Another local restaurant is converting to healthier cooking oils.

Steak 'n Shake, a 24-hour, full-service restaurant on Scottsville Road, is one of the locations nationwide converting to zero trans fat frying oils.

Steak 'n Shake is now using frying oil with zero grams trans fat per serving in all 478 restaurants in 19 states.

“Steak n Shake's long-term plan is to remove added trans fats from the menu wherever possible,” Steak 'n Shake's chief marketing officer Steven Schiller said earlier this month. “In the coming months, Steak 'n Shake will continue to identify options for food products that are made without added trans fats.”

Incorporating frying oil with zero grams trans fat is one step in a series of initiatives to respond to growing concerns about health and healthy eating in the U.S., Schiller said.

The Steak 'n Shake menu includes many food items with zero grams trans fat, like its namesake Steakburgers and milkshakes.

Nutritional information for all Steak 'n Shake menu items is in the online nutritional guide at www.steaknshake.com.

Updated nutritional information showing trans fat and sugar content will be added to the Web site during August.

And in case you already didn't hear about it: Bowling Green was one of a few places that remained unscathed in the decision on changing the 270 area code. But just in case you didn't know, the local chamber of commerce had anticipated the cost of switching to a new area code.

In January the Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce told the PSC it advocated 10-digit dialing in order to keep the 270 area code, and included the results of a partner survey.

About 117 survey participants estimated the cost of updating marketing materials could range between $500 and $500,000 for larger and smaller businesses, but said the true cost would be much higher since other costs include the price of phone books being rendered inaccurate and the extra cost of educating customers about an area code change.

But we'll never know what the real cost will be, since we're staying 270, which is a relief to the chamber, according to its program coordinator.

“We're pleased that the business community will not have to go through the expense of changing marketing materials and informing their customers,” said Jennifer Ford, program coordinator for the chamber. “And we're pleased we will be able to continue to use 7-digit dialing.”

Last week's story about children on cell phones included all the cell phone carriers with the exception of T-Mobile, which contacted the Daily News after the story ran.

Here's what representatives said about how it is addressing the kiddie cell phone market.

“T-Mobile has a unique service called kidConnect that helps solve three of the biggest dilemmas for families getting a phone for their child,” said T-Mobile USA spokeswoman Kristen Resare.

Kids aren't relegated to a “kiddie” phone and can use any T-Mobile phone they want. Parents won't get any surprises in their monthly bills because there are no possible overage charges. And unlike kid-tracking phones, this rate plan encourages kids to keep their phones with them at all times and maintain open lines of communication, wherever they are, Resare said.

T-Mobile's kidConnect service is $19.99 a month, is available on any T-Mobile handset, includes unlimited mobile-to-mobile (so parents and their kids can talk at any time), unlimited weekends, and includes 50 “Whenever Minutes.” Minutes can be used for calls, text, instant or picture messages (calls at the equivalent rate of 40 cents a minute; outgoing text, picture and instant messages at the rate of 10 cents each.) So, one Whenever Minute can be traded for four outgoing text instant or picture messages. Incoming text messages and instant messages are free.

“Once the 50 Whenever Minutes are used, that form of communication will be shut off for the remainder of the month, so no possible overage charges occur on the account,” Resare said. “Even when they run out of Whenever Minutes, kids will always be able to reach their parents, make calls on the weekends and also call 9-1-1.”

Additional minutes can be added with T-Mobile To Go refill cards. Refill minutes do not expire and carry over to the next month if not used. For more on T-Mobile's kidConnect, visit www.t-mobile.com.

- Contact business reporter Ameerah Cetawayo at 783-3246 or acetawayo@bgdailynews.com.