Ruby Tuesday Grows Tired Of Low-Carb Market
Ruby Tuesday has shifted their business focus away from low-carb
When popular restaurant chain Ruby Tuesday decided to remove their famous low-carb cheesecake from their menu two months ago, I suppose the proverbial handwriting was on the wall regarding the rest of their "Atkins-friendly menu" that they became very famous for among the low-carb community over the past few years.
This Motley Fool column confirms what most of us who are livin' la vida low-carb already knew -- the last restaurant that catered to active low-carbers has now grown tired of the low-carb market and decided to move on.
According to the story, the company has "made investments" into securing their future by making "changes to the menu."
"[Ruby Tuesday is] moving away from diet-related items (such as the Atkins diet), and appealing to a wider customer base. Ruby Tuesday has also decreased the number of menu items available, focusing on burgers in addition to its mainstay salad bar and ribs. And rather than focus on coupons such as those in Sunday newspapers, it has increased television advertising both in local markets and nationwide. This has helped boost sales quite a bit."
Okay, it's time to mope (insert sad face here). I guess we shouldn't be all that surprised by this move by Ruby Tuesday in light of what is happening with low-carb products and businesses lately.
Dreamfields pasta pushing their fantastic product to people who are not livin' la vida low-carb.
Hood changing the name of their popular low-carb milk from Carb Countdown to Calorie Countdown.
This move away from low-carb products was predictable and can actually be a VERY GOOD thing in the long run because it will make people get back to the roots of what made the low-carb lifestyle so fantastic.
Dr. Robert C. Atkins never meant for there to be a bazillion "low-carb" products out there for people to eat. He encouraged people to eat healthy whole foods that satisfied your hunger and were low-glycemic. His basic philosophy about diet and nutrition never meant to include a lot of these low-carb junk foods and to that I say GOOD RIDDANCE!
But the menu at Ruby Tuesday was incredible for people on low-carb and it will be sorely missed because it truly reflected a "low-carb" menu that people following a low-carb plan actually wanted to get, especially that outstanding cheesecake I used to love to get during my weight loss and can't get anymore (BOO HOO!).
Oh well, this leaves the door wide open to another restaurant to step it up and cater to the growing obese and diabetic population. If you make the menu attractive enough to people and still keep the items healthy, then it very well could work. Who's it gonna be? Anyone? The millions of us who are livin' la vida low-carb are waiting...patiently...anyone?...
posted by Jimmy Moore at
7/11/2006 06:56:00 PM
10 Comments:
There's none in my area, so I've never been there. I don't eat out often anyway. It's hard to eat on plan these days. I recently foudn out that Applebee's injects their steaks with SUGAR! No wonder I gained weight eating there!
You mean they shifted their business focus away from healthy, proper nutrition. And are now poisoning their customers again with truckloads of sugar.
*sigh*
What a world...
Again a loss to the community of informed healthy eaters! Just wait, when LCL comes back in fashion (give it 5 or 7 years) they'll all line up again at the get go!
In the meantime, in my neck of the woods, a restaurant chain - TGI FRIDAYS - still has it's limited line of Atkins entrees and cheesecake!!
http://www.tgifridays.com/menu/atkins.htm?promo=1
Oh, I forgot about TGI Friday's. They too have an excellent Atkins menu. I wonder how long they'll keep it, though. It's probably just a matter of time before they change their business structure, too. In the meantime, we low-carbers should support them.
I used to look for restaurants with low carb menus but since they are few and far between I just order the salads. I can go to almost any restaurant chain and order some salad on their menu. Even at a Mexican restaurant you can order fajitas at most of them with a side of guacamole and sour cream and be good. One chain Red Robin still has a burger on their menu that is wrapped in lettuce and has a side salad. I have ordered that alot. MMMMM.
Of course I do not order the rice and beans side and do not eat the tortillas with the fajitas. Just eat the meat and veggies only.
We have TGIs in Oz. No cheesecake :( but the steak and buttered beans are tasty.
Hey LCTG,
I suppose if they can do it with chargrilled chicken then they can do it to steaks as well. That's why you are better off cooking at home where at least you KNOW what you are putting in your mouth.
THANKS for your comments!
I just went to a TGIFriday's, and although the low-carb menu has been reduced (and no longer affiliated with Atkins Nutritionals), there's still a low carb section with several items, including the cheesecake. I ordered one of their chicken items from the LC menu, and the server said it was about to be discontinued, but that there would be a substitute LC item. They also have some meat and cheese skillets that are very yummy and LC if you don't eat the chips and/or get them with mashed potatoes. The triple cheese fundido is excellent!
What is amazing to me is that Ruby's would take away something that, obviously, a lot of people enjoyed. Have you look at their menu lately? QUICHE is prominently featured. What are they thinking?
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