NEW YORK – California-based Lyfe Kitchen, created by two former McDonald’s executives in 2011, has brought its under-600-calories menu to New York City.

The Daily Meal reports that Lyfe Kitchen, a small chain of “semi quick-serve restaurants that are committed to serving healthy food,” is reinventing traditional menu items with a healthy twist — but executive chef Jeremy Bringardner doesn’t want customers to think he’s just serving up boring salads.

“We are all about great-tasting, good-for-you foods, but we don’t like to overhype the healthy side; it’s all about flavor,” Bringardner told the news source. “We’re not trying to serve a bed of lettuce with some seaweed on top. We want to re-create the classics, but in a nutritionally responsible way. It’s a delicate balance.”

Lyfe’s menu features Asian, Mexican, Italian and Southern American dishes, which are often vegan or “plant-based.” The restaurant doesn’t sell soft drinks in favor of tea, lemonade or “Lyfe Water,” a mixture of half-juice and half-water, topped with herbs and chia seeds.

“There are enough people in every city that need that food option that tastes great and is good for you,” Bringardner told the news source. “We know there are other companies doing this, but we want to get out there first to lead the food revolution.”