What's the calorie counts of salads in sit-down restaurants?

fsmt

HI,

I'm making a push towards trimming down to visible abs, and I've been making good progress towards that end over the last month. However, I've got a lot of social dinners coming up and they're mainly at ~middle-tier restaurants (for Canadians, think Milestones level), and often enough that I can't just say "oh well cheat day of the week" and pig out.

I plan on getting whatever low-cal salads they offer, and was wondering if their salads are as low-cal as the ones I could make at home (ie. ~30 calories excluding meat). Also, anything else that is common in restaurant menus and low-cal (500 calorie max)?

Thank you,
RT

Duck_Puddle

Salads in restaurants are often as high or higher in calories than a simple entree (simple meaning something not swimming in sauce/cheese/breading/etc.). If it's a salad bar, you'd be ok (depending on what you put in it). But if it's a salad off the menu, those tend to be pretty high in calories. You might be better off getting grilled chicken/fish/steak and veggies (assuming the restaurants offer non-sauce-slathered options). That's pretty close to what you'd make at home (minus the 7,000 mg of sodium).

MB_Positif

The best case scenario with restaurant salads is to ask for no cheese and dressing on the side. A Cobb salad is a decent option.

whierd

Most restaurants have nutritional information on their websites. Try checking that to get an idea of how many calories their salads have.

bigred503

^^^ this! I do this whenever i go out to eat!

Katmary71

You may want to check the website in case it has calories listed. I know in the US the chains are starting to list them. I've started looking up calorie counts first on here, then on the restaurant websites in case they're listed prior to going if I know for sure where I'll be at.

In general, a vinegrette's less calories than most the others. You can always ask if they have a low-cal dressing, plus ask for the dressing on the side. I'm not aware of the restaurant you mentioned, but if you happen to know a similar one in the US, you can look it up for comparisons. When I went out for my birthday last weekend I really wanted my favorite salad at the restaurant and it wasn't until I'd already ordered that I realized a couple changes (like no candied walnuts) would've made it possible to eat what I wanted.

Best of luck to you! In general, the creamy dressings are higher calorie unless they're low-cal versions.

MB_Positif

Most restaurants have nutritional information on their websites. Try checking that to get an idea of how many calories their salads have.

Yeah, this too. And maybe a salad with grilled chicken and berries.

cdahl383

I always check the nutritional facts for the restaurant I'm going to ahead of time just to see what some healthier options are. That's probably the best thing to do up front.

Beyond that, I would stick to getting little to no cheese on your salad as well as dressing on the side as the above poster said. You'll probably use a lot less dressing that way than if you just had them dump it all over the place.

klp1017

I work at a restaurant and my estimations of the salads we have are all around 500-700 calories. Definitely go for oil and vinegar as most restaurants will give you way more than one serving of the dressing. I actually looked at the label our lowest calorie dressing and found it was 110 calories per ounce, with a side of dressing coming in 4 oz containers. Most people think they're being healthy by getting a salad, then end up adding 400-500 calories just by dumping the entire container of dressing on it. Also watch out for the extras, like cheese, nuts, etc. as those calories add up really quickly.

fsmt

Thank you everyone for your answers! I'll be sure to be careful with restaurant salads, didn't know they were THAT bad.

csch79

Grilled Chicken and Smaller Sirloin steaks are both good options that are usually available at most restaurants like that. Just skip the toppings like cheese if it doesn't fit in your goals.

Kabiti

I'll reiterate what others have said about dressings. Use the spoon that comes with your meal. If it's a normal sized teaspoon (which is never exactly a tsp, but you'll have to make due) you can use that to measure the dressing.

By far the dressings and the meats & cheeses are the worst items for your calories on the plate. The meats will be terrible for sodium, too.

Cheese isn't all bad, though... 1/4 c. of feta is about 100 calories, so if you're aiming for a 500 calorie salad you're still in good shape. Also, a head of romaine is about 100 calories, 2 Tablespoons of vinaigrette dressing is about 30-50. That leaves 250-300 for meat and beans. ~5 oz Grilled chicken will fit perfectly into that range.

SailorKnightWing

Restaurant salads can get scary with their calories. TGI Fridays has a pecan-crusted chicken salad that's 1080 calories before dressing. Don't automatically assume salads are the "healthy" option!

AmykinsCatfood

This is why I avoid Subway... pretty much as bad as every other fast food place. I'd rather spend the 500 calories on a delicious hamburger than a crappy sub.

SLLRunner

There is an APP "Under 600 Calories," which lists numerous restaurants and meals under 600 calories, including salads. Also, you can often go to the individual restaurant site and see salad calorie count. Finally, you can ask a server for nutrition information and they will share it if they have it.

SLLRunner

Restaurant salads can get scary with their calories. TGI Fridays has a pecan-crusted chicken salad that's 1080 calories before dressing. Don't automatically assume salads are the "healthy" option!

I agree. I don't eat dairy, and I've never liked salad dressings, and both of those seem to pack on calories. Often, a meat, vegetable, and potato meal at a restaurant is less calories than a salad.

Chrisschumm

i can literally eat 3 large BOWLS of olive garden salad lol.... lets just say my friends and i took that unlimited salad soup and breadstick deal very serious