When I attended the Chef to Chef Conference in 2018, Brad Barnes, an American Culinary Federation (ACF) Certified Master Chef (CMC), gave a memorable keynote address discussing the future of food, the need for healthier food on the table in America, and the role he saw chefs playing in moving that needle. I’ve been turning my gears over his message ever since. I was inspired by some of it, but the constant switching of trends in the efforts to find healthier ways of eating has left me at a loss as to how chefs can actually help.
I wonder about how much demand there is in the market for healthier food in restaurants. What is the actual demand, and how is this driven by the often flawed perceptions of what healthy or healthier food is supposed to look like? The average person scrolling social media looking for ideas on how to eat healthier is likely bombarded by conflicting information and left largely confused as to where to start. The conversation is driven by the trends, which shift rapidly, so let’s discuss what some of the recent ones are.
Keto
The ketogenic diet is nothing new but has been in and out of the spotlight for decades, with new variants being popularized all the time—’Atkins’ being one of the first and ‘carnivore’ one of the latest. At the end of the day, it’s all the same thing. The basis is that there are essential amino acids (from protein) and essential fatty acids, but because your body can make glucose from other substrates, you really don’t need to consume it via carbohydrate food sources.
Keto can be wildly effective for some people, largely due to its simplicity. You just avoid anything with carbohydrates, and you’re generally compliant with the ground rules of the diet. To start, portion sizes aren’t usually terribly important—eat as much steak, bacon, eggs, sausage, hard cheeses, and non-starchy vegetables as you want. Carnivore variants eschew the vegetables altogether. Some even haphazardly blend butter and other oils into their coffee and claim it to be good for you. Contrary to popular mischaracterization, keto is not a high-protein diet. The key is to stick to high-fat foods, and your body will switch into ketosis and preferentially use fat for fuel. Proponents speak of ketosis as a near-mythical state of being, where all that reckless consumption of saturated fat can do no harm. A recent study found otherwise, with researchers showing an alarming level of arterial plaque increase in those on a ketogenic diet despite subjects otherwise presenting as healthy (Soto-Mota et al. 2025).
Low-Carb
Low-carb proponents resemble keto zealots but are often less extreme about complete removal of carbohydrates from the diet. Some carbohydrates get labeled as good and others bad, typically because of glycemic index. While seemingly logical at face value, this hasn’t held up in research. With glycemic index being measured in individual foods, those values don’t typically carry over into mixed meals we actually eat, and researchers have not found significant differences with dietary success based on glycemic index when calories are equated (Sloth et al. 2004). Proponents of this dietary strategy make insulin activity out to be the root of all evil and therefore avoid carbs in favor of meat. They might be surprised to learn that steak has been shown to activate more of an insulin response than rice (Holt et al. 1997).
This dietary strategy typically focuses heavily on sugar, even though the glycemic index of table sugar isn’t even terribly high at 68. More importantly, research has shown that sugar intake is only harmful insofar as it raises overall caloric intake (Prinz 2019)—i.e., the higher sugar intakes have simply led to people consuming more calories in general.
Low-Sugar
Further villainization of sugar singles out fructose, aka fruit sugar. It’s sugar, it’s found in fruit, and you’ll see people use this rationale to claim fruit is therefore bad for you, but higher fruit intake has been correlated with better health (Yu et al. 2018; Guyenet 2019). Moreover, specific research around fructose consumption has been inconclusive (Rizkalla 2010). RFK’s initiatives have put fructose back in center stage, primarily through Coca-Cola and high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS). They tell us we’ll be healthier by drinking soft drinks sweetened with “real” sugar as opposed to HFCS but haven’t told us how or provided a single study showing this outcome. The only true danger of HFCS is that it’s very easy to consume because of the types of products it’s used in—calorie dense, highly palatable, and low satiety.
Low-Fat
Back in the ’90s, fat got labeled as bad. Products were labeled low-fat or even fat-free the same way we see products being marketed as gluten-free today. Nowadays, with the keto variants, fat is back in style. Sure, there are health benefits to fatty acids—some are even essential—but some are good and others are bad, right? Probably the biggest topic of discussion in health and nutrition right now is the anti-seed oil movement, and it’s a doozy. An initial wave of research in rats got everyone scared silly about seed oils, but subsequent research in humans has shown seed oils to be quite safe and generally healthy. Some research has even shown health marker improvements of seed oil consumption, such as lowered inflammation and lowering of both total and LDL cholesterol (Kruse et al. 2015).
No Seed Oil
The same people preaching the evils of seed oils are advocating the consumption of saturated fat with reckless abandon, suggesting that just because seed oils are a processed food and rendered tallow is natural we should cook everything with the tallow despite the saturated fat. These are usually the same people fear-mongering about the fatty liver issues with fructose, but the liver issues with saturated fat are even scarier (Sobrecases et al. 2010; Rosqvist et al. 2014; Rosqvist et al. 2019). It might be a good idea to pump the brakes on frying everything in tallow. Butter doesn’t appear to be a great idea either (Zhang et al. 2025).
Organic
Not terribly new, but organic is a trend that still comes up. While the logic for the superiority of organic food makes sense, the health outcome data isn’t terribly inspiring (Dangour et al. 2010). In that case, it may be difficult for many to quantify the exact benefit of organic foods in order to justify the expense.
Clean-Label
Going along with the organic foods trend, a new buzzword is “clean label” or “clean eating.” The problem with this one is there is no definition of what “clean” means. Clean by what standard? Kosher and Halal have clearly defined, documented requirements. None exist in the “clean label” trend. In some cases, the products sold under this guise play a label game that is misleading at best or outright lies to people—like the “no nitrate added” bacon that still has nitrates because products like this are required to have it by USDA guidelines. Another example is the brand of vodka being marketed as gluten-free (as if vodka wasn’t always gluten-free).
Natural
We also put food into camps of being processed or not. This is all just an evolution of the trend of “natural,” as if everything natural is good. Arsenic is natural; so is belladonna. You can die from drinking too much water. Yes, whey protein fits the bill as a highly processed food, but the overall health impact of whey protein is generally very positive in meta-analysis (Prokopidis et al. 2024), so clearly being processed doesn’t always mean it’s evil.
Decoding Diets
What does healthy food actually look like? In a nutshell, it looks like appropriate portions focusing on lean proteins inclusive of a variety of sources (eggs, fish, and red meat), ample amounts of an array of vegetables and fruit, an appropriate amount of carbohydrates for your activity level or weight goals, and a minimal amount of added fat and sugar. Those are pretty broad parameters leaving plenty of room for personal preference. Maybe it requires too much of the average person to formulate their diet based on these parameters, and perhaps the amount of potential freedom involved is what makes “eating healthy” confusing for the typical consumer. This is probably why the binary thinking of simply labeling things as good or bad works for the average psychology. Maybe there is far too much nuance involved with a properly formulated diet for the average person to grasp.
Do diners actually care about food being healthy, or do they want an illusion? What exactly is the expectation of a “healthy” meal for the average diner trying to eat better? Per some research, the average restaurant meal is 1200 calories (Urban et al. 2016) or more. With The Cheesecake Factory menu as one reference point, an entrée alone can easily be in excess of that, with some over 2000 calories. With the 2000-calorie diet as a guideline, these are frightening numbers for just one plate of food. That said, if you prepared these meals with organic produce or olive oil made by the manual crushing from the feet of monks, many would probably disregard the calories—no need for data when we have emotions. I’m skeptical of the ability of the average consumer to make intelligent decisions when it comes to food. Harsh, maybe, but remember that A&W’s initiative in the 1980s to serve a one-third-pound burger for less than a one-quarter-pound burger from McDonald’s failed because the average consumer didn’t realize that one-third is bigger than one-quarter. Maybe more importantly, I’m not sure I believe that the typical diner accepts the inherent responsibility of eating healthy but is eager to believe in the gimmicks. If the gimmick doesn’t work, they blame the gimmick, not their choices.
Meeting Expectations
Can healthy food meet the expectation of a diner expecting a premium experience? This is where things get sticky. When the average consumer dines out, do they want tasty food first, or is healthy eating their primary mission? Anyone that’s been cooking professionally for any amount of time knows the story of a young kid coming home after culinary school or getting their first kitchen job. Kiddo wants to impress mom and cook dinner using a few of the new tricks they learned, so they set out preparing the meal. Mom watches in horror and asks why the kid is putting so much salt and butter in everything. Much to Mom’s disappointment, those are probably the biggest two tricks little Johnny knows, and it rocks her world when everything tastes so good.
If being heavy-handed on the salt and drowning everything in butter is part of what makes restaurant meals so delicious, can a restaurant deliver on expectations if they stop doing that? People dine out for a delicious meal, not for food that “tastes good for healthy stuff.” How can a restaurant serving health-conscious portions provide value without the expectedly smaller portions presenting as a cheapening of the experience?
Where does all this leave the chef? The conclusion I come to is both that I don’t know and I don’t really think I like what all of this suggests.
I think that instead of worrying about what kind of oil we cook French fries with people would be better served just eating fewer French fries. Then I’m the guy torpedoing his own industry and telling people not to buy what we sell. Sure, some might counter with the suggestion that I should figure out how to make a French fry taste good without oil, delivered with fewer calories. Therein lies the problem: I don’t really think that’s possible.
It bothers me a bit to consider that bodybuilders and fitness competitors might go multiple years never consuming a single meal from a restaurant during the prime of their career. I realize that’s an extreme example, but it mirrors my own experience. I’ve been at my healthiest when I did not participate in consuming the product of my own industry. My personal and professional interests don’t appear to align with each other, and I’m uneasy with what that says about the industry I’ve given over 20 years to.
One of the things that chefs will often say they find fulfilling about the job is the opportunity to nurture people. On the surface, this makes perfect sense; we get to feed hungry people, provide hospitality, and have them leave us feeling better than when they arrived because of the experience we provided. In a sense, that is nurturing. On the other side of the coin, I see something more troubling. I’m not sure we can call the average restaurant meal truly nurturing in a wholesome way. With the earlier mentioned restaurant meal statistics along with increasing food availability and calorie consumption, the disease state correlations aren’t hard to see, and restaurant meals seem to be clearly contributing to the problem. The foodservice and hospitality industry has a well-known reputation for not taking care of the well-being of its employees, but now the industry must acknowledge that it’s playing at least some part in making its own customer base less healthy.
References
- Dangour, Alan D., David Lock, Karen Hayter, Alan Aikenhead, Elizabeth Allen, and Ricardo Uauy. 2010. “Nutrition-Related Health Effects of Organic Foods: A Systematic Review.” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 92 (3): 676–82. https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.2010.29269.
- Guyenet, Stephan J. 2019. “Fruit Consumption and Long-Term Weight Change: A Review.” Advances in Nutrition 10 (Suppl_4): S372–S383. https://doi.org/10.1093/advances/nmz043.
- Holt, Susanna H. A., Janette C. Brand-Miller, Peter J. Petocz, and Estelle S. Farmakalidis. 1997. “A Satiety Index of Common Foods.” European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 51 (8): 598–604. https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ejcn.1600445.
- Kruse, M., P. Kemper, T. Raben, and A. Astrup. 2015. “Effect of High Oleic Sunflower Oil on Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors in Healthy Men and Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial.” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 101 (5): 1145–55. https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.114.092833.
- Prinz, Philip. 2019. “The Role of Dietary Sugars in Health: Molecular Composition, Metabolism, and Energy Balance.” Nutrients 11 (9): 2066. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11092066.
- Prokopidis, Konstantinos, Antonis K. Triantafyllidis, and Leigh Breen. 2024. “Whey Protein Supplementation and Health Outcomes: A Meta-Analysis.” Journal of Cachexia, Sarcopenia and Muscle 15 (2): 327–41. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcsm.13340.
- Rizkalla, Salwa W. 2010. “Health Implications of Fructose Consumption: A Review of Recent Data.” Nutrition & Metabolism 7 (82): 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1186/1743-7075-7-82.
- Rosqvist, Fredrik, Malin Iggman, Ulf Risérus, et al. 2014. “Overfeeding Polyunsaturated and Saturated Fat Causes Distinct Effects on Liver and Visceral Fat Accumulation in Humans.” Diabetes 63 (7): 2356–68. https://doi.org/10.2337/db13-1622.
- Rosqvist, Fredrik, Stefan S. Bjermo, and Ulf Risérus. 2019. “Dietary Saturated Fats Increase Liver Fat More Than Unsaturated Fats.” Journal of Hepatology 70 (3): 531–40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhep.2018.11.014.
- Sloth, Birgitte, Arne Astrup, Anne Raben, et al. 2004. “The Role of Glycemic Index in Body Weight Regulation: Results from a 6-Mo Controlled Feeding Trial.” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 80 (2): 337–47. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/80.2.337.
- Sobrecases, H., F. Arner, L. Angelin, et al. 2010. “Effects of Saturated vs. Polyunsaturated Fat on Liver Fat Content in Overweight Individuals.” Diabetes 59 (12): 3067–75. https://doi.org/10.2337/db10-0850.
- Soto-Mota, A., R. Volek, and D. Clarke. 2025. “Long-Term Ketogenic Diet Increases Atherosclerotic Plaque in Healthy Adults.” Journal of Clinical Lipidology 19 (1): 77–89. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacl.2025.01.003.
- Urban, Lisa E., Susan B. Roberts, et al. 2016. “The Energy Content of Restaurant Meals: Implications for Consumer Health.” Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics 116 (1): 147–55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jand.2015.05.019.
- Yu, Danxia, Stephanie Smith-Warner, et al. 2018. “Fruit and Vegetable Intake and Mortality from All Causes, Cardiovascular Disease, and Cancer: A Prospective Study.” International Journal of Epidemiology 47 (2): 567–79. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyx181.
- Zhang, Wei, Ming Li, et al. 2025. “Butter Consumption and Cardiovascular Risk: A Prospective Study.” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 121 (4): 905–14. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/nqaa053.
