Unveiling the Nexus of Environment, Nutrition, and Affordability in City-level Sustainable Dining Out Choice

Abstract Global cities are forging unique culinary identities through a rich array of restaurant offerings, driven by rapid urbanization and the fast-paced urban lifestyle. Dining out has become an integral part of city dwellers' lives, influenced by factors such as convenience, affordability, taste, and nutrition. As urban populations increasingly seek healthy and convenient dining options, our study introduces an integrated framework for quantifying sustainable dining within urban environments. Using data from 1,727 representative menu items and 112,892 restaurants in Tokyo, Japan, we examined the spatial distribution and optimization pathways for city-scale sustainable dietary choices. The findings reveal a high concentration of restaurants around railway stations and significant disparities in the availability of sustainable dining options, with up to six million passengers daily exposed to unsustainable dining environments in Tokyo. We identified spatial collective features and explored multiple pathways to visualize how urban residents can achieve fair and convenient access to sustainable dietary choices. These insights, provided by our analysis framework, offer valuable guidance for citizens, urban planners, and policymakers, advancing the concept of planetary health at an urban scale.