A growing number of restaurants are catering to customers on Ozempic by offering pint-sized portions.
Daily Mail recently dined at Clinton Hall in Midtown Manhattan to try its Teeny Weeny Mini Meal designed for those on GLP-1 medications, which decrease appetite.
The miniature burger dish, which is more like the size of a slider than a full-size burger, comes served with just a shot glass of a few fries and a syringe of ketchup.
The restaurant states on its website ‘get a shot of fun… no prescription needed.’
The $8 meal deal also comes served with the choice of a mini beer, mini martini or weeny wine.
Clinton Hall owner Aristotle Hatzigeorgiou told Daily Mail that he got the idea to invent the Ozempic meal after observing the diminished appetites of his friends on weight-loss drugs.
He said: ‘I started noticing that when I’d go out to dinner with friends, some of them would take one bite of pasta or chicken parmesan, have a sip of wine, and then be done. I saw that happen multiple times within a month.
‘I realized that for people whose appetites have changed, especially in group settings, we needed an option they could enjoy without wasting food.
Daily Mail recently dined at Clinton Hall in Midtown Manhattan to try its ‘Teeny-Weeny Mini Meal’ designed for those with lighter appetites. Pictured above is the mini meal (right) and Clinton Hall’s normal burger offering
Clinton Hall serves the meal, which is more like the size of a slider than a full-size burger, with a shot glass of fries and a syringe of ketchup
‘I also grew up in an era where wasting food was a big deal, so the environmental aspect played into it. That’s really where the idea started.’
GLP‑1 drugs like semaglutide (sold as Ozempic, Wegovy, or oral Rybelsus) or liraglutide (under the brand names Victoza or Saxenda) can reduce appetite substantially and clinical studies show they can cut daily food intake by about 20 to 25 percent.
In one 2017 trial, semaglutide reduced participants’ intake by 24 percent in total calories eaten during meals.
Clinton Hall owner Aristotle Hatzigeorgiou told Daily Mail that he got the idea to invent the Ozempic meal after observing the diminished appetites of his own friends on weight-loss drugs
And Liraglutide has also been shown to lower hunger and boost feelings of fullness. In lab-based studies, it reduced energy intake by 12 to 27 percent in test meals versus placebo.
Beyond raw calorie reduction, GLP‑1 agonists shift eating behavior: users report less emotional or external-cue eating, better recognition of physiological hunger cues, and reduced desire for high-fat or sweet foods.
Mechanistically, these drugs act both on the gut (slowing stomach emptying) and the brain (activating satiety centers), helping people feel full sooner and eat less overall.
Upscale Italian restaurant Tucci in New York’s NoHo neighborhood is another spot that has started offering Ozempic-sized plates at reduced rates.
Like Hatzigeorgiou, restauranteur Max Tucci said he has noticed a demand for smaller portion sizes with the rise of weight loss drugs.
His Ozempic menu, which is available on request, comprises a single piece of arancini topped with caviar priced at $12 and a single meatball cooked in Tucci’s famed Calabrian chili marinara sauce for $10.
Clinton Hall’s ‘Teeny-Weeny Mini Meal’ launched earlier this year
Upscale Italian restaurant Tucci in New York’s NoHo neighborhood is another spot which has started offering Ozempic-sized plates (forward right) at reduced rates
Compared with the regular versions of each dish, these Ozempic plates are about one-third the size and price, yet can still be enjoyed as full meals without any sense of shame of waste.
Hatzigeorgiou told this website that from his insights in the food business, he definitely thinks weight loss shots are reshaping how Americans eat.
He said: ‘People are much more health-conscious now. I go to the gym daily and see younger generations really focused on fitness and understanding their bodies.
‘Everyone is more aware of how much they eat and what they eat.’
He encouraged other restaurants to follow suit with Ozempic-style meals, noting that along with helping keep waistlines in check, it can help with the problem of food waste.
GLP‑1 drugs are seeing a dramatic surge in use across the US, reshaping both medical practice and the food industry.
According to data from medical firm Epocrates, new GLP‑1 prescriptions in February 2024 rose 133 percent for diabetes and 584 percent for obesity compared to two years earlier.
On the economic side, the US GLP‑1 market has ballooned into the tens of billions.
It was valued at about $39.6 billion in 2024 and is projected to exceed $120 billion by 2030.
While restaurants are adjusting to changing tastes, Hatzigeorgiou said maybe portion sizes are merely returning to what they used to be before America’s obesity crisis.
He added: ‘I had one customer who came in and looked at the time Ozempic burger and said that there was nothing wrong with it and this is how meals used to look.
‘That really made me laugh!’