Taste of Chicago Vendors Must Include One "Healthy" Item

By Jacy Wojcik in News on Jun 11, 2008 8:24PM

Mayor Daley and his Office of Special Events were very serious when they required each of the sixty-five vendors participating in this year's Taste of Chicago to offer one healthy item on their menus--to show that the Taste wasn't just some "disgusting food festival." And they are very serious allowing Billy Goat Tavern's qualifying healthy item to be...potato chips.

"Some of the restaurants had a difficult time with this. But I say, if you fry a vegetable, it's still a vegetable," stated Megan McDonald, executive director of the Mayor's Office of Special Events.

Other "healthy" offerings include JR Dessert Bakery's apple pie with ice cream (it has apples it it), Home Run Inn Pizza's cheese pizza with organic plum tomatoes (it's organic), and Eli's Cheesecake's plain cheesecake (it's....plain?).

What the flerg is the point of this? First of all, what qualifies as healthy? 0 grams of fat? Lots 'o fiber? Fried spirulina? And isn't the answer to being "healthy" in the name itself? Taste something from each restaurant. Don't stuff your face full of 70 tickets worth of fried Twinkies and you're fine.

Click here to see a map of all of the participants and their healthy menu items. [Trib]