Healthy Fast Food?

OK, I’m not sure there truly is such a thing, but the small chain we found recently does show how any individual or business can apply a common sense, responsible business approach to what they do and make a contribution they can feel good about. I am not recommending a regular diet of socially responsible, healthier, fast food, but as many of us indulge once in a while, this might be interesting.

The one caveat is that much of the information quoted below comes directly from the restaurant we visited or their menu and advertising, but I have uncovered no reason to doubt any of the claims. In fact, although we are not from the Portland area and did not know about this restaurant chain, it has had some significant national publicity in the past.

On a visit to Portland, Oregon last week, the kids wanted to visit Burgerville , a locally owned small chain that advertises itself as having a “commitment to fresh, local and sustainable” food and business practices. Saying “you’ll always know where your food is coming from”, they partner with local vendors for everything from the ice cream in their milkshakes to the beef in their hamburgers. The 39 restaurant Burgerville chain uses vendors that practice socially responsible ranching, farming and production practices.

In addition, Burgerville offers “affordable health, dental, and vision insurance” to their employees and states that “we believe investing in the well-being of our employees and their families makes a lasting difference in their lives - and in the community”. Certainly the employees working in the restaurant we ate at seemed much more enthusiastic and helpful than most of the employees in other fast food establishments.

Burgerville also has a commitment to the environment that seems to be genuine and more than just advertising. They purchase wind power credits equal to the total energy use in all their restaurants and state that this is “the largest commitment in the nation by a quick-service restaurant chain”. They also have their used canola oil recycled and turned into bio-diesel.

The menu at Burgerville is more extensive than the average fast-service restaurant, including not only the traditional burgers, fries, and milkshakes, and a breakfast menu, but, among other items, Pacific Halibut Fish and Chips, Gardenburgers, and a Nine Grain Turkey Club. The prices at Burgerville are competitive with other huge fast food chains and actually a little better than some of the fancier burger joints now so popular around the country.

So, if you are in the Northern Oregon or Southern Washington area and have a hankering for a good old-fashioned cheeseburger, onion rings and milkshake, look for a Burgerville. Support a non-typical fast food chain that really does seem to have socially responsible business practices. In addition, the food itself was freshly prepared and quite good. The Burgerville we visited was right in downtown Portland, but we saw others easily accessible, just off freeway exits.

For those of you that may be geocachers or just have a GPS’r in your auto, here are the coordinates for the Burgerville we ate at:

45.35.3917 N; 122.45.3750 W

Enjoy!