Tuesday, November 20, 2007

19 Worst Foods in America

Just in time for Thanksgiving, Men's Health released their first list of the 20 worst foods in America in terms of calories, fat, and carbs. It's no surprise that in Indianapolis you can find 19 of them. Some are obvious like the Bob Evan's Caramel Banana Pecan Cream pancakes (the equivalent of 5 Egg McMuffins) and the On the Border Stacked Nachos (weighing in a whopping 5280 mg of sodium among other things). But who knew the Chipotle grilled chicken burrito was among the worst of the worst? Look for notable showings from PF Changs, Macaroni Grill, and Ruby Tuesday. And these are just the individual dishes. Totals don't include french fries, sides, or drinks.

Article lists all the gorey details including carbs and sodium -- and even the equivalents. (That Chili's pie is like eating three Big Mac's for dessert.) The good news? Well, if you *must* eat at any of these places, the article lists healthier alternatives with calorie savings (like the Uno Sausage Flatbread Pie which will save you nearly 1500 calories.) In the meantime -- here are the 19 worst dishes. (If we had a Jamba Juice, it would be all 20!)

Worst Fast Food Chicken Meal: McDonald's -- Chicken Selects Premium Breast Strips with creamy ranch sauce (830 calories, 55 grams of fat!) Try McNuggets instead.
Worst Supermarket Meal: Pepperidge Farm Roasted Chicken Pot Pie (1,020 calories, 64 g fat)
Worst "Healthy" Burger: Ruby Tuesday Bella Turkey Burger (1145 calories, 71 grams of fat)
Worst Mexican Entree: Chipotle Mexican Grill Chicken Burrito (1179 calories, 47 g fat)
Worst Kid's Meal: Macaroni Grill Double Macaroni n' Cheese (1210 calories, 62 g fat)
Worst Sandwich: Quiznos Classic Italian (large) (1528 calories, 92 g fat)
Worst Salad: On the Border Grande Taco Salad with Taco Beef (1450 calories, 102 g fat)
Worst Burger: Carl's Jr/Hardee's Double Six Dollar Burger (1520 calories, 111 g fat)
Worst Steak: Lonestar 20 Oz T-Bone (1540 calories, 124 g fat)
Worst Breakfast: Bob Evans Caramel Banana Pecan Cream Stacked and Stuffed Hotcakes (1540 calories, 77 g fat)
Worst Dessert: Chili's Chocolate Chip Paradise Pie with Vanilla Ice Cream (1600 calories, 78 g fat)
Worst Chinese Entree: PF Chang's Pork Lo Mein (1820 calories, 127 g fat)
Worst Chicken Entree: Chili's Honey Chipotle Crispers with Chipotle Sauce (2040 calories, 99 g fat)
Worst Fish Entree: On the Border Dos XX Fish Tacos with Rice and Beans (2100 calories, 130 g fat)
Worst Pizza: Uno Chicago Grill Classic Deep Dish Pizza (personal size) (2310 calories, 162 g fat)
Worst Pasta: Macaroni Grill Spaghetti and Meatballs with Meat Sauce (2430 calories, 128 g fat)
Worst Nachos: On the Border Stacked Nachos (2740 calories, 166 g fat)
Worst Starter: Chili's Awesome Blossom (2710 calories, 203 g fat)
Worst Food in America: Outback Steakhouse Aussie Cheese Fries with Ranch Dressing (2900 calories, 182 g fat)

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sure...all of the yummy foods that I secretly crave...okay, not really. I have only had one of the dishes that made the list. I should be a lot thinner than I am! LOL

Anonymous said...

Oh gosh, I ate Macaroni Grill Spaghetti tonight... thank goodness it wasn't a full dinner serving, and I did skip the meatballs. Still, that about makes me sick.

CorrND said...

Men's Health is reporting incorrect information, at least in the case of the Quiznos Classic Italian (one of my favs, so I had to look it up). I question why anyone would eat this whole sandwich themselves -- I always split it -- but according to quiznos.com, a large Classic Italian with cheese and dressing is:

1370 calories (not 1520)
86g fat (not 92g)

Not too far off, but it creates doubt about the whole list.

Anonymous said...

I love the six dollar burger.

The secret? Only indulge every other month, otherwise skip fast food.

Anonymous said...

Men's Health did their own nutritional and ingredient analysis, so it's not surprising that some of the numbers turned up a little off from what the corporations report.

Someone at another blog raised a question about a calorie note on one of their alternatives, but it looked like an honest mistake/typo to me.

Anonymous said...

Me so hungry...