Central Florida restaurant adds healthy sides for kids

ORLANDO, Fla. - Oct. 29, 2013 - PRLog -- The Restaurant Mom, family experience expert and founder of the first online dining guide for families, MyKidsPlate.com, was visiting a local Gator’s Dockside recently and discovered some changes to their kid’s menu choices.

Gator’s Dockside has been known for many years as a family-friendly sports themed restaurant. Their Family Fun nights every Tuesday include kids eat free deals and entertainment at some locations like clowns or balloon artists. Plus they hold monthly drawings with the prize being a new kid’s bike. And while their kid’s menu has been in place for many years, it was the new side choices that caught the attention of The Restaurant Mom.

“I was perusing the menu, or as some people tell me I was auditing it, when I noticed new sides and drink choices,” said Julie Casey, The Restaurant Mom. “Mandarin oranges, apple slices, and veggie of the day now appear as side item choices and milk is a drink choice. The other thing I noticed is the value offering with the kid’s meal choices at Gator’s. All kid’s menu items are $4.99; include a side, a drink (including a single serving of milk at no extra charge), and a dessert. That’s quite a deal.”

The Restaurant Mom wanted to know more. During a conversation with Gator’s Dockside Area Manager for seven area locations, Joe Foranoce, Casey learned about why the changes were made and what families can look forward to down the road.

“I have kids now,” said Foranoce. “So it finally hit home for me more so than before. We’ve always been a family-friendly place to eat but it’s important for us to make sure the families that have been coming to us continue to do so. We knew that making these changes was important to them and important too for guests that maybe haven’t visited us in a while.”

Changing the sides to include healthier options is just the beginning for these specific Gator’s Dockside locations including: Dr. Phillips, Ocoee, Hunt Club, Winter Springs, Clermont – Cagan Park Ave, West Lake Mary Blvd., and Waterford Lakes. “We’re going to be doing some further menu development in the entrees we offer our kids and upgrading the content we provide them too, “said Forance. “Thanks to the lessons we’ve learned from The Restaurant Mom, we know it’s harder to entertain kids these days so we are going to work towards a more engaging family experience.”

The Restaurant Mom has been rating restaurants and conducting consumer research since September 2007. The attributes that define a restaurant as kid-friendly are obtained through research from adults that take kids out to eat.