Calories, Anyone?

It’s Friday! Know what that means? It’s one of our top seven favorite nights of the week to eat out. If you’re dieting (and you are) then you’ve already heard (or learned the hard way) that you should make every attempt to check nutritional information before you head out.

Easier said than done, though. While most large chains post this data on their web sites, you might be out of luck if it’s a smaller chain or a local establishment. And even some large chains don’t make it easy to find, or go to great lengths to hide it behind all their so-called healthy food.

I was particularly disappointed with Outback Steakhouse recently. While trying to dig up some data, I was happy to see the “Nutritional Info” link displayed prominently on their web site. This is typically very encouraging, so away I clicked. The page had links for Gluten-Free, Healthy Weight Loss, Diabetic, and Low-Carb items, among others.

But as I scanned the page I noticed something missing. The actual nutritional information. It was pathetic. I mean, how many of us would consider this worthwhile?

Seared Ahi Tuna – Add dressings if your program allows

Gee, thanks. That tells me everything I need to know.

My guess is it’s a distraction technique so you don’t inquire too closely about some of the things they serve. Like the one Men’s Health discovered and crowned as The Worst Food in America. It’s the Outback Steakhouse Aussie Cheese Fries with Ranch Dressing. They say “worst” but I say, “nom nom nom nom.” I mean, it’s cheese fries for Pete’s sake. Besides, how bad can it be?

Whoa. Um… it’s bad. I take back what I said. Here’s the damage: 2,900 calories, 182 grams fat, 240 grams carbohydrates. And remember, this is one appetizer. They didn’t list salt, but I’m pretty sure it’s probably one and a half cups.

So, where we going out tonight, peeps?

Charlie

p.s. Some of you may have noticed I have no blog roll. It’s mostly because I’m still tweaking my site design and just haven’t added it back in yet. But until then, I thought I’d give a shout out to a few folks I know well:

Slim Shoppin: This is my sister Jennifer’s blog and she writes about all things food. She also links back to my site so if you get lost over there, you can always find your way back here.

Biggest Diabetic Loser: This is my sister Beth’s blog and she writes about all things food. She also links back to my site so if you get lost over there, you can always find your way back here. (Didn’t I just say that?) You’ll be sorry you weren’t there earlier this week when she gave away some tea bags.

The Alcoholian: This is Max’s blog before it was usurped by John, a guy who is probably the greatest amateur chef you’ll ever run across (and easily better than more than a few professionals.) In his own words, the blog is “a spirited and irreverent journey into the world of food, alcoholic beverages, and the innovative use of construction materials.”

Austin Agrodolce: This is Deb’s blog and she really likes to cook and garden and think and write about it all. Warning: contains meatballs. Yum.

I’ll be putting together a real blogroll Real Soon Now. If you’d like to get on it, just send me $12,500 and I’ll see what I can do.