For decades, the term “hospital food” has conjured images of bland, ultraprocessed meals, an irony considering hospitals are places dedicated to healing and recovery.
In an insightful discussion with Fox News Digital at the Great American State Fair in Washington, D.C., Michelin-star chef Geoffrey Zakarian unveiled his passion project: revolutionizing hospital menus in the United States by embracing the philosophy that “food is medicine.”
Over the past three years, Zakarian has been spearheading efforts to transform hospital dining, with significant strides made at Tampa General Hospital, a substantial $4 billion nonprofit facility boasting 1,000 beds.
On July 16, a significant milestone was achieved when Tampa General Hospital’s CEO, John Couris, officially committed to the “Make Hospital Food Healthier” initiative. This pledge, underscoring the hospital’s dedication to offering healthier and less processed meals, was announced at a news conference attended by notable figures including Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins, and Zakarian himself.
This commitment marks a pivotal step in shifting the paradigm towards serving nutritious meals in hospitals, solidifying Zakarian’s vision of transforming patient care through dietary excellence.
“We’ve changed the entire menu,” the celebrity chef told Fox News Digital. “We’ve taken all seed oils out, sugar, maltodextrin. Anything bad in a box is gone. Anything good is brought in.”
“We’re serving mac and cheese. We’re serving hanger steak and fries. We’re serving chicken with couscous. We do all our protein shakes. No protein shakes in the box anymore. We do fruit shakes, smoothies, fresh sorbet,” the chef listed. “So, you’re eating like your grandmother’s cooking for you.”
CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz has also supported Zakarian in this mission, telling Fox News Digital that the chef has “revolutionized our thinking” around hospital food.
“How do we get the hospitals to do what [Zakarian] has been doing the frontier work on, get them to actually embrace food as part of the healing process?” he questioned. “Because most patients, and most doctors, know that the food in the hospital is not going to make you better.”
Oz noted that while hospital food may provide some nutrients, it is generally not seen as contributing meaningfully to patients’ recovery.
The biggest challenge to getting better food into hospital systems has been cost, Zakarian pointed out.
While “everything is fractionalized,” what’s left over after paying for supplies is put toward food, which generally “ain’t much,” he said.
“It’s, like, $3.50 a person per plate, which is an extraordinarily small amount,” the chef said. “You go to McDonald’s, and you spend 12 bucks for a happy meal, and we give you $3.50 in a hospital. So that’s an unhappy meal as far as I’m concerned.”
Instead of charging hospitals for each plate served, Zakarian’s approach relies on a flat annual fee, saving money through a smaller, higher-quality menu.
“Yummy food, not just food to fill people up,” he said. “Nutritious food, bioavailable food, food that’s satiating.”
“I’m cooking like I would cook in a restaurant. I’m cooking like my mother cooked for me. There’s no difference.”
The chef continued, “When you’re lying in bed in a hospital gown, you feel alone, you feel exposed, you feel sick … When you have a fresh protein shake or a fresh healthy smoothie, or you can order steak frites … that [makes] your day.”
Freelance writer Teresa Mull contributed to this report.