AMERICA'S BEST AND WORST RESTAURANTS
Italian Restaurant
Best: Romano's Macaroni Grill
Check out this story of restaurant redemption: Macaroni Grill used to be one of the most fattening sit-down chains in America. But things took a sharp turn for the better when the company recruited a new CEO in 2008. What followed was a multiphase plan to improve the nutritional quality of the entrees, and the chain has since become the caloric conscience of the red-sauce restaurants. In December 2008, a basic Fettuccine Alfredo at Macaroni Grill had 1,220 calories—the same amount you'll find in the Fettuccine Alfredo at Olive Garden today. Now the Mac Grill's Fettuccine Alfredo has a mere 770 calories. That's a 37 percent drop! During that same time, the chain trimmed its Seafood Linguine from 1,230 calories to 650, its Lobster Ravioli from 1,350 to 710, and its Chicken Marsala from 1,180 to 810. Everything became, well, reasonable—exactly as it should be. The food tastes great, too, so it's well worth the sauce stains on your shirt.
Top Pick
Spaghetti Bolognese
710 calories
30 g fat
1,470 mg sodium
"Bolognese" means meat sauce, and at the Mac Grill, ordering it on your pasta instead of choosing spaghetti and meatballs with tomato sauce will save you 260 calories and 16 grams of fat. Want something lighter still? Try the meatless Capellini Pomodoro, a tomato-based pasta with angel-hair noodles, which weighs in at only 490 calories.
Worst: Olive Garden
Sure, Italian food can be rich and starchy, but a true Italian doesn't let that stop him from looking svelte in his Dolce & Gabbana suit. The U.S. obesity rate is more than three times that of Italy's. And why is that? Perhaps because of restaurants like Olive Garden, which combine the richness of Italian food with oversized American portions. Fully half of the dinner options on the Classic Pastas menu exceed 1,000 calories. Bottomless portions of carb-heavy breadsticks and dressing-soaked salads don't help.
Survival Strategy
Come here for lunch, when the portions are smaller, and skip the bread and the salad. Two great options under 450 calories: Venetian Apricot Chicken and Linguine alla Marinara.
Check out this story of restaurant redemption: Macaroni Grill used to be one of the most fattening sit-down chains in America. But things took a sharp turn for the better when the company recruited a new CEO in 2008. What followed was a multiphase plan to improve the nutritional quality of the entrees, and the chain has since become the caloric conscience of the red-sauce restaurants. In December 2008, a basic Fettuccine Alfredo at Macaroni Grill had 1,220 calories—the same amount you'll find in the Fettuccine Alfredo at Olive Garden today. Now the Mac Grill's Fettuccine Alfredo has a mere 770 calories. That's a 37 percent drop! During that same time, the chain trimmed its Seafood Linguine from 1,230 calories to 650, its Lobster Ravioli from 1,350 to 710, and its Chicken Marsala from 1,180 to 810. Everything became, well, reasonable—exactly as it should be. The food tastes great, too, so it's well worth the sauce stains on your shirt.
Top Pick
Spaghetti Bolognese
710 calories
30 g fat
1,470 mg sodium
"Bolognese" means meat sauce, and at the Mac Grill, ordering it on your pasta instead of choosing spaghetti and meatballs with tomato sauce will save you 260 calories and 16 grams of fat. Want something lighter still? Try the meatless Capellini Pomodoro, a tomato-based pasta with angel-hair noodles, which weighs in at only 490 calories.
Worst: Olive Garden
Sure, Italian food can be rich and starchy, but a true Italian doesn't let that stop him from looking svelte in his Dolce & Gabbana suit. The U.S. obesity rate is more than three times that of Italy's. And why is that? Perhaps because of restaurants like Olive Garden, which combine the richness of Italian food with oversized American portions. Fully half of the dinner options on the Classic Pastas menu exceed 1,000 calories. Bottomless portions of carb-heavy breadsticks and dressing-soaked salads don't help.
Survival Strategy
Come here for lunch, when the portions are smaller, and skip the bread and the salad. Two great options under 450 calories: Venetian Apricot Chicken and Linguine alla Marinara.
Pizza Parlor
Best: Domino's
The pizza industry's ingredient-sourcing policies aren't worthy of praise (see "The Domino Effect," in our December 2010 issue), but when it comes to nutritional considerations, Domino's reigns supreme. Its plain pie ranks among the leanest available, and it boasts far more vegetable-topping varieties than the competition. Plus, unlike Papa John's, Domino's offers a thin-crust option for all its pizza sizes, and its pepperoni and sausage toppings are lower in fat than Pizza Hut's.
Top Pick
Philly Cheese Steak Pizza thin crust, 2 slices (based on a large pie)
460 calories
27 g fat
940 mg sodium
Want the leanest possible pie? Just skip the toppings and toss the cheese on the floor. But what's the point? You might as well gnaw on the pizza box. The Domino's Philly pie features plenty of lean beef, and the mushrooms, onions, and peppers provide a nice hit of fiber-rich vegetation.
Worst: California Pizza Kitchen
While CPK's pies all have a relatively thin crust, their awkward sizing makes it difficult to eat a healthy portion. A 10-inch pie isn't enough for two people, and ordering one for yourself means a 1,000-calorie meal. Turning to other items on the menu, like the dozens of salad and pasta options, usually makes things worse. You might think you're doing yourself a favor by ordering the Waldorf Chicken Salad with Dijon Balsamic Vinaigrette, but you're actually padding your belly with 1,485 calories. The healthy-sounding Asparagus and Spinach Spaghettini with Grilled Chicken Breast is just as bad, with 1,340 calories.
Survival Strategy
Split a pizza and a dish from the Small Cravings menu. Sharing the Four Seasons pie and the Asparagus and Arugula Salad makes for a meal that's around 563 calories.
The pizza industry's ingredient-sourcing policies aren't worthy of praise (see "The Domino Effect," in our December 2010 issue), but when it comes to nutritional considerations, Domino's reigns supreme. Its plain pie ranks among the leanest available, and it boasts far more vegetable-topping varieties than the competition. Plus, unlike Papa John's, Domino's offers a thin-crust option for all its pizza sizes, and its pepperoni and sausage toppings are lower in fat than Pizza Hut's.
Top Pick
Philly Cheese Steak Pizza thin crust, 2 slices (based on a large pie)
460 calories
27 g fat
940 mg sodium
Want the leanest possible pie? Just skip the toppings and toss the cheese on the floor. But what's the point? You might as well gnaw on the pizza box. The Domino's Philly pie features plenty of lean beef, and the mushrooms, onions, and peppers provide a nice hit of fiber-rich vegetation.
Worst: California Pizza Kitchen
While CPK's pies all have a relatively thin crust, their awkward sizing makes it difficult to eat a healthy portion. A 10-inch pie isn't enough for two people, and ordering one for yourself means a 1,000-calorie meal. Turning to other items on the menu, like the dozens of salad and pasta options, usually makes things worse. You might think you're doing yourself a favor by ordering the Waldorf Chicken Salad with Dijon Balsamic Vinaigrette, but you're actually padding your belly with 1,485 calories. The healthy-sounding Asparagus and Spinach Spaghettini with Grilled Chicken Breast is just as bad, with 1,340 calories.
Survival Strategy
Split a pizza and a dish from the Small Cravings menu. Sharing the Four Seasons pie and the Asparagus and Arugula Salad makes for a meal that's around 563 calories.
Read more at Men's Health: http://www.menshealth.com/nutrition/best-and-worst-restaurants/page/3?cm_mmc=ETNTNL-_-878170-_-04222012-_-moreon1#ixzz1sq305wEq
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