Ruby Tuesday's Getting Rid of Some Low Carb?

I read the Washington Post article about the disconnect between what people say they want to eat versus what they actually eat.

Restaurants find healthy foods flop

Chains discover such fare isn't really what diners want

The national restaurant chain Ruby Tuesday added a low-fat Blueberry D'Lite yogurt parfait to its menu more than a year ago to capitalize on the apparent growing appetite among consumers for healthful fare.

The parfait joined more than 40 better-for-you offerings, along with listings of calorie and fat contents for everything on the menu. French fry portions were trimmed. Heavy advertising touted the chain's Smart Eating program.

But diners didn't bite. So Ruby Tuesday has eliminated the Blueberry D'Lite, along with several other healthful dishes ditched after a lengthy period of slumping sales at the chain. Calorie and fat information was dropped except on the healthful items that survived and were moved to the back of the menu.

Now the chain is aggressively promoting its biggest burgers...

Notice the big headline.

I immediately became worried about the low carb Ruby Tuesday fare and went and checked their menu. Under Ruby Tuesday Smart Eating there was still item after item of good low carb fare:

Calories / Fat gm / Net Carb gm / Fiber gm

Steaks, Seafood & Chicken

Entrées served with choice of two sides. Nutrition information does not include side items.

Smart Eating^SM Petite Sirloin*

A smaller version of our irresistible top sirloin.   222/8/1/0

Smart Eating^SM Top Sirloin*

A seasoned sirloin steak.   285/11/1/0

Smart Eating^SM Ribeye*

Our juicy ribeye cooked just the way you like it.   635/44/4/0

Smart Eating^SM Grilled Chicken

Peppercorn-seasoned and grilled.   209/5/0/0

Smart Eating^SM Creole Catch

Broiled seasoned tilapia.   312/16/0/0

Smart Eating^SM Peppercorn Salmon

A peppercorn-seasoned fillet.   287/15/0/0

Smart Eating^SM New Orleans Seafood^™

Broiled seasoned tilapia and shrimp topped with creamy Alfredo sauce.   507/31/4/0

Smart Eating^SM Church Street Chicken^™

Grilled chicken with sautéed mushrooms, crisp bacon and melted Swiss cheese.   523/32/0/2

Side Items & Sauces

Plain Baked Potato 296/2/49/11

Add Ruby's salsa or light ranch dressing.

Salsa 10/0/3/0

Light Ranch Dressing 55/5/1/0

Thai Peanut Sauce 66/3/8/0

Bleu Cheese Dressing 177/19/1/0

Fresh Steamed Broccoli 129/8/5/3

Sugar Snap Peas 82/0/10/4

Sautéed Mushrooms 276/27/0/4

Creamy Mashed Cauliflower 166/11/9/6

Side Caesar Salad 120/10/4/1

Brown Rice Pilaf

Topped with cheese and tomatoes.   223/7/34/2

Dessert

Low-Carb Cheesecake

Our creamy cheesecake with a crunchy nut crust is carb-friendly and delicious.   400/32/1/5

Just ditch the baked potato and the rice pilaf and you can have a field day! And I didn't even excerpt the whole menu!

I would love to try the New Orleans Seafood! (And I'm surprised that the author of the article didn't dispute their "Smart Eating" designation with low carb items on the menu... but that is another article.) And on low carb, you can certainly eat the big burgers they are advertising -- just without the bun.

I have an email into their Marketing dept. to try and find out what items were actually discontinued. I'll let you know what they tell me.

Comments

[Janis]

I found that as usual the squeaky wheel gets the grease. I nagged a local restaurant until they created a low-carb menu (with my assistance). Since low-carb has slowed and requests have dropped off they simply discontinued the separate menu and moved the items into the regular menu. They did stop buying the bread, which cuts out quite a few items but there is still a large selection and all of the menu items taste great. They have everything from quesadillas and smothered chicken to steak with spinach salad and broccoli. It's practically the only place we eat out at these days and they report that lots of people who aren't low-carbing order these special dishes. The portions are larger and you actually get a full serving of vegetables instead of a couple of measly spears of broccoli. On top of that their food is great and prices are super reasonable. When I do want something like a burger or sandwich I just order the regular menu item, ask for a salad instead of the fries and then bring along my own bread to switch out. I always say... where there's a will, there's a way!

[Bonnie Scott]

My husband and I were dissapointed to find that Ruby Tuesday's had discontinued the low carb choc cake. It was so good. I'm not sure what else is missing but we sure miss that one!

[nilblogette]

Are you kidding?! That's horrible. I was thrilled to find when my parents dragged my husband and I to Cracker Barrel that they had low-carb (albeit still high-fat) options for us. I live in Beverly Hills where it is pretty easy to avoid carbs, but I'm extremely grateful when a classic chain has a low-carb section on the menu. Sure, you can still use the old noggin and figure out what will be low-carb, but I really appreciate it when they do it for me.

I think the problem is that they don't understand low-carb that well, so the low-carb options can be boring, and there are sometimes more appetizing low-carb things hidden elsewhere on the menu.