Olive Garden Salad

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ErinRNinMaine
ErinRNinMaine Posts: 460 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Anyone know where the calories and fat are coming from in an Olive Garden tossed salad? Even on the OG website, they are trying to say that one serving of salad is 120 calories- 120 calories of WHAT? A whole BAG if Fresh Express salad mix which contains the same nutrient-void contents has 60 calories. Just not seeing it! I'm feeling guilty eatinbg 3 helpings thinking I'm filling up on good stuff!

BTW, the Venetian Apricot Chicken is AMAZING! And only 380 calories and 4 grams of fat!

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  • ErinRNinMaine
    ErinRNinMaine Posts: 460 Member
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    Anyone know where the calories and fat are coming from in an Olive Garden tossed salad? Even on the OG website, they are trying to say that one serving of salad is 120 calories- 120 calories of WHAT? A whole BAG if Fresh Express salad mix which contains the same nutrient-void contents has 60 calories. Just not seeing it! I'm feeling guilty eatinbg 3 helpings thinking I'm filling up on good stuff!

    BTW, the Venetian Apricot Chicken is AMAZING! And only 380 calories and 4 grams of fat!
  • ChubbyBunny
    ChubbyBunny Posts: 3,523 Member
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    Don't they "pre-dress" their salads though?
    I used a "mock" OG dressing recipe the other day and it had mayo, cheeses, oil, corn syrup, vinegar....
    I used about 1/4 cup of dressing for a HUGE bowl (for a dinner party) even then it was pretty dry.
  • havingitall
    havingitall Posts: 3,728 Member
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    dressing and croutons
  • mgullette
    mgullette Posts: 401 Member
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    OG salad is drenched in dressing. When you reach the bottom of the bowl, do you see the rest hanging out in the bottom? Yeah, oil, sugar, etc...
  • ErinRNinMaine
    ErinRNinMaine Posts: 460 Member
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    Sorry, I realized I didn't make it clear that it was the plain salad. Per their site, a 'serving' of salad and dressing is 350 calories with 27 grams fat. That doesn't seem correct either, considering a single serving of the dressing is 2 tablespoons and that only gives you 80 calories and 5 grams of fat. They also list a 'serving' of salad without the croutons is still 300 calories and 24 grams of fat! What's a serving??? An entire bowl?????? So what are they doing to the salad to add that many calories and fat grams? Maybe it makes sense, but it is not looking correct to me at all!
  • keiko
    keiko Posts: 2,919 Member
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    You can ask for it with dressing on the side or with olive oil & vinegar on the side.
    My last time there I had the pasta e fagoli soup rather than the salad. The salad is mostly iceburg lettuce so there's not alot of nutritional value. I'm sure the soup was more sodium than I'd usually like but at least it's filled with good vegies & beans.
  • destiny_206
    destiny_206 Posts: 430 Member
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    If it was just plain, like just iceburg lettuce, then 3 cups is like 35 calories and a whole bowl there would maybe be 6 cups and 70 calories, now if it has olives on it they have a lot of fat and calories. I am not sure about the other veggies that are often included. I know iceburg salad though so with the carrots and cabbage have very few calories.
  • lotusfromthemud
    lotusfromthemud Posts: 5,335 Member
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    I used to waitress at OG, and back in that day it was not uncommon to ladle about a cup of dressing on the salad. (that's way more than the "suggested amount". . .but customers would complain if it wasn't dripping. Seriously, dripping.) Plus, croutons are essentially toasted buttered bread, and there's cheese in the salad as well. Adds up quickly.:flowerforyou:
  • mgullette
    mgullette Posts: 401 Member
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    I don't know why it has sooo many calories, but the salad mix also includes parmesan cheese and olives....I would ask if you could get the salad with the dressing on the side too as it seems most of the calories come from that. You can also control the amount you use. Croutons have quite a few calories as well so maybe pick those out?
  • keiko
    keiko Posts: 2,919 Member
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    I went on their site and what I find strange is that the salad without dressing is 120cal. How can that be? That is alot of lettuce!

    I posted this and then saw mgullette's post and remembered the olives in the salad! That is where alot of the calories are coming from.

    Ok, now I'm editing again. I looked up olives and I saw that there are only 25 cal. in 5 large black olives.
  • ErinRNinMaine
    ErinRNinMaine Posts: 460 Member
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    I went on their site and what I find strange is that the salad without dressing is 120cal. How can that be? That is alot of lettuce!

    I posted this and then saw mgullette's post and remembered the olives in the salad! That is where alot of the calories are coming from.

    Ok, now I'm editing again. I looked up olives and I saw that there are only 25 cal. in 5 large black olives.

    See, that's what I'm saying! Besides, in every OG I've ever been in, there has never been more then 2 olives in the whole bowl.

    I guess I'm ranting more then anything! I never have eaten the croutons, and my hubby and I each eat an olive. I didn't know that they would drench the salad, viviakay!!!! That's gross. From now on I will get the dressing on the side.
  • arewethereyet
    arewethereyet Posts: 18,702 Member
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    I have waited tables my entire life.

    Salad's have 1/2 cup of dressing with a cup of mixed greens.

    I love experiments so one night I tried to serve 2 tbls of salad dressing on the salads of about 10 tables.........every one asked for more dressing! So I then I brought a side of dressing which was 4 oz. Each person poured the whole thing on the salad.

    Also the Garlic bread we so love. At LEAST 5 tbls of butter on top of one roll!!

    They do it because that is what the majority of customers want.

    As for me, I ask for dressing on the side and dip my fork in it, then eat my forkfull of salad. In the end I eat about 1 tbls of dressing.

    And I ask for EVOO for my roll. A little oregano and parmesan cheese and YUMMO!!

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