ontheroadtogreenness: nutritional data chain restaurants

Showing posts with label nutritional data chain restaurants. Show all posts

Monday, March 28, 2011

Meatless Monday: Diners Beware Part 3

Those of you who join me regularly on Meatless Monday know that I’ve been taking a break from my usual posts to provide you with nutrition information for restaurant chains. Last week the list was Fast Food/Take-Out. This week it’s Restaurants (defined by table service). There are many regional restaurant chains, and I know I’ve missed some. But this list will give you an idea of what type of fare the chains are serving up.

There was a bit of good news in this category. Eat ’N Park, a chain in Pennsylvania and Ohio, sources many of its ingredients from local farms. You can read testimonials from family farmers here.

If you look carefully you will find some reasonable choices in many of these listings, particularly in sub-categories with titles like “Healthy Choices.” In general, though, if the fat or calories don’t get you, the sodium will. And do read very carefully to determine how many servings are in a portion and whether the nutritional data is for portion, serving, or piece.

As a point of reference, please keep this info in mind. A moderately active young woman requires approximately 2,000 calories per day. The American Heart Association recommends that everyone limit daily sodium consumption to 1500 milligrams (less than 3/4 teaspoon of salt), and that the aforementioned woman limit her saturated fat to 20 grams or less, and her total fat to between 50 and 70 grams per day. Most of these menus are using the older 2300 milligrams a day guideline for sodium intake.

RESTAURANTS:

99:

http://www.99restaurants.com/resources/pdf/99_AllergenInfo.pdf [Sodium is off the chart; calories and fat not looking too good either.]

Applebee’s:

http://www.applebees.com/downloads/Applebees_Nutritional_Info.pdf [Check out the under 550 Calories and WeightWatchers offerings, but watch the sodium.]

Bertucci’s:

http://www.bertuccis.com/uploads/nutritional.pdf

Buffalo Wild Wings:

Nutrition info is not available on their site. Some info, minus sodium and saturated fat is here: http://www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate/nutrition-calories/food/buffalo-wild-wings/

Chili’s:

http://www.chilis.com/en/nutritional%20information/chilis_nutrition_menu_generic.pdf [Watch the sodium and saturated fat.]

Cracker Barrel: Does not make this information available.

[Read more here: http://www.crackerbarrel.com/about.cfm?doc_id=5 Among other things the site states: “While we are unable to give any exact calorie or fat content information, the following choices may help you in your selection…” Hmmmm… Won’t be going back there.]

Denny’s:

http://www.dennys.com/LiveImages/enProductImage_900.pdf [There are a few surprises here, particularly in the Senior Menu, one of them being that you are a senior if you are 55! Watch those Scrambles and Skillets!]

Eat ’N Park:

http://www.eatnpark.com/pdfs/Nutrition.pdf [FarmSource is Eat ’N Park’s local purchasing program in which the chain partners with more than 20 farms and dairies in the areas of Pittsburgh, Harrisburg and Northern Ohio. Read more here.]

Golden Corral:

http://www.goldencorral.com/menu/ [It’s all available here, but the complete menu is sub-divided into 5 categories.]

Longhorn Steakhouse:

http://www.longhornsteakhouse.com/pdf/2010LongHornSteakHouseNutrition.pdf

Olive Garden:

http://www.olivegarden.com/menus/printable/NutritionInformation.pdf [Watch the salt and remember to add; for pizza, toppings are listed separately.]

Outback:

http://www.outback.com/menu/nutritionselection.aspx [Calculator for individual items] For a complete list: http://www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate/nutrition-calories/food/outback-steakhouse/ [No listing for saturated fat or sodium]

Perkins:

http://nc.perkinsrestaurants.com/PerkinsNC/ [Calculator for individual items]

For a complete list: http://www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate/nutrition-calories/food/perkins-restaurant/ [No listing for saturated fat or sodium]

Rainforest Cafe: No listing on the site.

Go here for a listing of most facts: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/nutrition-facts-calories/rainforest-cafe [No listing for saturated fat or sodium]

Red Lobster:

http://www.redlobster.com/health/nutrition/Nutrition_Facts.pdf [Watch anything Alfredo.]

Ruby Tuesday’s:

http://www.rubytuesday.com/assets/menu/pdf/informational/nutrition.pdf [Note the Smart Eating Choices. But remember that appetizers are shown by the serving. If you plan to eat the whole thing, multiply by 4!]

Texas Roadhouse:

Does not make the information available.
Read more here: http://www.texasroadhouse.com/contact-us/

T.G.I. Friday’s:

Does not make the information available.
Read more here: http://www.tgifridays.com/contactus/faq.aspx

A limited amount of information is available here: http://www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate/nutrition-calories/food/tgi-fridays/

Uno Chicago Grill:

http://www.unos.com/nutrition.php [Not a complete menu listing. But you can search for items meeting criteria such as “less than 500 calories,” “less than 750 mg. sodium,” or “vegetarian.” It’s all here, you just have to look for it. BTW, I checked out the vegetarian burger, and see that I need to multiply everything by 2 because 1 burger is 2 servings! Read carefully!]

Besides the nutritional shortcomings, another thing to consider is the sourcing and sustainability of the ingredients purchased by the chain, particularly the proteins. Other than what I’ve told you about Eat ’N Park, I’m not prepared to tackle this question, at least not yet.

Have a good week. I hope I haven’t ruined it for you. But you can’t save the planet if you’re not around… Next Monday I promise a new topic. And look for me on Freebie Friday when I’ll have a nifty tool or two.

I try to blog on food or food issues each Monday in support of Meatless Monday, one of several programs developed in the Healthy Monday project, founded in 2003 in association with Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Communications. Meatless Monday’s goal is “to help reduce meat consumption 15% in order to improve personal health and the health of our planet.”

Monday, March 21, 2011

Meatless Monday: Diners Beware Part 2

Those of you who joined me for Meatless Monday last week learned that I am taking a break from my usual posts to provide you with nutrition information for restaurant chains. Last week the categories were: Breakfast, Coffee, Donuts, and Ice Cream. This week I’m moving on to a bigger list — Fast Food/Take-Out — broken down into smaller sub-categories. These links will also help those seeking to avoid meat. Your options are more varied in some places than in others.

First, let me preface this new list with some good news. I’ve discovered an exception to the usual fast food chain — Chipotle. Chipotle’s founder, Steve Ells, is one of the celebrity investors/judges on an NBC reality series on which I’ve become hooked — “America’s Next Great Restaurant”, and I've been learning a lot about Steve Ells and Chipotle while watching the show. Ells opened his first Chipotle in Denver in 1993 with a loan from his dad. Chipotle’s slogan is: “Food with integrity” and Chipotle is committed to serving fresh food, prepared daily, on-site, with sustainably raised ingredients. You can read more in this “Letter from Steve.” The Chipotle menu has just a few items, with a long list of options from which you can “build the perfect meal.” Note that at Chipotle you can still overdo it, but whether or not you go overboard on the salt, fat, or calories is under your control.

If you look carefully you will find some reasonable choices in some of the sandwich chains as well. In general, though, if the fat or calories don’t get you, the sodium will.

As a point of reference, keep in mind this info from last week. A moderately active young woman requires approximately 2,000 calories per day. The American Heart Association recommends that everyone limit daily sodium consumption to 1500 milligrams (less than 3/4 teaspoon of salt), and that the aforementioned woman limit her saturated fat to 20 grams or less, and her total fat to between 50 and 70 grams per day. Most of these menus are using the older 2300 milligrams a day guideline for sodium intake.

Beef/Burgers:

Arbys (contains info for Arby’s and Wendy’s):

http://www.arbys.com/nutrition/Dual_Brand_Nutrition_Website_2009_12_9.pdf

Burger King:

http://www.bk.com/en/us/menu-nutrition/full-menu.html (for individual items) or read the entire list (without sodium) here:

http://www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate/search/?q=burger+king&mode=tdp

Hardee’s:

http://www.hardees.com/system/pdf_menus/9/original/Hardees_Nutritionals_5.20.10.pdf?1285096241

In-N-Out Burger:

http://www.in-n-out.com/nutritional_info.asp

Jack in the Box:

http://www.jackinthebox.com/pdf/NutritionalGuide_2010.pdf [Contains a few “healthy choice” items but the sodium is still high]

McDonald’s:

http://nutrition.mcdonalds.com/nutritionexchange/nutritionfacts.pdf

Red Robin:

http://www.redrobin.com/customizer/ (to calculate individual items)

Read the entire list (without sodium) here: http://www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate/nutrition-calories/food/red-robin/

Sonic:

http://www.sonicdrivein.com/pdfs/menu/SonicNutritionGuide.pdf

Wendy’s (contains info for Arby’s and Wendy’s):

http://www.wendys.com/food/pdf/us/atlanta_ga.pdf

White Castle:

http://www.whitecastle.com/system/blocks/data/7/original/NY_Nutritional_Summary_PDF_Ready_Sept_2010-Revised.pdf

Chicken/Fish:

Boston Market:

http://bostonmarket.com/ourFood?page=nutritionSub&id=0&name=ALL

KFC:

http://www.kfc.com/nutrition/pdf/kfc_nutrition.pdf

Long John Silver’s:

http://www.ljsilvers.com/images/LJS_Nutritional_Information_2_11.pdf

Popeye’s (available for download by clicking on “nutrition” under the “food” tab):

http://www.popeyes.com/

Ethnic/Regional:

Chipotle:

http://www.chipotle.com/en-us/menu/nutritional_information/nutritional_information.aspx

Moe’s Southwest Grill:

Calculate for individual menu items here.:

http://www.moes.com/Food.php?ii=1 [Check out the Homewrecker Burrito.]

PF Chang’s:

http://www.pfchangs.com/menu/NutritionalInfo.aspx [Really watch the sodium.]

Taco Bell:

http://www.tacobell.com/pdf/Nutrition_Guide_for_National_W1.pdf

Pizza:

Chuck E. Cheese’s (Shown by the slice):

http://www.chuckecheese.com/menu/nutritional-information.pdf

Domino’s:

http://www.dominos.com/shared/base/pdf/dominos_nutrition_v2.30.00.pdf [The math is up to you and it doesn’t look good.]

Papa John’s (Shown by the slice):

http://www.papajohns.com/menu/pdf/PJ_nutri_info.pdf

Pizza Hut (Shown by the slice):

http://www.pizzahut.com/Files/PDF/PH_WSNationalBrochure4.13.10.pdf

Sbarro: [No luck with this one, only this message: This page is under construction! I’m betting the news is not good.]

http://www.sbarro.com/ourFood/nutrition.ph

Sandwiches:

Au Bon Pain:

http://www.aubonpain.com/pdf/cafe_nutrition.pdf [Offers a number of healthy choices — particularly in “Portions,” snacks, yogurt, and oatmeal. Watch out for the fat and calories in the blended drinks and for the salt in general.]

D’Angelo’s

http://www.dangelos.com/docs/da_menu_nutritionals_11.10..pdf [Sodium is off the chart!]

Panera:

http://www.panerabread.com/pdf/nutr-guide.pdf [Watch the sodium.]

Subway:

http://www.subway.com/subwayroot/MenuNutrition/Nutrition/pdf/NutritionValues.pdf [There are low fat choices, but the sodium is high. Read carefully to determine whether the facts pertain to a 6” or 12” selection.]

Quizno’s

http://www.quiznos.com/subsandwiches/Menu/PDFs/NutritionalInfo.pdf [Sodium is off the chart!]

Have a good week. Join me next Monday for the listing for Restaurants with Table Service. I hope I haven’t ruined it for you. But you can’t save the planet if you’re not around…

Monday, March 14, 2011

Meatless Monday: Diners Beware Part 1

If you read my Meatless Monday post last week, you know about the sticker shock I received when I downloaded the pdf of nutritional data for IHOP’s menu. I’m taking a break from my regularly scheduled programming to demonstrate just how limited the options are for dining out “fast casual” at a chain venue.

On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed the health care reform legislation into law. According to information available on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration site: Section 4205 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 requires restaurants and similar retail food establishments with 20 or more locations to list calorie content information for standard menu items on restaurant menus and menu boards, including drive-through menu boards. Other nutrient information — total calories, fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, total carbohydrates, sugars, fiber and total protein — would have to be made available in writing upon request.

While most major chains already provide a downloadable pdf containing all such data for all their items, the pdf is not always easy to find. Furthermore, the information is sometimes available for each item individually instead of in list form, and often the data for sodium content is missing.

I’ve tried to make it easy for you. For the next three Mondays I plan to post the best links I can find to the nutritional data for menu items at a number of chains. This week it’s Breakfast, Coffee, Donuts, and Ice Cream. The lists will be alphabetical. I’m sure I’ll miss a few, but you’ll get the idea.

The daily calories required to maintain a healthy weight vary by a number of factors including sex, age, and activity level: a moderately active young woman requires approximately 2,000 calories per day. The American Heart Association recommends that EVERYONE limit daily sodium consumption to 1500 milligrams (less than 3/4 teaspoon of salt), and that the aforementioned woman limit her saturated fat to 20 grams or less, and her total fat to between 50 and 70 grams per day.

If you comb through this data carefully you should find a few not so bad choices. [You’re in luck if you are looking for coffee.] In general, though, “Read’em and weep,” as my dad would say:

Breakfast:

Bruegger’s Bagels:

http://www.brueggers.com/documents/nutrition.pdf

IHOP:

http://www.ihop.com/docs/nutritionalinformation.pdf

Coffee and…

Caribou Coffee:

Facts available for individual items on their site (without mention of sodium):

http://www.cariboucoffee.com/page/1/menu-nutrition.jsp

Complete menu facts available here (without mention of sodium):

http://www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate/nutrition-calories/food/caribou-coffee/

Dunkin Donuts (without mention of sodium):