Healthier Fast Food Options

[Asha]

I was so happy today when I discovered that I didn't have to get fries with my meal at Wendy's. I got a side salad instead.

I don't eat at fast food joints often, but are other fast food establishments jumping on the healthy bandwagon?

[mgrace]

I think some fast food restaurants are trying--to an extent. Panera offers an apple instead of chips and I know that several sub places have Baked Lays.

[ejs]

Don't most, if not all, fast-food restaurants offer salads now? And many offered grilled chicken sandwiches, instead of deep-fried.

[Asha]

oh, they have been offering grilled sandwhiches for years. wendy's has had salads for a long time, but actually some of those main course salads are very fattening too. i didn't realize that most fast food joints offer salads in lieu of fries.

[thedoorchick]

At Chick-Fil-A, you can substitute a fruit cup for fries in the combos.

Not to mention, CFA has some options that are healthier than your average burger anyway.

You've got to be careful with the salads; many fast food salads are worse for you than the french fries because of the fat in the dressings, cheese, nuts, and other things.

[Oakley]

Ditto on the salad dressing thing- you might as well be eating a big mac! :) (mmm....big mac).

I think a lot more places are offering healty options now and I love it! What I usually do is go to the website before and check out the nutrition info. Some things are shocking!! For instance, I LOVE DQ Blizzards. I really wanted one and checked out the website thinking it was around 600-700 calories. Nope- 970!!! :eek: No blizzard for me!

And if all else fails- go to Subway! :D

ETA: Nuts are actually GOOD for you (in moderation)- so skip the cheese and fatty dressing, but eat the nuts!

[Asha]

oakley - i have done that too. i checked out dunkin donuts website and was horrified to see that my fave donut - double chocoloate - was nearly 400 calories.

i remember a long time ago some news report saying how bad the cinnabons were. they said it was something like eating three personal pan pizzas at pizza hut. i never touched another cinnabon after that.

the door chick - oh, how i miss chick-fil-a. i wonder why they don't open up any franchises in the northeast. my fave thing there is the sweet tea which is definitely not a healthy option.

[jimmysgirl424]

My favorite place to eat has always been Taco Bell. Now you can order items "Al Fresco" style, which swaps out the cheese for salsa, further cutting out fat and calories. Ever since I started following a low-carb diet; my favorite thing to eat there is the Southwest Steak Bowl minus rice with red sauce added on. Yummy!! :D

[Asha]

i'm going to have to try out the al fresco style at taco bell.

[Hello Kitty]

Wendy's chili is an excellent choice - a plain hamburger (no cheese, I mean, add all the veg you want!) is usually pretty decent too. A small cone (undipped) at DQ isn't bad, IIRC. I haven't done this, but I've thought about bringing my own salad dressing to make one of their salads a little more healthy.

I got a gift card to Cosi (a panera/ABP type of place) and decided to check the nutrition info before I went. I didn't end up going because even a sandwich was really, really bad. I'll save that for some other time, I think. ;)

[ruledbymercury]

I like to order the soups at Panera when I need something fast and healthy. The garden veggie soup is only 90 calories, 0.5 grams of fat, and I find it delicious and really filling! Even their broccoli cheddar soup is only 230 calories.

[LIZNKEITH]

I'm so happy that they are all jumping on the bandwagon. I usually try to stick to a Grilled Chicken sandwich and get either a Side Salad (with FF Dressing), a fruit cup, or a yougurt to go with it. Like someone else said, Wendy's chili is also very healthy. They boil their meat before adding it to the chili, so it is pretty low fat...and VERY filling.

[NotDesperate]

The Vegeburger at Burger King is a healthy option also, make sure you say no mayo also.. I know it is like 6 points for weight watchers or something, I don't do WW but a coworker does and that is all she ever eats for lunch.

Oh and it is reallllllllllllllly yummy too.

[sophiapb]

I looooooooove Whoppers and will get one loaded with pickles, onions and tomatoes and hold the mayo. Then I take off the greasy bottom bun and eat it open face. I figured out the calories one times and it's something like 350. It's delicious, filling and satisfies the fast food craving.

[j*east]

I read an article about healthy fast food when I was driving cross country with DH last summer. The one thing I remember (that I like) is that at Wendy's a sour cream and chive baked potato and a small chili is under 400 calories and is high in fiber and lower in fat. So I almost always get that, and sometimes add broccoli to the potato too. If you're looking for real food (less fried and processed) at Wendy's, you might like it too. :)

[pixielou]

t at Wendy's a sour cream and chive baked potato and a small chili is under 400 calories and is high in fiber and lower in fat.

and they are both on the dollar menu! so it's a $2 lunch!!!

mmmmm. . .want to go to wendy's again. . .

~pixie

[Janey]

I got a gift card to Cosi (a panera/ABP type of place) and decided to check the nutrition info before I went. I didn't end up going because even a sandwich was really, really bad. I'll save that for some other time, I think. ;)
I ate at Cosi the other day and had a Turkey Light sandwich and had a mixed greens salad with their lowfat asian dressing. It came out to about 625 calories. Not too awfully bad.

[Leilynne]

The best thing to do is check the nutritional info on line. Some things that you think would be healthy aren't. For example at McDonalds if you want a snack should you get a hamburger or a muffin? Surprise, choose the hamburger. It has almost half the calories and more than half the fat of all the muffins (except cranberry orange which has only 5g of fat but is still high in calories). The burger has protein too so your blood sugar won't plummit a few hours later. Most of the McDonald's salads are pretty good if you get them with the grilled chicken and only use part of the dressing. The deli sandwiches though? Might as well get a big Mac.

[kris97]

McDonald's has been advertising a new bunch of salads, including an apple/grape/walnut configuration.

[Hello Kitty]

I ate at Cosi the other day and had a Turkey Light sandwich and had a mixed greens salad with their lowfat asian dressing. It came out to about 625 calories. Not too awfully bad.
Yeah, that's not bad. I had my heart set on the chicken, mozz, tom, basil melt, though. :o Turkey light doesn't sound the same.

When I go to ABP, Panera, or CB and I want to be reasonably good, I get a low-fat/healthier soup, and then half of a panini-type sandwich. A whole panini is like 1000 cals and a ton of fat, but halving it, I feel satisfied, but in control.

[KarenS]

Then I take off the greasy bottom bun and eat it open face. I figured out the calories one times and it's something like 350. It's delicious, filling and satisfies the fast food craving.A whopper is 670 calories and 41 grams of fat. Even w/out the mayo and the bottom bun, you're still probably getting well over 500 calories and at least 35 grams of fat. 35grams of fat is well over 1/2 of what the average adult should be consuming per day.l

Fast food is insidious. What *seems* healthy or low calorie or low fat often is not.

Karen

[tlew12778]

McD's here is offering salads with EVOO and vinegar, with sides of fruity yogurt and sliced fruit.

[Janey]

Seb's Kitty - Yah that cheese'll getcha every time. ;) The turkey light was actually really good, I thought. I was absolutely starving, and it was a very satisfying lunch. I kept the piece of bread that came with the salad & the chips (you can get carrot sticks instead of chips - but they had Tim's Cascade and I like those too much :o ) for later.

Asha - I've done a lot of looking into fast food & reasonable calories. Sometimes it's nice to be able to grab a fast meal while out, but I hardly ever go to fast food places any more. Haven't set foot in BK or McD's in years, except to use their bathroom on a road trip. Anyway - I set a calorie limit of 600 calories for a meal, and looked around at different fast food places to see what I could get for that. What I found was that basically, if the restaurant had options for healthy sides, I could get a pretty decent meal at their place for 600 calories or less.

As you've already found, Wendy's is great cause you can get an entire bowl of fruit & their grilled chicken sandwich, or if you were craving that greasy burger, you could get a big bacon classic (leave off the mayo; you'll never miss it anyway) and a fruit cup, and have it land right about 600 calories.

KFC has a grilled chicken sandwich. You could get that, a small corn on the cob, a small mashed potatos & gravy, and a small green beans for less than 600 calories.

Of course, Subway has six sandwiches that are about 300 calories for a 6". You could pair a 6" sub with bag of baked chips for about 450, or get the entire 12" sub and no chips for 600. Leave off the cheese; again - you'll never miss it. Pile all the veggies you want onto those subs, however.

For anyone local, Taco Time has two different Lite meals. They have 2 hard-shell chicken tacos and their white chicken chili (yum!) for less than 400 calories; or for around 500 you can get a light chicken soft taco with low fat cheese & FF sour cream, and the white chicken chili. This is my favorite fast food meal, actually. :)

Hope that helps.

[Oakley]

I just went online to BK b/c I was curious.

Single whopper

Beef patty: 230 calories/17 total fat
Pickle: 0/0
Ketchup: 15/0
Onions: 5/0
Tomatoes:5/0
Lettuce: 0/0

Total: 270 calories/17 fat (8 saturated)

Now with the cheese add 90 calories/8 g. fat

Now who knows if that includes any grease they use on the fryer (grill??). I have no idea how it's "really" made. I also don't know if they're allowed a certain % of error in their totals.

[KarenS]

I just went online to BK b/c I was curious.
Single whopper
Total: 270 calories/17 fat (8 saturated)
I just went to BK site and that's not what I found. Here's the screen that shows the total value for a single Whopper at 670 calories and 37 grams of fat. Another site I found said 670 calories and 41 grams of fat, which is pretty close. Even if you take the mayo off, you're still looking at over 500 calories and 22 grams of fat.

Add cheese and it goes up to 760 calories and 47 grams of fat.

http://www.ksimmons.com/share/whopper.JPG

[Oakley]

Karen- I did the BK Build a Meal thing and took off the mayo and the bun. Yes, with everything the total is 670/39. If I thought the entire whopper was 230- I'd be out there now scarfing them down!! :p

Single whopper

Beef patty: 230 calories/17 total fat
Pickle: 0/0
Ketchup: 15/0
Onions: 5/0
Tomatoes:5/0
Lettuce: 0/0

Total: 270 calories/17 fat (8 saturated)

[KarenS]

Oh, oh oh. Gotcha. Ok. I was going by whoever said they take off the bottom of the bun only, which still leaves a chunk of calories and fat.

Still, I guess if you wanted a bare burger, it's not bad. :)

Karen

[ysolde]

I am a big fan of Subway. There are several 6 inch sandwiches for about 350 calories, and on a whole wheat roll (which they do fairly well), you are getting some whole grains. Add plenty of veggies, and you are well on your way to a healthy, tasty meal!

[sophiapb]

A whopper is 670 calories and 41 grams of fat. Even w/out the mayo and the bottom bun, you're still probably getting well over 500 calories and at least 35 grams of fat. 35grams of fat is well over 1/2 of what the average adult should be consuming per day.

According the Burger King website (http://www.burgerking.ca/en/1045/index.php) I went to, a Whopper is 650 calories. Take away the mayo which is 100 calories and the bottom bun which I'm guessing is about 70 calories (I didn't see any calories info for the bun on the website) and take away the grease which is soaked into the bun which I'm thinking is about 100 calories and you're left with 380 calories. Add in the minor calories for onion, pickles and tomatoes and that brings us to about 400 calories. I was off by 50 calories but I still stand by my original post. Also, if the whopper as is has 41 grams of fat, jsut removing the mayo takes away 12 grams of fat (according to the website above). Removing the grease which is soaked into bottom bun is taking away another estimated 9 grams of fat leaving a fat count of 20 grams. Personally, I can live with that.

Okay, just found another website (http://www.yomag.net/e-zine/126-bk.htm) with slightly different info but within the same range and this one shows the whole bun as being 220 calories.

[KarenS]

The image I posted is a screenshot directly from the BK website! :)

Karen

[sophiapb]

Karen, I'm not seeing any image. The red square I see in your second post is taking me to a wedding photo website.

[KarenS]

Oops. That was dumb. I linked from the wrong place. Should be fixed now.

[racerswife]

asha--where in the northeast do you live? i live in pa and we have CFA's all over. they've started popping up all over our area in the past 4 years or so.

[sophiapb]

Cool, Karen, that link actually proves my numbers to be correct. In fact, mine are are a little over inflated since I think I underestimated the calorie content of the bun and didn't even factor for the 2 grams of fat that are in the the bottom bun, not counting the grease, which would be removed. Wait, are we still arguing that I'm incorrect with my grease-reduced, bottomless Whopper calorie count or can I stop being defensive?

[Asha]

i live in new york.

[Jenyfer9]

I like the new Frescata sandwiches from Wendy's. The one that I really like is the Roasted Turkey Basil Pesto. YUM! I looked it up and it's only 420 calories... and very rarely do I eat the whole thing...

[LIZNKEITH]

Jenyfer,
That sandwich is awesome! I got it a couple of weeks ago when I wasn't in the mood for a GC Sandwich. I figured it was less damage than anything else. Thanks for posting the nutritional info.

[Tonysweetie]

My favorite place to eat has always been Taco Bell. Now you can order items "Al Fresco" style, which swaps out the cheese for salsa, further cutting out fat and calories. Ever since I started following a low-carb diet; my favorite thing to eat there is the Southwest Steak Bowl minus rice with red sauce added on. Yummy!! :D

Wow that sounds great! I'm on the South Beach Diet and I was wanting to go there earlier but I chose to eat my boring tuna salad instead, lol.

[mgrace]

You can get a sour cream and chive baked potato at Wendy's (hold the butter) and it has 320 calories and 4 grams of fat. A small turkey lite at Quizno's has 334 cal and 6 g fat. And the 16 oz. Caribbean Passion at Jamba Juice has 290 cals and 1.5 g fat.

[Oakley]

I love how most fast food places have their nutritional info online- plus a lot more restaurants are putting theirs online. I always look before I go. I read or heard (:confused: ) something about restaurants being required (maybe not required...) to list nutritional info on their menus. Did anyone else hear about that?

[j*east]

Just be careful with nutrition information. I read in Fast Food Nation that the stuff the restaurants post isn't always accurate.

I don't know about being required to post it, either. I just looked up the Cheesecake Factory (http://cheesecakefactory.com/aboutus.htm) online and they post none!

[jimmysgirl424]

Wow that sounds great! I'm on the South Beach Diet and I was wanting to go there earlier but I chose to eat my boring tuna salad instead, lol.


When I order the steak bowl, I always add extra steak, tell them to go light on the beans and have it drowned in their "red" sauce. It almost ends up like chili! :D

[bunnybeth]

I just noticed the other day that Boston Market lists their nutritional information by serving size. And, that amount of food is less than what they give for a regular meal. So, something to look for when looking up the info.

I'm not sure that restaurants are required to give you the nutritional info online, but I'm pretty sure they have to do so in person if you request it. Any food sold in the grocery store has minimum requirements for listing nutritional content, so it would only make sense that restaurant food had to do so as well.

[Sarah]

I usually get the grilled chicken sandwich with no sauce at Wendy's, and then take off the top bun. I put some of the Sweet and Sour sauce on it (I ask for it, sometimes they charge me $.50, sometimes my DD orders chicken nuggets so I get it free). Pretty good and not so bad for me.

Or if I am going with DH he orders his sandwich, biggie sizes it, and gets the chili and I eat the chili, and we split the drink (diet soda or lite lemonade).

[thedoorchick]

LOL, I bet if the Cheesecake Factory posted nutritional info on their website, everyone would be scared to eat there!

[mgrace]

I like the Southwest Salad at McDonald's. I skip the dressing and just use the lime. Subway now has raisins and apple slices.