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2010 is here already, and it just wouldn’t be right if we didn’t make a New Year’s resolution! So, we asked our blog contributors to share theirs. Read on to see what you can expect Jamie, Regis, and Kevin to be working on and blogging about in 2010.

Jamie Moore, Director of Sourcing & Sustainability

Yes, that time of year is upon us again: during the December holidays we were especially good to each other, and on January 1, we resolve to be especially good to ourselves. We'll eat healthier, we'll make our lifestyles more sustainable, we'll be more frugal and we’ll turn over that new leaf that pops up every year around this time....

At Eat’n Park, our sustainable New Year’s resolution is to develop a fully-encompassing recycling program. Currently, we recycle cardboard at all of our locations, but we want to increase our recycling efforts this year to include bottles, cans, and other recyclable materials so that we can further conserve natural resources and save landfill space. I’m looking forward to this challenge and I’ll continue to update you on my progress on moving this forward.

Below are some sustainable resolutions that I hope that you might adopt.

At Work

• Before recycling any paper, make sure you have used both sides. The back side of copies, memos and outdated materials can be kept in your printer for printing drafts, or used as scratch paper.
• Put your computer to sleep when leaving the office for a meeting or lunch break. Don’t forget to turn off the lights too!
• Travel wisely. Consider riding a bike, carpooling or taking public transportation to work, meetings or appointments at least 1 day per week. Riding a bike not only reduces greenhouse gas emissions, it is also an excellent way to get in shape- the #1 New Year’s Resolution most often made in America!

At Home

• Use those reusable bags! Find a convenient place to keep your reusable shopping bags so they are not forgotten when heading out to the grocery store. Many local grocers even have incentive programs for shoppers who bring their own bags.
• Make recycling a family affair. Enlist the help of your family to clean recyclables and place them in the recycling bin instead of the trash. Consider reusing items that you normally would not. Be creative! An oatmeal container can be cleaned out and decorated to make a fun pencil container on the desk.
• Start a compost bin. Composting can be a fun family project that has great benefits for your family and our environment.

Regis Holden, Senior Director of Culinary Services

As we move into the new year, each of us will make New Year’s resolutions, and by the end of January, most are forgotten. I would like to share with you a few of mine that I promise to continue throughout the year.

• I will work to enhance training for cooks in our restaurants to ensure that each guest’s meal is made right the first time, every time.
• I will develop a better system for providing each guest with a higher quality, more compelling breakfast buffet and Sunday brunch.
• I will find a way to engage our best cooks and involve them in bringing new recipe ideas to our guests.
• I will get back to five mornings a week in the gym with fellow blogger, Jamie (I’ve been slacking off a bit lately).

Here’s to a fruitful New Year!
Regis

Kevin O’Connell, Senior V.P. of Marketing
The beginning of a new year always provides an opportunity for a fresh start. It must be all that time off around the holidays that gives us time to reflect on how we can make our lives better in the new year. My resolution this year (the same as last year) is to try to eat healthier more consistently. I’m actually lucky that I work for Eat’n Park because it’s pretty easy to eat healthy at the place for smiles. I eat at Eat’n Park about 5-6 days a week. I can find enough healthy options to always keep my meals interesting but also meet my goals for eating healthier. Here are some of my favorites:

• Lemon Sole – This is a great healthy choice that is also one of the best tasting items on the menu. I order the smaller portion version at less than 200 calories and add carrots and a fruit cup as my sides.
• Chargrilled Sockeye Salmon – Another healthy choice that comes with two sides. The nice thing about Eat’n Park is you can choose whatever sides you want. With this, I’ll take a Garden Salad with Fat-Free Italian dressing and some carrots.
• Rosemary Chicken is another delicious item that is so good that it actually feels indulgent to eat healthy. The smaller portion is less than 300 calories and only 9 grams of fat.
• Gardenburger – I was never a big Gardenburger person until I tried Eat’n Park’s. Our classic gardenburger is very tasty and is only 220 calories and 4 grams of fat. When I feel the need for something a bit more indulgent, I order our American Grill burger and sub the Gardenburger for the Black Angus burger. It saves me about 200 calories and about 17 grams of fat. I’m not sure it quite meets our Eat’n Smart standards, but boy, is it good!

These are just a few of my favorites, but there are plenty of other healthy combinations that allow me to mix it up. I often use Eat’n Park’s nutritional calculator to figure out how I can tweak my favorite items to get them to be more healthy. The calculator lists each ingredient and its nutritional information, so I know exactly what I’ll save if I order that sandwich without mayo. Click here to try it yourself. If you’d like to hear more about my favorite health-modified menu item, click here.

Have a happy, healthy 2010!
Kevin Share

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