!!!!!!!!! ~~~ Here is the big news~~~~!!!!!!!!

When one thinks of The Olive Garden, salad and breadsticks probably come to mind. After that comes huge plates of rich, delicious pasta. Right? Well, it doesn’t have to be that way, especially once you learn that those choices are easily worth around a total of 2000 calories. Seriously! There is a better way to take your “Tour of Italy” and be able to walk out without having to unbutton your pants.

First things first: the Olive Garden menu is actually filled with many, many delicious non-pasta dishes. But before your wise dinner choice arrives at your table, you should be aware of the calories in their famous breadsticks and salad.

• One breadstick (with garlic-butter spread) has 150 calories.
• One serving of Garden-Fresh Salad with dressing has 350 calories.
• INSIDER’S TIP — you can ask to have the salad without the dressing for 150 calories per serving.

Shocking, isn’t it? Maybe not. You definitely need to go in with a reasonable plan, or you’ll consume 500 calories before dinner even arrives. Scary stuff!

Now on to dinner! First the heavy hitters of the Olive Garden menu:
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Red Robin is a great place to go for a splurge. And by splurge I mean an entire day’s worth of calories in one meal. Crazy, huh? If you order one of the gourmet burgers from the Red Robin Menu, and then proceed with their ‘unlimited’ steak fries, you can easily consume 2000 calories. I mean, since they’re ‘unlimited’ and all, who can stop at just one serving? Here is the ugly truth:

• All burgers hover around 1000 calories at minimum. If you remove the bun, you can save around 230 calories.
• Those steak fries are over 400 calories per serving. The sweet potato fries, by the way, are even more!

If you sign up to receive emails, offers, etc. they’ll give you one of those burgers for FREE on your birthday. Given how much exercising it will take to burn it off, you might want to opt out!

Before you deem a “gourmet burger joint” an inappropriate place for a dieter, know that there are a few burger alternatives from the Red Robin Menu that might fit the bill:

• The Lettuce-Wrap Your Burger — just what is sounds like — is a beef burger sans bun for 423 calories.
• The Garden Burger (essentially a veggie burger) is a lightweight at 478 calories. And you get to keep the bun!
• The Grilled Turkey Burger can be gobble-gobbled up for 578 calories.
• The Vegan Boca Burger is both animal and calorie friendly at a mere 462 calories.

Unless if you’ve run a marathon that day, you should probably skip the unlimited steak fries. Some slimmer sides are definitely available on the Red Robin Menu:

• The old standby Steamed Broccoli will delight your digestive system with only 32 calories.
• Melon Wedges will be a cool, crisp addition for only 61 calories.
• A cup of French Onion Soup has 208 calories. Breath mints are extra!
• A Side House Salad with Balsamic Vinagrette or a Side Caesar Salad are both just over 200 calories.

Several of their chicken sandwiches may be worth a mini-splurge, as they are mostly between 600-800 calories. However, beware of the Whiskey River BBQ Chicken Sandwich. You may as well get a gourmet burger, because it has 1022 calories! Salads typically have 700-800 calories (unless you skip the dressing) and wraps have an eye-popping 850-1119 calories. Without a side item!

• One offering on the Red Robin Menu not to be missed is the Ensenada Chicken Platter (1 piece). It’s a chicken breast smothered with lots of fresh, yummy Southwest-style acoutrements, including Salsa-Ranch Dressing,  for only 558 calories! If you feel that you need the 2 piece version, it’ll only set you back 704 calories.
• Beware of the Southwest Pasta. Even without chicken it packs a punch with 1028 calories!

If you plan to browse their dinner menu before you go, please be aware that the Red Robin website does not easily offer up nutrition facts. You have to choose entrees one at a time to learn of their calories, etc. Their tool is called The Customizer and it is a rather slow way to pick and choose.

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You may need some tall boots to sift through the rubbish on the Chili’s Menu. For a place that seems to be so lively and accommodating to all walks of life, they do NOT have extensive choices for us mindful eaters.

• Appetizers: Taking it from the top, they offer a free gift for joining their Chili’s Email Club – a free order of Skillet Queso & Chips. Before you get too excited about this, recognize that it will cost you 1710 calories! Even if you split it four ways, you’ve consumed about 428 calories before your entree ever arrives. The other appetizers aren’t far behind, in fact some are worse. Bring on the soup! A cup of Broccoli Cheese seems like a bargain at only 110 calories. A bowl of Loaded Baked Potato Soup, however, will cost you 410 calories. You may as well have shared your “free” Skillet Queso & Chips with others for that many calories!
• Ribs are often the first order of business for many viewers of the Chili’s Menu. Beware! A “full rack” of any variety is over 2000 calories! And that’s without a single side item! Ouch. Half racks are available, but come on… you can do the math.
• Burgers range from 1300 – 2300 calories each, without a side item. Homestyle Fries or Loaded Mashed Potatoes will run about 400 calories each.
• Sandwiches and Pasta are mostly well over 1200 calories without sides.

Enough bad news already! What can one actually feel good about ordering from the Chili’s menu?

• Salad: while a health conscious person does not always have to order salad, there are some good options on the Chili’s menu. The Caribbean Salad with Grilled Chicken or Grilled Shrimp would only set you back about 600 calories. However, beware of the Quesadilla Explosion Salad! 1300 calories will explode into your waistline.
• Fajitas are also a popular item on the Chili’s Menu. If you skip the side items, you can have your own fiesta for 800-1000 calories, including condiments and three tortillas!
• Custom Combinations: Margarita Grilled Chicken or Grilled Salmon or Spicy Garlic & Lime Grilled Shrimp are three selections that, when paired with Rice and Black Beans or Cinnamon Apples or Steamed Broccoli and Sweet Corn on the Cob WITH BUTTER, can leave one feeling quite satisfied to the tune of 410 – 570 calories.

Whether you have stylish boots or not, you can now survive the Chili’s menu. May the fork be with you!

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With the lure of their Endless Fresh Garden Bar, it’s no wonder that Ruby Tuesday is a target for many health conscious diners. An added bonus is the abundance of online coupons for this “Simple, Fresh, American Dining” chain. So how does someone committed to conscientious eating get the most bang for their calories? You’re about to learn which Ruby Tuesday nutrition makes the grade.

Winning Ruby Tuesday Nutrition:

• All of their “Fit & Trim” items have less than 700 calories when paired with roasted spaghetti squash and fresh grilled zucchini. Petite Parmesan Shrimp Pasta, Barbecue Grilled Chicken, and Grilled Salmon are three choices that have the makings of a hearty plate.
• As for other areas of their dinner menu, one might pair Chicken Fresco with two vegetable sides and easily stay under 600 calories. Who could turn down an all-natural grilled chicken breast in a blanket of creamy spinach and artichoke sauce topped with shredded Parmesan cheese?
• If seafood floats your boat, the New Orleans Seafood includes Creole-seasoned tilapia, sauteed shrimp, and Parmesan cream. Pair that with two vegetable sides and you’re still under 600 calories!
• For the burger lovers out there, they offer their signature “minis.” Buffalo Chicken Mini’s, Turkey Minis, and Zucchini Cake Minis all come in at less than 900 calories when served with fries. If you substitute a plain baked potato (which you could dress up with salsa or lower-calorie salad dressing), rice pilaf or vegetables, you can easily knock your total down to 700 calories or less.

Failing Ruby Tuesday Nutrition:

• Chicken & Broccoli Pasta, which sounds virtuous enough, will cost you 1545 calories before you even consider adding a side item or a trip to the Endless Fresh Garden Bar.
• Grilled Chicken Quesadilla packs 1250 calories. You can’t always trust the ole standby of grilled chicken!
• California Club Quesadilla earns a whopping 1486 calories. Avocado and sprouts have apparently been transformed from ‘good fats’ to just plain ‘fattening’.

While the salad bar may have been pared down a bit in recent times to encourage more “salad on the plate,” a fresh, healthy dinner can definitely be had if you consider the Ruby Tuesday nutrition menu before you go.

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