Food in the Park

America is all about trends, havn't you noticed that? Well apperently not.

Are we talking about healthier choices in general or more vegetarian options? Vegetarians don't have a monopoly on healthy eating. :)

I can see the argument for healthier options, but I can't imagine there's much of a demand for large scale vegan/vegetarian options. Perhaps additional items here and there - that I could see. More fruit and salads would be a great idea and should not be hard to implement. It wouldn't hurt the sit-downs to offer at least a couple of vegetarian options. But, beyond that, I don't think anything needs to be done.

A lean protein/carbohydrate restricted diet - which Atkins is not - is a good way to lose weight, if it's done with a doctor. This is especially true for those who have a lot to lose and are looking for option besides surgery.

Agreed. Add some healthier foods here & there.

Orrr you can always just go to McDonalds, grab yourself an Adult Happy Meal, get a stepometer with it, and add in some Apple Dippers and you're all set to go :-P.

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Walt said:

I can see the argument for healthier options, but I can't imagine there's much of a demand for large scale vegan/vegetarian options. Perhaps additional items here and there - that I could see. More fruit and salads would be a great idea and should not be hard to implement. It wouldn't hurt the sit-downs to offer at least a couple of vegetarian options. But, beyond that, I don't think anything needs to be done.

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I guess am secretly hoping for more vegetarian/vegan options other than a salad made of iceberg lettuce (cheap, not nutritious and not filling). I don't eat dairy on a regular basis which removes a significant portion of the vegetarian options at the park. I'm not asking for anything extravagant like tofu dogs or grilled tempeh...just some simple fresh fruits and veggies that I can enjoy while my husband eats his cheeseburger.

Unfortunately, "healthy" and "vegetarian" are often used together which isn't always a good thing. Not all vegetarian food is healthy and vice versa. :)

According to the American Dietetic Association, approximately 7% of the American population is vegetarian. On a nice summer day with guests totalling 30,000 about 2,100 of those guests are veggie/vegan. That sounds like enough demand to me to offer a few measly alternatives.

Agreed. I know Steph mentioned IOA but do other parks do any better than CP? I have never really been in the market for vergetarian options or even healthy options at any park so I haven't looked. Do Six Flags parks have any better offerings? Disney?

The Six Flags park vary quite a bit. I know Steph found some things at SFGAm. The food generally sucks all around at SFDL, so I wouldn't expect anything there.

Disney I'm sure has good stuff in some of the sit-down places. The sheer variety in Epcot would make it a "for sure" I have to think. Not only that, but Disney's audience has a more global range and thus I would think have more variety.

The fact remains, 7% is a pretty huge portion of the population, far from a "special need," and I'm not the least bit surprised by that figure. There are a ton of places in the Greater Cleveland area (including places offering Asian, Indian and Middle-East food) that have significant veggie offerings. Heck, try to get a table at the restaurants in the Mustard Seed Markets on a Friday night. It's a restaurant in a freakin' grocery store and it's busy!

Quite honestly, CP should view this as an opportunity to cash in. Everyone is aware of the quality and quantity of the rides. An investment in a food-availability "overhaul" could turn into a cash cow. (no pun really intended) It is common sense that not everyone is interested in burgers, chicken and pizza. Go to the grocery store back in the 1980's and compare the products and marketing direction to the grocery poducts of today. Low fat, low carb and much a more diverse selection dominates the shelves. Despite the heavy marketing, these products have not bridged into a majority of the parks. The population will spend the dollar for healthier foods.

I don't think anyone expects a purely Vegetarian restaurant, but I believe guests expect a vegetarian selection on the menu. I am not vegetarian but admit some of the best meals I have had were meatless.

It would be nice if they could have a nice selection of food for Steph and others who eat a vegetarian diet. I don't really see this as a way for CP to cash in, I think it would be more like providing a guest service that would hopefully break even.

Outside of the passholders who go once a week or more often, most people consider a trip to the park as an event and an escape from everyday life. I bet that most people want to pig out on fun food like elephant ears, cheese on a stick, funnel cakes, pizza, etc., even if they usually eat healthy. It's after all just one or two days in the year for them, and it's a time to eat all they things they normally would not be able to get.

In a lot of cases, natural and fresh foods are less expensive than processed meats and such. They can make plenty of money on this stuff, they just need to get a feel for how much to buy and how frequently they should buy it.

CPs food selections are pretty awful, actually. Overcooked hamburgers, low-quality hot dogs, and fries fries fries. They do do chicken strips rather well, and the fries are good, but after that things start getting a bit thin. Even places I prefer going (midway market) are just "acceptable." Not "good."

As a comparison point, Disneyland does food much better. Clam chowder in a bread bowl. A spinach salad. A grilled catfish sandwich. Fresh fruit stands. After a couple of days eating at the point, you can feel the grease starting to ooze out of your pores. Not (necessarily) so at Disneyland. *** Edited 6/8/2004 4:14:16 PM UTC by Brian Noble***

I generally don't spend much in the park on souvenirs, etc. (Yes, I have a season pass.) I did fill out a comment card on opening day and mentioned that I would like to see healthier options in the park (and I specifically mentioned the food stands). I got a response from the VP of Food Services, and he told me that there were lots of healthy salads---all at sit down restaurants.

If CP wants me to spend more money in the park, the place to really improve is the food. I hate planning a day or two ahead just to bring a cooler with me. I'd rather be able to just grab some money and eat in the park. But I don't want to have to do it by giving up my riding time. I like grilled chicken sandwiches as much as any healthy eater... but would it be so hard for CP to take a cue from McDonalds and have premade salads (with veggies and greens that aren't iceberg lettuce) in the stands where they sell the grilled chicken sandwiches? All they'd have to do is cut the chicken into chunks (let me cut it up the rest of the way) and voila. Low maintenance addition to the menu.

I'm not asking for a complete revamping of the park food, just a few additions here and there to fit into my way of eating. I'd be willing to guess that there are many people who come to the park eat who eat in a similar fashion. As I said earlier, until that happens, I'll keep spending my cash at Meijers and Tops.

Laura (who eats this way to stay able to ride TTD & MF)

The Cedar Point to Disney Anything comparison is impossible to make. For one Cedar Point is a regional/seasonal operation. Disney is an international year round group of parks. Disney also hosts several times the guests that Cedar Point does (I don't have the exact attendance numbers, so I'm not even going to guess).

No Cedar Point doesn't have the healthiest food selection, heck they don't even have the tastiest overall selection. Its kind of hit or miss, but then again, its mostly modeled on fair food.

Disney on the other hand hires Master Chefs to oversee their operations, write menus and devise recipes. They provide a better cuisine because they are expected to.

I think Pete hit it pretty right on. For the average guest who is only there for a day or two, the food is what they expect, fast, deep-fried fair food. Obviously for the season ticket holder you're going to get sick of it if you're there every week, not to mention you're probably going to go broke. Yes it would be nice to see them offer a healthier selection, (even though, I must say, I probably wouldn't eat much of it) but unless there is vocal movement requesting such a change from a significant portion of the population, they won't make changes to something that is working.

John

I don't understand how you and Pete think you've got the "average guest" nailed in terms of expectations. I don't think the food is "working" at all. I generally think that it sucks outside of the fries, and I can't eat that every day.

CP is obviously aiming to be a national destination. If that wasn't true, they wouldn't be marketing all over the country and building hotels every other year. Food matters. It's the reason we travel to the middle of nowhere, Virginia, to visit Busch Gardens Williamsburg. That's hands down the best park food outside of Orlando, and we keep going back even though they only have four coasters.

The park can't be totally oblivious to its mediocrity or it wouldn't have opened the donut joint.

I love Donut Time! Its always a first visit attraction in the morning before anything else! The fact that you can get 12 minidonus (mmmm they're so good) for only 3.25 is a really good deal! And the starbucks coffee..... excellent! The new Gameday Grille has gotten rave reviews from people I talk to! I just don't like how Cedar Point prices are inconsistent. I can get a donut or 91 cents, and a brownie for 2.50! Just go inside a giftshop and compare prices for different things... its funny how inconsistent it is.

I love Donut Time!!!!!!!!

Jeff, I don't think people are just gonna go to Busch Gardens Williamsburg just to eat their good food. Don't get me wrong, their food is much better, but that's not gonna be the sole reason for people to drive there.

And the sandwiches at the TTD Grandstand are rather good. *** Edited 6/8/2004 8:39:33 PM UTC by Scotts Millennium***

Sure I can compare Disney to CP, since I've been to them both. Saying that seasonal parks don't have to serve food that is better than edible simply ignores the point of an amusement park: it's a vacation, if even only for one day.

I don't care that the park is closed in January. I care that, on the July day that I'm there, the food sucks. This is not (just) about healthy vs. grease-laden. It's also about quality, and the quality of the food at CP often leaves a lot to be desired. It's standard bulk foodservice fare---even in the hotels---and it could be much better. Even the sit down restaurants are a lot closer to Big Boy than they are Chez Panisse, or even the Olive Garden.

And that includes Bay Harbor. If you put that restaurant in any city with two other credible seafood places, it would last three months.

Well, Scotty boy, you're wrong, because as I said that's the closing argument for us to go there. And we don't drive, we fly.

It's weird, but the more we talk about this the more I realize that the food at CP generally isn't very good at all. I can't think of one thing other than the fries that I actually look forward to eating there. I can't tell you the last time I had any other midway food like pizza or burgers.

Food at the park is a "one time a year -blow it out -eat anything you want experience..if you have the $$$$$$..I prefer to keep a cooler in the car with sanwiches,chips, drinks....and snack in the park on fries, funnel cakes..etc.

"Oh Judy, what a tiny head you have!"