discussion the other day with some colleagues about the newer media trends encouraging people to be more healthy while eating fast food. Most of it in response to Morgan Spurlock and Super-Size Me. Thinking along the lines of the "healthier, more active" Ronald McDonald, the skinny chicks eating Wendy's and McDonald's fruit and yogurt salads, etc... I nearly fell out watching a commercial this evening.

KFC is actually offering a free chocolate Bundt cake if you buy the Industrial-Sized Bucket O'Fried Chicken?! And the focus of the commercial was the look of glee on the husband and children's faces. "Feed us grease and chocolate, mommy!"

I'm floored by the advertising thought process. Starting a list of places like KFC that continue to buck the health trends... Any thoughts?

Man, their cake is the shit.

In my personal opinion, I don't think it's the restaurants responsibility for peoples weight. They release the nutrition facts, it's the person eating the food who should say to them self, "Oh, this food is full of fat and calories that I'm not going to burn off by exercising."

Although I do like the whole "eat as a family" thing. It's better than the parents just saying "MAKE YOURSELF A HOT POCKET AND GET OUTTA MY FACE".

A list of places that buck the health trend...
* Old Country Buffet - I see those commercials and I get sick.
* Not a restaraunt, but those Hungy Man 1.5 pound frozen dinners they advertise on TV. Those seem less than healthy.

I'm with sadistikdreams in the thinking that it's not the restaurant's responsibility to keep you from becoming the next Jabba the Hut.

I think people patronize fast-food joints because they want something greasy, fattening, and quick. Those businesses should rightly cater to their customers' demands instead of trying to change them.

Turns out that this "health trend" was no more than a failed advertising attempt that likely had more to do with said documentary backlash than with contributing to the collective weight-loss of fast-food consumers.


August 18th Washington Post article.

(snip)
(/snip)

There is milk in chocolate cake. Milk. And eggs. Milk and eggs. And flour, which is what bread is made from. And butter.

Chocolate cake is just a breakfast of buttered toast, eggs, and a tall glass of milk all in once convenient package.

Gilda

But its a Bundt cake?!?! Come on... who doesn't love a good Bundt cake?

Heck, who doesn't just like to say Bundt... over and over and over again.

Say it with me now! Bundt, Bundt, Bundt, Bundt, Bundt

yay Gilda!!!!! I knew there was a reason I craved Chocolate cake for brekky. ( I thought it was my hormones).....Mrs ryfo

I love how that was rationalized... Now can you rationalize that coffee is really good for me... and I need to drink gallons of it a day... :)

http://img.epinions.com/images/opti/...resized200.jpg
Dad is great. He gives us chocolate cake. ;)

Seriously...when I have a "hankerin'" for McDonald's, it sure as hell ain't for a fruit and walnut yogurt salad. Give me a break. If that's what you want...then great, there are places to go get that. When I want a big greasy, fat dripping, artery clogging cheeseburger, I don't need Beonce Knowles shovin' fruit and nuts at me. And boo hiss to McDonald's for falling into this pc drivel. They didn't get where they are from selling twigs and berries. And a double kick in the ass for these idiots that berate McD's for not selling more fruit cups. Say it with me..."That's not their core competency." See? Now I want a cheeseburger.

Yeah, this is bullshit. Restaurants have absolutely no responsibility to make sure that people eat healthy. They are businesses; they make money by selling what people want. If people didn't want burgers, all of these fast food chains wouldn't be so big.

There is a cafe nearby where the owner/cook can get you a 'Trapper Burger', which, of course, is a huge fucking burger.

It costs 10 bucks, but believe me, there is about 40 bucks worth of grease on that plate.

There is 1/2 pound patty, 1/4 pound of bacon, and a 1/4 pound of salami/peperoni. Then the cheese, onions, on and on.

I have only seen it ordered 4 times. It comes out on a platter. One of the times I ordered it. I finished it. Then I didn't eat for the rest of the day. I just held my stomach and groaned.



Bundt, Bundt, Bundt, Bundt, Bundt!!!!

The chicken in the McDonald's salads is "seasoned" with MSG. I can't eat it, it gives me a headache.

Congratulations. Nobody ever gets my obscure pop culture references. :).

Gilda

It wasn't plaigarism. I swear. It was . . . an homage.

i agree with sadistikdreams, people have to police yourself.

Fast food fascinates me. Personally, I think if you want to eat something more healthful, you can go to Subway and order a Veggie Delight with light mayo or whatever. People have to realize that when they go to a place like KFC, McDonalds, or Burger King, they're not going to be eating healthfully.

Burger King has openly acknowledged that they are trying to go after the customer share McDonalds has lost since beginning to introduce healthier menu items. They're going after men between 18-35--the guys who do want that giant omelette breakfast sandwich or the ultimate double Whopper. Not surprisingly, BK's sales are up for these items and not the healthy items on their menu.

Personally, I can't eat the stuff because of acid reflux (well, can't eat it much) and so I KNOW when I go for fast food what I can and cannot eat (a bean burrito at Taco Bell, baked potato at Wendy's, Arby's is fine, KFC I take the skin off, and I'm screwed at BK or McDonalds). People are aware of how fattening these things are. They just need to start doing something about it, instead of expecting someone else to do it for them.

Good for them.

I want a bucket of chicken, by god, I want a bucket of chicken. If they want to throw a nice bundt cake in there, well, that's fine by me.

It's good to see a few chains putting the responsibility of eating healthy back into the consumer's hands where it belongs.

But... people *are* policing themselves. The yogurt and granola are just marketing.

The fast food retaurants are reacting to market forces (as any good capitalist should do). It is currently in their interest to offer healthy options. Noone that I am aware of is holding a gun to the head of the McDonald's Corp. and noone is holding a gun to the heads of the people making the healthy choice...

The word here is choice and McDonald's made a choice to offer choice.

Is it really true that McDonald's pulled the 'super-size' option from their menus in response to the movie? If so, I think they must've felt some social responsibility to take such an action.

Btw, that movie was sick!! Especially the experiments that was included in the bonus section of the DVD. Anybody else check out their experiments?!?! After seeing it, I don't think there are any potatoes involved in making their fries! :eek:

As long as KFC keeps making their honey BBQ stuff they can stockpile nuclear weapons for all i care. :thumbsup:

Exactly. I'm grateful the choice is offered now. And I now can grab something at McD's if I have to, so any $ they make off me now is more than they were making before.

Of course they sugar-coat the walnuts in the apple/yogurt/walnut thingy. *sigh*.
But at least they use low-fat yogurt in the fruit and yogurt parfait.

I like chicken and i like cake.
Fuck eating healthy.

Damned right. It seems though that people want to believe that anyone can be at fault except ourselves. My grandmother was quite fat. Obese to be exact. She never sat foot in a fast food joint let alone many restaurants. She did however spend a great amount of time sitting. Sitting and doing puzzles. Sitting and reading. Sitting and watching TV.

Wait!!!!!! Puzzle makers, publishers of dime novels and TV gameshow producers killed my grandma!

oh i agree, its up to the consumer to make the choices. hamburger or apple.

Man, I didn't realize this would cause a stir!

I'm so 100% behind each person deciding what to order and whatnot... It was the advertising that got me. The media perceptions and how they're all frantically scrambling to convince people that the corporations are looking out for the health of the Collective. It was more about KFC refusing to try to convince anyone of anything... except that kids and dads love cake with their chicken. And Hardee's. They don't apologize for their Monster Thickburgers... 107 grams of fat, 1420 calories. We all know how bad fast food can be for us.

But in this warped media world of "Be Skinnier!" and "Eat Healthy!", KFC and Hardee's just say "Eat Me."

And... bUnDt, BuNdT, BUndt, BundT, BUNDT! You don't know how much fun it was to just type "chocolate Bundt cake" to begin with. :D

Bottom Line - (and let's be honest) - if you're fat (and/or unhealthy), it's your choice. In today's times, you made that choice. Spurlock didn't make that choice for you - you did. If you don't like being a big cow, get off your ass and do something. Situps; crunches; whatevever - just don't blame me because you're a lazy f@@@.

*agreed*

Frankly, people need to stop expecting the government, businesses or other people in general to take car of them. Get over it. If you want to be skinny, STOP eating goddamned quintuple Whoppers with Crisco. If you think being a size 0 is sexy, well, whatever floats your skeletal ass boat. People should just be people. If Americans are too fat it's because we have the money to buy food and shove it into our collective chubby faces. Who cares? I think tonight I'ma buy a big ass family bucket of extra-crispy chicken, get the bundt cake and a gallon of mashed potatoes and gravy, and eat it all myself in one giant sitting. I want to HEAR my arteries hardening!

I think there are a few places which offer alternatives to high fat, high calorie junk food, but I think the trend is still more, More, MORE for Americans.

I think that, at best, it is definitely in their interest to add "choice" to the menu. If nothing else, it indemnifies them against those morons who say "all they have is..." and then use that as a basis for lawsuit- which is bullshit.

I think the fact that the "health" options only comprise 2% of their total sales really speaks to the fact that "people demanded" the change and they're coming in, in droves, to take advantage. /sarcasm

I say hooray to KFC for offering cake to follow fried chicken- and for free, even!

Now i am gonna second the communal wisdom here I (and this is the personal I here not the royal I) am fat cause i like being fat, hence the name, and i know people decide to eat healthy but the problem with the marketing is that its turtles al the way down. You cant say that the advertising isnt gonna shape public opinion, hell I get called a jackass when i ask my friends why they buy bottled water. The fact that they feel the need to be healthier because of a movie or cause they sense a trend is sad, but i cant deny people are sheep to whatever is profitable right now.


bundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundt
bundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundt
bundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundt
bundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundt
bundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundt
bundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundt
bundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundt
bundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundtbundt
bundtbundtbundtbundt

And, you deserve it. Today. ;)

Seriously, I agree that McD's and other restaurants aren't responsible for overweight people, but they need to be totally honest and upfront about nutrition content. It's gotten a lot better in the last five to ten years, but it's still not where it should be, IMO.

Also, I don't appreciate the burgers that are simply loaded with gratuitous fat. It's like they soak them in lard after they cook. Then they toss a cup of mayo on top. I hate asking them to not add the mayo, I think it pisses them off. I'd rather order something that is already just a bit more healthy.

But, sometimes you bite into a burger and feel like there is so much grease and mayo, that you really should call an ambulance ahead, because you just know your arteries are going to shut down by the time you finish that thing.

I don't want to give the impression that I do that all the time. I only have fast food about 6-12 times per year. I had a home made wrap, chips and salsa, and fresh watermelon for lunch today.

Stop! You're making me hungry! :)

:drool:

When I'm hungry for McDonalds, KFC, or any fast food whatsoever I'm gonna eat the fast food stuff on the menu - not the healthy choices. Besides I can buy a lb of grapes, 2 pounds of apples and a container of yogurt (I wouldn't have the nuts either way cause I'm allergic) for HALF the price that McDonalds is charging for their fruit salad. If I'm going to Mcdonalds I'm going partly because I don't want to have to cook or I want something FAST (duh).

My biggest complaint is that there are so few SMALL portion choices. I'd like to get just a SMALL drink with my food - I never drink the whole MEDIUM drink choices - especially at Hardees where their Medium is so huge it will barely fit in my cup holders. I frequently get a kids meal but there are times that I would like something OTHER than the kids pressed meat chicken nuggets, a single ground beef taco, or a cheeseburger. I would like to be able to go, get a single roast beef sandwich and a small soda and not pay nearly the same as the person who I buying the medium fries and a medium soda.

I'm not sure how much else they could show for you- there IS NO nutrition content, it's a fucking burger. It's the cooked flesh of an animal with mayo on top of it. Their type of meat also happens to be low-grade and fatty. That's what they serve... if it's so horrible, don't order it, or eat elsewhere. Burger King is way better anyway.

You ordered a burger, which is not a health food to begin with, from A FAST FOOD place. OF COURSE it's going to be even worse for you. You say this like a freshly-prepared, made-at-home burger is somehow healthy for you. They're not really healthy for you to begin with- that's why there are salad and vegetable diets, but no "burger" diet.

This, again, is the prime example of what i'm talking about- rather than simply NOT EATING there, and NOT giving them more of your business, you (the royal you) continue to eat there, continue to give them your business, and then bitch and whine about how bad it is for you to be eating it. STOP EATING IT so we don't have to hear you (the royal you) complain. If everyone who felt as you feel stopped eating there, the whole industry would have a breakthrough shift. But no, keep eating and whining. That will effect change. :thumbsup: :rolleyes:

So if you only have fast food less than once per month, why the heated opinion? You make it sound like you're forced to choke it down twice daily, like everyone else. I'm not picking on the poster above, just using it as an example of the type of argument I always see from the, "I hate fast food, it's so gross and fatty and they should be held responsible to make it healthier, but I eat it anyway even though i totally disagree with it" crowd.

It's like low-fat cake. Who the fuck WANTS to eat low-fat cake?? Cake is good because of the fatty elements it contains. Remove that, and you no longer have cake, you have a poor taste-alike. Cake was made in a low-fat form because there were a shitload of fatass whiners who wanted to keep eating their precious cake- so rather than work to change themselves by dieting, exercising, etc, or give up a vice in cases where weight loss or exercise won't help or aren't an option, they demand a lower-fat cake SO THEY CAN KEEP EATING CAKE. How fucked up is that?

I know at McDonalds you can ask for a small soda instead of a medium; it will actually decrease the cost of your meal (the Value Meal price actually adds up fries+sandwich, the soda is added on top at full price, if that makes sense). One of the best ways to get a cheaper meal at McDonalds is to order a coffee or milk instead of a soda ;)

Just eat it for what it is.....
 

The way I look at it....
It's fastfood and its supposed to be bad... :hmm:
So if your gonna eat it...don't mess around...go big..supersize...extra everything...and wait for the coma to start and enjoy the greasy dreams. :thumbsup:

I'm glad to know this - Will be trying that next time. Cool.

I'm on a bit of a health kick right now and was at the gym prior to work.

I also ate at McDonalds this morning.

1 egg McMuffin - 290 calories, lots of protein and some carbs, cost me 189 with tax.

How you eat is up to you, what annoys me are nanny state people who want to tell me what I should eat because they know best. If I want to stuff my face and become a lard ass its my choice as much as diet and exercise.