A study of popular brands kids eateries has turned up Wetherspoons as one of the best and healthiest above Carluccio's, Harvester, Cafe Roughe, Giraffe, Zizzi and Prezzo.
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Jamie's Italian is ranked the best option for families, with Wagamama second and Wetherspoons third. McDonald's is 11th and Burger King last.
The report 'Out to Lunch' compiled by by Organix and the Soil Association rated all 21 chains on the choice of healthy options, the quality of the food and the attraction to junior eaters..
The survey found that eight out of the 21 chains do not include vegetables or salad in the majority of their children's meals, and only 11 out of the 21 told the report's mystery diners if the food was freshly cooked and where it came from, with only one, Jamie's Italian able to say where the meat came from.
Wetherspoon's - famed for its cut price no nonsense drink and pub grub attracted praise for sourcing its food from the UK and serving vegetables with every meal. The report added extra praise saying 'It was one of the best we've seen for making healthy eating easy'
The report though was highly critical of Burger King, which was recently embroilled in the horsemeat scare having to withdraw all its burgers earlier this year as a "precaution".
The burger chain did get praise for offering a bean burger but the report said more healthy options were needed. It said staff had no idea where the chain's meat came from. Tempting children with popular toys and playgrounds to pick from a menu that was mainly devoid of healthy choices was not acceptable.
Joanna Lewis, head of policy at the Soil Association, was quoted as saying: "Our investigation reveals that most high street restaurants are not even meeting the most basic standards families should expect when they eat out. Most are still churning out children's menus dominated by the usual suspects - burgers, nuggets and pizzas.
"With one in three children now overweight or obese by the time they leave primary school, it's time for these popular chains to use their influence in a positive way."
Wetherspoons serves up more than two million children's meals a year. The pub chain said it was "very pleased" to be recognised for the work it has carried out on improving the offer. Jamie Oliver representatives said, "We believe the quality of the kids' food should be right up there on the same level as the main menu.
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