Fast-Food Salads Have Some Seeing Green <b></b>

New York--Connoisseurs craving the crimson of radicchio in their salad don't have to reserve a table at a fine restaurant but can simply head to the local fast-food joint to get their fill of the fancy leafy greens. Gourmet lettuces once served only in swanky eateries are now widely available at the fast food drive-thru window, and that could fuel a boom in greens if the fast-salad craze doesn't wilt. Battling an image problem as purveyors of obesity and seeking to rekindle sales, burger chains like McDonald's Corp. now have "premium" salads on the menu. Wendy's Int'l Inc. has dominated the fancy fast-food salad scene, having first put them on the menu in early 2002. In fact, salad sales helped McDonald's U.S. restaurants in April show their first sales gain in more than a year. -Reuters