Healthy and specialty define today’s kids’ menus

Top 10 kids’ menu items

A look at the Top 10 items on kids’ menus shows that traditional dishes are still the most popular offerings. Chicken strips and nuggets are the most frequently menued kids’ dishes, making up 12.2 per cent of total kids’ menu items. Ricky’s Restaurants serves two crispy chicken strips with sweet plum dipping sauce, and Jungle Jim’s offers animal-shaped chicken nuggets. Mini burgers and pasta dishes, which are favourites on adult menus, are also enjoyed by children. Kelsey’s kids’ menu lists two mini burgers topped with Canadian Cheddar, and The Old Spaghetti Factory offers a children’s Alfredo Penne.

Another heavily menued kids’ dish is macaroni and cheese, which makes up 4.1 per cent of total kids’ menu items. Several kids’ mac and cheese dishes feature twists on the traditional dish to appeal to younger generations. Don Cherry’s Sports Grill offer Mac & Cheese Wedges, and Boston Pizza serves Bugs N’ Cheese, colourful bug-shaped pasta mixed with Alfredo sauce and mozzarella cheese. Rounding out the Top 10 list are pancakes (3.1 per cent), cheese pizza (3.1 per cent) and fish and chips (2.7 per cent).

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Top 10 kids’ menu growth items

The 10 kids’ dishes that have seen the most growth show a trend toward healthy and specialty items. Fruit has shown the most growth on kids’ menus from 2008 to 2009, with a tripling of mentions (300%). This is undoubtedly related to Canada’s growing concern over kids’ nutrition and childhood obesity. Montana’s Cookhouse menus apple slices and Mandarin oranges as a kids’ side. Salads are perceived to be healthier than other entrées and sides, and specialty kids’ salads and Caesar salads also ranked high on the list. Rockwell’s Bar & Grill, Hard Rock Café, Jack Astor’s Bar & Grill and The Pantry Restaurants all offer kids’ salads.

Other growth items are hot dogs, ravioli, smoothies, specialty pizzas, cheeseburgers and wings. For instance, Moxie’s Classic Grill offers a specialty cheese pizza, and Turtle Jack’s Muskoka Grill serves wings.