Fit from the Farm with Bob Evans

Restaurants chain Bob Evans is offering options that it says are nutritionally balanced and full of delicious, farm-fresh taste.

The Fit from the Farm options were introduced to the Bob Evans’ menu in 2010. Each meal on the menu, it says, has 1/3 or less of the recommended Daily Value for:

• Calories (650 or less)
• Sodium (750mg sodium or less)
• Fat (35 percent or less total calories from fat)
• Saturated Fat (less than 10 percent of total calories from saturate fats)

“It’s no secret that more nutritious menu items in restaurants have been in high demand recently by both the general public and the government,” says Tom Marchese, vice president of marketing for Bob Evans Restaurants.

“Last year we challenged our chefs to come up with a menu dedicated specifically to more balanced meal options that would still boast the farm-fresh taste of Bob Evans. This year, we’re enhancing it even further with the addition of our BE Fit Breakfast, which includes our new cranberry multigrain sidecakes, Bob Evans Egg Lites, and a fresh fruit dish.”

The meals were designed by Bob Evans Fresh-Thinking Chefs so that guests who follow a 2,000 calorie-per-day diet could eat three meals a day at Bob Evans and still fall within the calorie count guidelines.

Nutritional information is clearly listed on the menu for each Fit From the Farm item, the company says.

Moreover, at Bob Evans, guests can substitute any side dish for a garden salad, or fruit dish at any time for no extra charge.

Bob Evans Farms, Inc. owns and operates full-service restaurants under the Bob Evans and Mimi’s Cafe brand names.

According to the company, at the end of the second fiscal quarter (Oct. 29, 2010), Bob Evans owned and operated 569 family restaurants in 18 states, primarily in the Midwest, mid-Atlantic and Southeast regions of the United States.

And Mimi’s Cafe owned and operated 145 casual restaurants located in 24 states, primarily in California and other western states.