Restaurants Look Beyond Chicken Fingers

The Wall Street Journal:

Restaurants trying to get more families to dine out have a new recipe: Get rid of the French toast sticks. Put more broccoli and carrots on the menu. Let the kids eat free.

The industry is scrambling to counter a tendency by recession-pinched parents to leave their children at home when they go out to eat. Restaurant visits among groups with kids fell 5% in the 52 weeks ended June 30 compared with a year earlier, according to researcher NPD Group.

Restaurants are responding with revamped kids’ menus, healthier food and kids-eat-free nights. Such moves are tricky to do well because restaurants must appeal to young palates while addressing parents’ health concerns. This summer, P.F. Chang’s China Bistro Inc. and The Cheesecake Factory Inc. added their first-ever kids’ menus. Continue reading this post.