Ya know, the only way they could’ve made that worse is if they said, “We WILL not provide…”

Customer: “Hi, do you have a nutrition facts list of anything on your menu that I could see?”

Applebee’s: “Subpoena me!”

I dunno. All companies and people as individuals don’t do things that have a dollar value attached to it unless they have to. Nothing wrong with it. At least they show for weight watchers. Its a start.

I know, right? I was floored when I read it. Perhaps their candor is praise-worthy, but when it comes to the level of importance the epidemic of obesity is in this country, I feel like I’m no longer willing to budge even an inch on this sort of heinous oversight of limited understanding and limitless pursuit of capital gain.

It’s a show of disrespect to our well-being as a nation that is of irreducible proportions.

As I stated before, unless they change that, I’ll never eat there again.

Jason, that’s a good point. I know for a fact that Applebee’s used to display nutritional information on their website for all items on their menu. This is a recent change in policy for them — and a bad one, in my mind. It’s a step backwards.

I know of legislation that will require all restaurants to visibly post or make readily accessible the nutritional information. That all by itself is a good first step. Step two is informing the masses of the benefits of good eating and the consequences of poor eating.

You know me well enough to know I am far more obese than you ever were on your worst day. I don’t blame restaurants for not posting nutrition info as to why I am fat. I blame the fact that I love to eat unhealthy food and sit on my ass all day. I am the one who made me obese, not the restaurants or lack of education on healthy eating and exercise. I think society needs to have more personal accountability and stop putting blame on other things.

I am fat because its not a concern to me. I am lazy and I’m ok with that. Its my fault, not theirs. Now I will say the restaurants and unhealthy food corporation know that they are exploiting us weak willed people and making a buck. I say more power to them.

I understand your frustration. Actually, it was a necessary but unfortunate choice. Companies face additional liability if they voluntarily disclose nutritional data and there is deviation from that data. In fact, Applebee’s has a number of lawsuits pending because consumers claim that the nutritional data provided was different from the actual.

Just like at home, nutritional information will vary somewhat each time an item is prepared. This could be due to seasonality, portion sizes, adherence to recipes, etc. Applebee’s supports national menu labeling efforts that are pending currently in Congress. This would ensure that the same information is provided in all locations across the country.

It really is not a matter of something to hide, rather protecting the company from unwarranted lawsuits.

Patrick Lenow
Executive Director, Corporate Communications
DineEquity, Inc. (Applebee’s parent company)
patrick.lenow@dineequity.com

Jason! You bring the good stuff, my friend! I love it.

Your honesty is incredibly refreshing and invigorating. I honestly have lost sight of the fact that you brought to stark realization: the mind of the individual.

I had been so focused on my irritation with what was on th website, I forgot about the perspective you brought to light.

Part of my post, however, still rings true. All restaurants still need to post their nutritional information for the patrons to be aware of. It’s just too important. That way, if you still know exactly what you’re putting in your body and still feel the same way, then your opinion is even more validated, Jason. And if it causes an overweight person to feel compelled to change, then my opinion is further validated as well.

Love, love, love the dialogue here, my friend. Thanks for keeping the chat alive!

Patrick,

First and foremost let me say how pleased and honored I am that you felt compelled enough to reply to my blog post and that you did so in an incredibly professional, respectful and informative way. I recognize that and thank you. Sincerely.

Can I ask how you came to find my blog post?

Now that I think about it, I can easily see how a company could be held liable or legally responsible for posting information that later turns out to be false. It is unfortunate that the result of Applebee’s protecting itself is a lack of information that I, at least, feel is worth its weight in gold.

It makes sense how due to portion size and the addition/omission of ingredients can affect the nutritional data. No surprise there. Two things come to mind with the new informatio you’ve given me.

First, it may behoove those who oversee the content on Applebee’s website, specifically the faq section in question, to reword that piece as it still reads like Applebee’s doesn’t want to list the information unless they are legally forced to.

Secondly, I am a web designer by trade and a nutrition buff to boot. I have seen numerous food/restaurant websites that have nutritional data displayed in a manner that it offers a general account of the nutritional data for individual menu items, and also provides the ability for users to add/remove possible combinations of ingredients and then have the data recalculated.

A customized tool such as this on the website of a company that is as large and as popular as Applebee’s would be a fantastic step in the right direction.

Thank you again, Patrick for having the impetus to get in on this conversation. I had no idea someone from DineEquity would have contacted me and the fact that you did speaks terribly well of your company. Thank you.

Love this dialog! Jason – Good stuff. I wish more people would take ownership of their lives and choice – across the board. It seems like everywhere you look people want to pass the blame on to someone else. I suppose it’s human nature – if it’s someone else’s fault (or if you can convince yourself that it is), then you don’t have to feel bad about it anymore, right?

That being said, Patrick, I can completely understand now why Applebee’s would take down the Nutrition Facts if they’re getting sued for a few extra calories and dozen extra mgs of sodium in an entree than was posted. Ridiculous! Makes me think of the hot coffee lawsuit with McDonald’s. If people want exact nutrition with every item they put in their body then take vitamins and supplements… nothing else.

That’s aggravating. I’m curious as to what they could actually sue over, though. I guess it amazes me what holds up in court sometimes.