Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, February 19, 1994 TAG: 9402190032
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Knight-Ridder/Tribune
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium
The dining room for White House staffers recently revamped its menu after Clinton's younger aides grumbled that the fare was making them fat.
A typical old menu featured Southern deep-fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, chicken enchiladas, tacos, burritos, refried beans, chili with cheese, barbecue beef sandwiches, hamburgers and cheeseburgers.
The new menu lists lighter fare specialties, complete with calorie count and fat content. They include baked chicken breasts in a citrus marinade served with vegetable couscous (445 calories/16 grams of fat); pineapple shrimp salad with low-fat yogurt dressing (405 calories/14 grams of fat); and capellini with roasted tomatoes and goat cheese (365 calories/9 grams of fat).
Aides can still grab a burger, but fruit cup, instead of fries, now is an option to go with it.
"People work 13-, 14-, 15-hour days here," said Al Maldon Jr., 43, the new director of the White House military office, which runs the Mess. "People eat two or three meals a day here. The old menu had a lot of fatty, high-calorie foods that could be fixed quickly. It wasn't healthy."
Maldon instituted the new menu about two weeks ago. Instead of cookies, for example, the Mess now offers fruit and bagels with light cream cheese as snacks for frenetic staffers needing an energy boost during the day. Salads feature low-cal dressings, instead of creamy toppings.
Located in the West Wing, the Navy-operated Mess consists of two cozy, dark wood-paneled dining rooms with red carnations and white cloths on the tables and pictures of clipper ships on the walls.
When Clinton came into office, he opened the Mess to all White House staffers, instead of just senior aides, as was the tradition in previous administrations. Employees pay for their own meals. On any given day, more than 300 people might visit the restaurant for a sit-down or carry-out meal.
Since the change, Maldon says he has been flooded with thank-you notes.
Even the Big Boss, fast-food junkie Clinton, likes the lean cuisine, Maldon says. Clinton boasted this week that he lost 16 pounds last year and intends to lose 10 more this year.
"His secretary said he really liked the grilled chicken sandwich on pita bread," Maldon said. "My guess is the president, like everyone else, wants to eat smarter, too."
by CNB