Looking for healthy-food options in an unfamiliar neighborhood? Just log on to GoodFoodNearYou.com (or use your iPhone or BlackBerry to access the free downloadable application) and enter your address or ZIP code: Up pops a list of restaurants and food vendors in your area, with suggestions for smart menu choices at each location.
This nifty tool is still in its infancy, and it’s certainly not perfect yet: So far most of the restaurants in their database are fast-food and casual-dining chains, so no matter where you are you’re likely to get a list that includes Dunkin’ Donuts, Burger King, and Ruby Tuesday. And while many of the “healthiest choices” are salads or low-fat entrées, some are a little odd: At 7-Eleven—the nearest establishment to my home in Brooklyn—the Web site suggests I try a 1/3-pound Biggest Bite hot dog with 45g fat, 480 calories, and 3g carbs. (Considering the limited selection of prepared foods offered at 7-Eleven, though, I guess that’s not too bad.)
The next version of GoodFoodNearYou, the company assures me, will include more mom-and-pop places and individual restaurants, and eventually they hope to roll out technology that allows any restaurant to add its own coordinates and nutritional information to the database. For now, it’s helpful at least to find out some of the stats for popular chains near you, since many of them aren’t yet sharing calorie counts on their menus—and it may help you decide on where to eat your next meal.
GoodFoodNearYou was created by Global Fitness Media, a Los Angeles–based company founded by fitness pioneer Jake Steinfeld, CEO of Body by Jake Global and chairman of the California Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness. Global Fitness Media is also launching an exercise-and-healthy-eating Web site complete with online personal trainers, called FitPlanet, this spring.
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Comments (7)
The “goodfoodforyou” app is worthless IMHO. It contains chain restaurants with only a few independents thrown in. What does this mean for you? Search a location and you’ll be given Dunkin Donuts, McDonalds, Arby’s, 7-11, etc…
My favorite was in the Hershey PA area where it listed a restaurant with the healthiest thing on the menu being a pickle. That’s right, a pickle.
The Good Food Near You is a fun app for the iPhone. I’ve used it in Texas, North Carolina, Providence, Fort Myers and LA and it works great. And when I do go to McDonalds, Arbys, Pizza Hut or Subway, I know in an instant what is the healthiest item on the menu. And, even more important, it helps me make healthy decisions with the stuff that I’m going to eat. Great little app with great results. And, oh by the way, I love pickles!!
Wow. I just tried the webpage and that is TOTALLY useless. A chicken fillet with no bun or pickle? I could make that at home. Or how about a freakin’ hot dog from the 7-11, only 45g of fat. That’s the “good food” near me?! Yuck.
I found the app to be pretty useful when traveling and being stuck with fast food chains (not my usual spots). I do look forward to them adding local eateries but I think for a free app, it has its place.
~amy
WithAmyMac.com
For people in the Cleveland area, try The Soup Pot restaurant. It’s a great little place that makes everything homemade from scratch! Delicious and healthy soups, salads and even their lemon squares are not overly sweet. I LOVE This place. Check it out http://www.thesouppot.com
I love what you have done here with the local healthy choices. Understandably it’s not going to seem helpful to everyone but for someone like me it is. Good healthy food is what i’m about. Angioplasty
GoodFoodNearYou.com is the worst website! Top four restaurants near me were Burger King, KFC, and McDonald’s. There are dozens of healthy choices in my immediate area and not one of them came up. How about renaming the website CrapFoodNearYou.com?