Watchdog group names 'worst restaurant foods'

How much are you willing to work out in order to dine out?

That's the tongue-in-cheek question posed by the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a watchdog group that released its latest list of high-calorie, high-fat, high-sodium and high-sugar meals served at chain restaurants.

CSPI reviews menu and nutritional information for more than 200 of the top U.S. chain restaurants 'and we just look for the worst items that we can find,' said Paige Einstein, registered dietitian with CSPI.

This year's 'Xtreme Eating Awards,' the group's sixth such compilation, come as some restaurants have started to list calorie contents for their items on their menus or online. (See nine of the 'winners' in the photo gallery above.)

In the future, chains with at least 20 locations will be required to list calories on their menus. For now, federal regulations on the issue have not been finalized.

'I think when that happens there's going to be a higher demand for healthy items. People may not be ordering the healthy items now because they just don't know how bad the other items are' Einstein said.

Some chains, including The Cheesecake Factory, have added some lighter dishes to their menus. Still, The Cheesecake Factory, known for its massive entrees, salads and desserts, was given three of this year's nine awards from CSPI.

In general, restaurant meals with too many calories remain the standard, industry watchers say.

'You can expect about 1,000 calories in any typical appetizer, 1,000 calories in a typical entrée and 1,000 calories in a typical dessert. It's not just these extreme items that people need to be aware of when dining out,' Einstein said.

The amount of calories a person should consume daily varies depending on factors such as weight, gender, age and activity level. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's 2010 dietary guidelines suggested that Americans who are 14 years and older reduce sodium intake to less than 2,300 milligrams daily, or to 1,500 milligrams among certain groups.

The USDA also recommends consuming less than 10 percent of calories from saturated fatty acids. It suggests that a person on a 2,000 calorie per day diet should consume less than 20 grams of saturated fat. By that standard, each meal on the CSPI's list contains at least a day's worth of saturated fat. One dish contains nearly five days' worth.

The following is a list of the 'winners' sorted by number of calories per meal, lowest to highest.

Restaurant: The Cheesecake FactoryItem: Reese's Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake CheesecakeCalories: 1,500Restaurant: Chevys Fresh MexItem: Chevys Super Cinco ComboCalories: 1,920Restaurant: BJ's Restaurant and BrewhouseItem: Signature Deep Dish Chicken Bacon Ranch PizzaCalories: 2,160Restaurant: The Cheesecake FactoryItem: Farfalle with Chicken and Roasted GarlicCalories: 2,410 Restaurant: Maggiano's Little Italy Item: Prime New York Steak Contadina styleCalories: 2,420Restaurant: Famous Dave's Item: The Big Slab of St. Louis-Style SpareribsCalories: 2,770Restaurant: The Cheesecake FactoryItem: Bruléed French ToastCalories: 2,780 Restaurant: Joe's Crab ShackItem: The Big 'Hook' Up platterCalories: 3,280Restaurant: Red Robin Gourmet BurgersItem: 'Monster-sized' A.1. Peppercorn gourmet burger, Bottomless steak fries and a Monster Salted Caramel MilkshakeCalories: 3,540

Hungry for more? Scroll through the photo gallery at the top of this story to see all the 'winners.'

(The gallery features more nutritional details and a suggestion of the exercise it would take to burn off the calories in each meal. CSPI estimated the workouts based on a 150-pound person.)

jwohl@tribune.com

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Entities 0 Name: CSPI Count: 5 1 Name: Einstein Count: 2 2 Name: Center for Science Count: 1 3 Name: USDA Count: 1 4 Name: U.S. Count: 1 5 Name: Paige Einstein Count: 1 6 Name: Dave Count: 1 7 Name: BJ Count: 1 8 Name: Public Interest Count: 1 9 Name: St. Louis-Style Count: 1 10 Name: Prime New York Steak Contadina Count: 1 11 Name: Reese Count: 1 12 Name: U.S. Department of Agriculture Count: 1 13 Name: Little Italy Count: 1 14 Name: Maggiano Count: 1 Related 0 Url: http://ift.tt/1nHQC0Z Title: Watchdog group names 'worst restaurant foods' Description: How much are you willing to work out in order to dine out? That's the tongue-in-cheek question posed by the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a watchdog group that released its latest list of high-calorie, high-fat, high-sodium and high-sugar meals served at chain restaurants.