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Photo: Lyfe Kitchen
Lyfe Kitchen (Lyfe stands for "Love Your Food Everyday") seemingly has a lot going for it. At its helm are two former McDonald's executives, including Mike Roberts, former president and chief operations officer of the fast-food chain. Art Smith, Oprah Winfrey's former personal chef, and chef Tal Ronnen, both known for making healthy food taste good, are in the development kitchen.
"Most quick-serve restaurants deal with manufacturers of food that are prepared to a certain point, which they then finish," Chef Smith told Slashfood. "But most of that manufactured food has a lot of additives. We're creating healthier choices, but how we're going to mass produce it is a challenge."
According to the Chicago Tribune, the Chicago-based Lyfe Kitchen plans to launch the chain with its first location in Palo Alto, Calif., by late summer. Within five years, the ambitious plan is to open 250 more locations nationally.
But industry skeptics say that a healthy-food concept that bans butter, cream, fried foods and high-fructose corn syrup is inherently a hard-sell.
Darren Tristano of Technomic, a Chicago-based food industry consulting company, told the Chicago Tribune that he expects Lyfe will have trouble reaching 100 locations.
"It's a niche market," he was quoted as saying. "Consumers continue to use restaurants as an indulgence. Nobody wants a better-quality burger. No one can sell soy burgers."
Ouch. Shapiro, however, says he believes Roberts and the Lyfe team are reading the times correctly.
"It seems like that's the point we're at societally," Shapiro told Slashfood. "It's important to note, this concept is very vegan friendly, but not exclusively vegan -- they're also setting high standards for meat, eggs and dairy. Hopefully they'll have a positive impact on the rest of the quick-service restaurant (QSR) community as well."
Will the fast-food giants be watching? Shapiro says yes. "It's hard to imagine that anyone in the QSR field will not be watching what the former head of McDonald's will do next."
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2-10-2011 @2:41PM Melanie Metzger said... If they truly are a "healthy" fast food option then I would be all for this! I've been dying for someone to come up with idea for years. The only reason I ever go to a fast food restaurant is for the convenience not the taste of the food. Most of the stuff out there makes me feel horrible (both physically and mentally) afterwards.
Please continue with idea and Please make it available in Houston, TX
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2-10-2011 @3:03PM Bean Reel said... Healthful fast food? In a word: Chiptole! You'll only miss the drive-thru. Look in to Steve Ells and his program of Food With Integrity.
Personally, I don't see these concept restaurants lasting any longer that the Rain Forrest Cafe's did. While we all need to eat better, the general population can't afford to and at some point Farmer's will realize they can turn out more crops with smart practices that aren't exactly earth muffin organic. The Middle Class is shrinking, and so is their disposable income for chi-chi restaurants that make them feel good.
2-11-2011 @8:40AM Kookie said... It doesn't take much imagination or work to make healthy foods taste good.
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2-11-2011 @8:40AM jesus said... Was about time i tested some of their food already at a test kitchen its amazing it is going to be a homerun good luck guys we reeally need this .
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2-11-2011 @8:40AM Loyce Pennington said... What is so complicated about this? At the manufacturing level, don't put in the additives. Do they have any idea of how many people screen the menu ahead of time or pull it up on their phone to figure out calories and content, and that can be mind blowing information like how can they really put an entire days worth of calories in one dish. So much of it is totally unnecessary. There are hundreds of other seasonings besides "hot as the devil" and SUGAR. Even vegetables have added sugar, so having a vegetable plate isn't the answer to a balanced meal. So many places have a rubber stamped meal which includes meat, potatoes or rice and a wimpy salad and the portions are nuts. You get 2 cups of starch and one cherry tomato. Anything they do is an improvement, as they couldn't do much worse.
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2-11-2011 @9:31AM mimi said... If these chefs are so good and Oprah has hired one or some others, why is she gaining so much weight and looks it??
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2-11-2011 @9:57AM Sarah said... Because she gets bad advice from these supposed experts. She eats too many carbs in the form of grains instead of vegetables. She has said she has Hashimotos Thyroid Disease. This is an autoimmune disease directly connected with eating gluten containing foods such as wheat. She has said on her show many times how much she loves bread. oesn't metter if it is organic or whole wheat, it is still poison for her. One of her so-called experts should tell her this.
2-11-2011 @12:55PM PAMELA S said... Healthy food is very important. That is putting it into context.
The first mistake was to use OPRAH!...........
No amount of money or a healthy food project will ever give her what she has hoped for all her life. SLENDER AND TO REMAIN!
LOL, one million times. What goes around comes around, Winfrey...........That is what you get for ruining too many American women's lives like mine.
PAMELA S
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2-11-2011 @1:45PM leon said... I knew that Oprah didn't know how to cook. If she did she would be able to cook her own meals at home.
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3-09-2011 @6:09AM anjelahills said... I was very encouraged to find this site. I wanted to thank you for this special read. I definitely savored every little bit of it.
Maple Syrup Diet
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