Dieters Undergo Grueling Trial by Odor at Food Court

Dieters using the San Fernando Valley’s newest weight-control center are in fat city these days: the food court of a Canoga Park shopping center.

They must walk past the Donut House, Le Croissant Club, the California Candy Station and 14 other restaurants and fast-food stands at the Fallbrook Mall for their weekly weigh-ins and motivational meetings at Weight Watchers.

“It’s like we’re being the devil to them,” Bob Nakashima, manager of a Marie Callender Pie Shop a short distance from the Weight Watchers’ door, said Friday. “There are no low-calorie pies. We sell the fun stuff.”

“Being here is a challenge,” admitted Weight Watchers manager Iris Nosler, as the smell of barbecue from the Little Tokyo restaurant wafted into her office, next to a roomy meeting area lined with scales and racks of diet books.

“But we look at it as a good learning experience for our members,” Nosler said. “If they can handle this today, they know they have the strength to handle the big meal at Thanksgiving Day.”

Nosler’s center serves about 500 Weight Watchers members. It opened on the food court mezzanine 2 weeks ago after being at two other temporary sites in the mall for about a year.

Weight Watchers wanted space in the mall, Nosler said, because of its central West Valley location. But program organizers at first were dismayed that the only permanent space available was in the food court.

“We thought . . . that it might not be a good idea to be in a place where there was such a variety of smells and visual ways to get into trouble,” she said.

But Cajun Kettle, Hawaiian Kabob and Burgers Plus have added new flavor to Weight Watchers’ motivational talks. “The food court is a real good learning experience,” she said.

Weight Watchers members said Friday that those lessons are often learned the hard way.

“Those wonderful aromas and smells make it tough. There’s that one doughnut shop that’s hard to bypass when you walk out,” said Kathy Golde of Calabasas Park. “It’s a true test.”

Golde confessed that she has left Weight Watchers meetings “and walked down the stairs and bought a half-pound of Jujubes” at the food court’s candy counter.

“You stop for a cup of coffee, and there are people sitting around you eating all these wonderful things,” agreed Beth Rempel of West Hills. “You walk past all the people having their fried rice, doughnuts and croissants and all the other stuff you can’t eat.”

But some food court vendors offered hope for Weight Watchers members.

“Our food is steam-cooked. It’s healthy,” said Joe Escareno, operator of Moogie’s Spoonburgers. “They can eat here without feeling guilty.”

At the nearby Hot Dog on a Stick, manager Tammy Shair said she can offer Weight Watchers sugar-free lemonade. She will also leave the corn-meal batter off the wieners, on request.

“And we’ll be having turkey dogs in the near future,” Shair promised. “They’ll be low in fat, and they’ll have less salt. They will be good.”