Buffalo Wild Wings - Healthy Choices?

ShadowWolf9
ShadowWolf9 Posts: 3
edited September 30 in Food and Nutrition
BWW has pretty much been THE social hangout for me and my friends and probably was the cause of a lot of weight gain in the past year and a half. We love this place so much that we camped outside a grand opening exactly a year ago to get 6 free wings per week for a year.

This is our last week the coupon is available so we're going tonight. I've been having lots of trouble losing weight even though I've been eating all the right things and exercising daily. My mother attributes it to me waiting too long between meals, causing my metabolism to slow down. That said, with my 1,250 calorie limit I still have over 1,300 for today after exercise. Probably not eating enough.

Back on topic! For people who know BWW and are health conscious, what should I eat to stay relatively low-calorie and enjoy myself. I'm accustom to destroying 24 wings in a sitting, but I can't do that stuff anymore. I hear their salads and "naked chicken tenders" are gross and not fresh or reheated.

Any insight would be greatly appreciate for both the BWW issue and weight loss issues!

Replies

  • aippolito1
    aippolito1 Posts: 4,894 Member
    Wings are deep fried. There's no "healthy choice". If it's your last time to eat them and you have plenty of calories, just get whatever you want that keeps you within your calories. Personally, I'd go classic buffalo :happy: But that's just me and the dressing if you use it to dip will be extra calories so make sure you factor that in too.
  • JulyHummingbird
    JulyHummingbird Posts: 106 Member
    Did you look at the website to see if they list nutritional information? If it were me, I love wings - I'd figure out how many I could 'have' in my calorie budget and compensate for it the rest of the day and tomorrow :)

    Have fun!
  • AKosky585
    AKosky585 Posts: 607 Member
    I usually get a grilled chicken salad with any sauce choice, or the grilled chicken tenders with any sauce on the side to control how much goes on. The Grilled Buffalo Tender Wraps are not too bad either...so long as you dont eat a ton of cheese wedges or tortilla chips with it.
  • overzoelous
    overzoelous Posts: 161 Member
    You can go to google and type in "buffalo wild wings nutritional information". Follow the second link and you can plan your meal before you go! This type of guide is available online for a lot of chain restaurants. When I usually go there, whatever I usually get comes with a side (normally fries) but you can just substitute that with a small salad with lite dressing. Hope this helps! Have fun!
  • chrikoko12202007
    chrikoko12202007 Posts: 141
    http://www.nutrition-charts.com/buffalo-wild-wings-nutrition-information/ hope this helps.
  • LoveLiveLift
    LoveLiveLift Posts: 459 Member
    The southwest chicken queso wrap is pretty good and I believe you can sub sides if you don't want the chips and salsa. However, the sodium levels are atrocious. I love B-Dubs but try to stay away from that place now. If I do go, I go on a day when I have extra calories and eat 8 wings and call it good. I hope that was slightly helpful. :smile:
  • dodd319
    dodd319 Posts: 228
    If you click on the food database on here and type in "Buffalo Wild Wings" it will pull up a bunch of their food. Then you can look at the nutritional info before going so you know what you can eat. Good luck & enjoy your meal!!
  • ShadowWolf9
    ShadowWolf9 Posts: 3
    The southwest chicken queso wrap is pretty good and I believe you can sub sides if you don't want the chips and salsa. However, the sodium levels are atrocious. I love B-Dubs but try to stay away from that place now. If I do go, I go on a day when I have extra calories and eat 8 wings and call it good. I hope that was slightly helpful. :smile:

    I've seen all the nutritional data, but I was just wondering what people who have tried to eat healthier there get. Something that isn't too bad and still tastes good.

    Not eating BWW or wings in general will be very tough because I'm transferring to University at Buffalo in 3 weeks.... >_<
  • AndyBee
    AndyBee Posts: 171 Member
    Naked wings (not breaded or fried) with dry rubs. The traditional are less than the boneless too.
  • KPaden1221
    KPaden1221 Posts: 433
    i'm a wing fanatic!! so still eat them.. not a lot and not very often.. but if this is your last week of your coupon.. eat your wings.. just cut down from 24 to 12, they aren't HORRIBLE for you as long as they aren't breaded.. i mean they are fried.. so not the best option, but not HORRIBLE!!
  • Adlib421
    Adlib421 Posts: 3
    I know it's an old topic, but here's a tip for those trying to eat healthy at B-dubs. My husband and I go every weekend, get the naked tenders and salad, and it's a great meal! Yes, the tenders can be a bit bland, but one of our wonderful servers suggested trying one of the dry rubs on them. DO IT! The desert heat is our favorite, and you get flavor without adding fat or oils from sauces. Seriously, try it sometime!
  • wolfchild59
    wolfchild59 Posts: 2,608 Member
    I just got their most recent nutritional info guide sheet since one opened in my area a few months ago. I will never be eating there. There was a basic grilled chicken salad that I could fit in on a non-workout day, but it wasn't worth the sodium, which was over 1,000mg. Most of the other entree salads are 600-850 cal, but 1,700-2,400mg sodium (all before dressing)

    Seriously, I think the average sodium level was around 2,500. There were single entrees on that thing that were 4,000-6,000mg of sodium.

    For four naked tenders, with sauce and fries it's 660 cal, 3,340mg of sodium. If you get 'em w/o sauce it's 550 cal, 1,790mg sodium.
  • taziarj
    taziarj Posts: 243 Member
    Chicken wings can be okay, in moderation. Instead of getting 12, get 6. I just made some of my own homemade ones (breaded and fried), but instead of having 12 or 16 like I would have in the past, I limited how many I had. Same buffalo sauce with butter and all. Sure I went over my daily caloric goal, but I was pretty close to my maintenance calories, so it wasn't all bad and it satisfied a craving.

    Just limit how often you eat them. This is probably a once a month kind of thing, not once a week or more.
  • lin7604
    lin7604 Posts: 2,951 Member
    i had seen on dr oz that they tried a burger from there, can't remember what it was called but it was made with black beans or something. they said it was actually good and would recommend it. next time i am there i am going to give it a try.
  • brett1117
    brett1117 Posts: 208
    Naked tenders with Azian zing is best choice
  • paulypresson
    paulypresson Posts: 4
    I used to frequent BWW in my business travels, eating there sometime more than once/week. I usually ate 12-15 wings, medium sauce, dipped in ranch, an order of fries, and several beers. Clearly I like my wings. Probably a significant contributor to me jumping from about 190, to 208, in 14 months of traveling. Not ideal for someone 6' tall. Anyway, I'm down to 163, with a 30" waist , a size i haven't seen since 7th grade. Losing 45 lbs in 4 1/2 months, I have still figured out a couple meals to get my BWW fix. The two options I stick with are:

    1) Two Buffalitos w/ medium sauce, substituting the veggie boat for the chips that normally come with Buffalitos. I still use one cup of the fat free ranch, and the whole meal is only 530 calories. Perfectly suitable for a lunch, and actually quite low for a dinner.

    2) 10 Naked Tenders w/ medium sauce, 1 cup of the Fat Free Ranch, and a Veggie Boat. Whole meal is only 580 calories. This is pushing my upper limit on what I like to use up for lunch, but well under my target dinner calories. Even leaves room for two or three Bud Select 55's.

    In my opinion, the Buffalitos are pretty amazing...totally gives me my wing/wing sauce fix.

    I usually try to stay around 300 calories for breakfast, 500 calories for lunch, and 800 calories for dinner. With even 30 minutes of cardio each day, that puts me at a net calorie count of 1200 calories...enough to lose 2 lbs/week. Even without any working out, still low enough to lose 1 lb/week. My biggest suggestion would be to figure out ways to still satisfy these cravings, and don't cut them out completely...you'll never stick to it if you stop completely.

    Good luck!

    Paul
  • wolfchild59
    wolfchild59 Posts: 2,608 Member
    1) Two Buffalitos w/ medium sauce, substituting the veggie boat for the chips that normally come with Buffalitos. I still use one cup of the fat free ranch, and the whole meal is only 530 calories. Perfectly suitable for a lunch, and actually quite low for a dinner.

    2) 10 Naked Tenders w/ medium sauce, 1 cup of the Fat Free Ranch, and a Veggie Boat. Whole meal is only 580 calories. This is pushing my upper limit on what I like to use up for lunch, but well under my target dinner calories. Even leaves room for two or three Bud Select 55's.

    I'm not sure where you got your info, but based on the data that BWW sent me (dated Jan 2012), those numbers are off. For the first one, there's no breakdown on how many calories just the chips have, but assuming about three ounces worth of chips and subtracting that info, then adding the veggie boat, and the fat free ranch you have the following stats :
    Cal: 750
    Fat: 20g
    Sat Fat: 13g
    Trans Fat: 1g
    Chol: 125mg
    >>Sod: 6060mg
    Carbs: 103g
    Fib: 9g
    Sug: 37g
    Pro: 37g

    And for 10 Naked Tenders, with sauce and fat free ranch, no fries, with the veggie boat, it would be:
    Cal: 1156
    Fat: 29g
    Trans Fat: 0g
    Chol: 229mg
    >>Sodium: 9330mg
    Carbs: 109g
    Fib: 10g
    Sug: 46g
    Pro: 97g

    For the Naked Tenders, the largest amount given on the menu was 6 pieces, so I divided the info for six and then multiplied it by 10 to get the numbers for 10 pieces.
  • paulypresson
    paulypresson Posts: 4
    I found info on Livestrong that says Buffalitos are 380 with no chip and no sour cream. I think I forgot to mention that I did no sour cream too.

    As for the naked tenders, they are only 130 calories/3 tenders, so 10 would be 430 calories. Tack on a few more for medium sauce on side, which I usually only use a fraction of the cup. Again, think I forgot to mention sauce on side. Then my fitness pal says 110 calories for a veggie boat, and 40 calories for one serving of fat free ranch. It's possible the sources I used are off, as neither is from BWW.

    Please email me your document...would be a great help for me.

    Regards,
    Paul
  • paulypresson
    paulypresson Posts: 4
    And I'm just trying to reason through a logical calorie count for tw Buffalitos too. Small flour tortillas range from 80-110 calories. So going with the high end, 220 calories for tortillas. Then a fairly small amount of grilled chicken, approximately 100 calories worth. Tack on negligible calories for lettuce, pico, and a small drizzle of medium sauce. Honestly, it feels like 380 is pretty reasonable for two Buffalitos with no chips or sour cream. There isn't much to them. I'd think similarly about the naked tenders.
  • wolfchild59
    wolfchild59 Posts: 2,608 Member
    Message me your email address and I'll be happy to send the PDF document along.
  • paulypresson
    paulypresson Posts: 4
    Ok...so I got the document from BWW too, and they don't make it easy, but here goes.

    Buffalitos start at 880 with no sauce. While it doesn't explicitly say it, it includes chips, as every item in the "Wrap" category says chips, except the Buffalitos. They should include chips too. Here is where they make it tough. The don't give info for chips/salsa, except the "shareable", or appetizer portion. Take half of the appetizer portion of 620 calories, which is what comes with wraps, which is 310, and deduct that from the 880, gives you 570. Less 110 per Buffalitos, for no sour cream, reduces total another 220, for a total of 360. That's pretty darn close to the 380 I found on Livestrong, and on the my fitness pal database. Add in 110 for the veggie boat, and one of the plastic cups of fat free ranch, and I think I'm pretty darn close. Especially since their dressing, e.g. Fat free ranch, serving size is 3 oz. That is a ton of dressing, considering there are 8 oz in a whole CUP. If u are using more than half a cup of dressing, u may have other problems. :) so one of those small plastic cups of their dressing is probably half a serving, 1.5 oz, or only 40 calories.

    I'm assuming I'd come up with a pretty accurate calculation for my estimate on the naked & dry tenders too.

    Hope this helps!
  • CottonCandyKisses
    CottonCandyKisses Posts: 246 Member
    I get the grilled chicken sandwich with a side salad, with no cheese or croutons with FF Ranch instead of fries.
  • P90Xfit
    P90Xfit Posts: 1
    First things first... What's your height and weight? Sounds to me like your caloric intake is too low. Your body will not burn fat if you don't eat enough. The body will store fat because you are not giving it enough calories to convert to energy. Go online and calculate your BMI and figure out how many calories you need to sustain your existing weight. I recommend you reduce your calorie intake by 500 cal a day. If you exercise 5-6 times a week you will burn additional calories and your body will burn fat instead of converting calories to fat. The other thing you need to do is eat 5-6 meals a day. 3 main meals and 2 to 3 snacks. These meals should be spaced out 3-4 hrs apart.There is a very good book that explains the plan. The book is written by Michael Thurmond called "lose 10 lbs in 7 days diet" I used the book to structure how I eat for life not six days... I lost 25 lbs over 90 days and utilized P90X exercise plan. My health stats are perfect now, cholesterol is low, sugar is normal, and my doctor told me If everyone did this they would put him out of business.
  • Gallowmere1984
    Gallowmere1984 Posts: 6,626 Member
    Wings are deep fried. There's no "healthy choice". If it's your last time to eat them and you have plenty of calories, just get whatever you want that keeps you within your calories. Personally, I'd go classic buffalo happy But that's just me and the dressing if you use it to dip will be extra calories so make sure you factor that in too.

    People deep fry wings? This is an atrocity that must be stopped. Why would you do that to a perfectly good piece of chicken?

    Throw that **** on a piece of foil, bake it with no breading, add a delicious sauce afterward, win at life. :D
  • coderedjulia
    coderedjulia Posts: 43
    They have a few wraps, but I'm sure those are just as fattening as the wings. I suppose go for the naked strips, the chicken that is grilled. Try using low fat ranch and instead of their sauces ask for a little dry rub. They come with tortilla chips and salsa which isn't very healthy, but its better than the fries. That place is fun, but not exactly diet friendly..lol
  • briantauman
    briantauman Posts: 19 Member
    I am a server at dubs, and I pretty much was eating there everyday before I started mfp.

    Here is the scoop.

    The best thing you can get at Bdubs is the 6 Naked Tenders w/ honey mustard. When i do eat there that is what I get. Now there are a few things you could get but I still may consider them a "splurge". The Honey bbq Chicken salad is decent. Not great fro Calories. It typically comes with a 3oz bbq ranch dressing. as for the 2oz or go with a different dress.

    Also the regular chicken tender salad isnt bad. Better than that honey bbq salad because its just plain grilled chicken. The sauces at bdubs actually is what kills you.

    It is hard to justify eating wings. We basically cook them in lard. I mean its as bad as it comes. Even if the wings are plain the calories are out of this world.

    So bdubs is hard, but it is do able. If you are getting wings. Get them plain and dip them in ff ranch, or honey mustard. That way you get to decided how much sauce is on them. Any other bdubs questions you can inbox me.
  • UpEarly
    UpEarly Posts: 2,555 Member
    Try viewing BWW as an occasional splurge. And when you do splurge, go for it and enjoy eating whatever you like instead of trying to find a healthy substitution. Substitutions are usually a disappointment (at least in my experience). :smile:

    For example, I *love* Buffalo Wild Wing's spicy garlic wings. But, I only eat them a few times a year, and when I do - I eat all twelve of them without a moment's worth of guilt. No sense in feeling guilty about a food I eat so infrequently.
  • pgdenton
    pgdenton Posts: 1
    Try the dry rub traditional wings. Less calories than the Sauce covered ones. Enjoy!
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