Sawgrass Country Club is keeping its members’ waistlines in check through its balanced and properly proportioned Fit Fuel meals.
Many of us use New Year’s Day as a time to turn our health around. Frustrated with our weight or size, we vow this is the year we’ll get on track and stay there.
But too often, we derail a month, a week, or even just a day into that plan.
On January 1, 2015, members of Sawgrass Country Club, in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., were all-in with their health-focused New Year’s resolutions. And, thanks to the club’s newest meal-plan option, they’ve stayed on track.
“Today’s clubs have to be focused on health,” says Perry Kenney, the club’s Director of Food & Beverage (and former Executive Chef). “Our members, both young and old, are very active. Exercise and a well-balanced diet are important to them.”
It’s important to Sawgrass, too. At the beginning of the year, the club’s food-and-beverage department partnered with its fitness department to launch a 30-day program for members looking for healthful, convenient menu options.
The initiative was so successful that what started as a six-week meal plan program has been extended indefinitely.
Each week, Sawgrass offers a menu of healthful meals—dubbed Fit Fuel—that are well-balanced, properly portioned, vacuum-sealed and ready to be reheated and enjoyed. Each meal has a seven-day shelf life and costs anywhere between $5 and $7, depending on the protein.
The menu typically features four different options each week. Proteins include beef, fish, chicken and a “wild card” protein, like pork, duck or turkey. An “18-Hole Power Pack” (see photo at right), with cheese, grapes, nuts and a protein, is also offered.
“The menus are simple, but delicious,” says Kenney. “Our Executive Chef, Michael Ayres, uses smart flavor combinations and focuses on freshness.”
Members place their orders for Fit Fuel meals online by Friday at 5 p.m. The order list is then sent to the kitchen on Friday nights. The staff assembles the meals, sealing each with a chamber vacuum sealer, for Tuesday pickup.
Special requests are not yet an option with Fit Fuel, Kenney says. “To keep the price reasonable and the cost of labor in line, we must keep the process as streamlined as possible,” he explains.
To reheat the meals, Kenney recommends cutting a slit in the bag and microwaving for two minutes, then again in 30-second intervals to the desired temperature.
Sawgrass runs a 45% food cost on Fit Fuel meals, and averages between 400 and 500 sales a week. This drops nearly $10,000 to the club’s bottom line monthly, Kenney says.
“We have a large percentage of members who purchase the meals for the convenience, even though they’re marketed for members with health goals,” he says. “Younger members take them to work for lunch. We even have one member who ships them to her daughter who is single and ‘can’t cook very well.’ ”
Fit Fuel meals are meant to be paired with a leafy green salad, which will help to supplement the vitamin and minerals needed for a healthy diet.
“The biggest challenge has been when members pick up the meals,” says Kenney. “If the dining rooms are busy with lunch, we might have members lining up.”
In those instances, the club has adjusted on the fly, by reassigning a server to distribute Fit Fuel meals to members.
“This program has been a huge success for Sawgrass,” says Kenney. “It complements the 500-calorie meals we offer in our dining rooms, and gives members another touch point to access their club, while also achieving their wellness goals.”
It also backs up the dedication that Kenney and other members of the Sawgrass management team have made personally to wellness initiatives, through their “Biggest Loser Challenge” that was featured in C&RB’s 2014 Ideas Issue (“Leading By Example”).
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