FAST CASUAL SHOWDOWN: Burgers

A while back I posted a disheartening look at the fast food industry. It was put into motion by KFC's introduction of the atrocious Double Down Sandwich. What I did was put together nutritional information for what I usually ordered at a fast food restaurant. It was kind of startling - just how bad those foods are for you. I had several people mention the article and how it really reminded them how bad fast food was for them.

It also triggered something in my head. Is fast food worse than other food options? When we abandon fast food, we usually end up in restaurants that are classified as "fast casual" dining by the industry. They used to be called "family restaurants." It is usually a sit down place, with a wait staff and a menu. But it, theoretically, offers better options. There is a tremendous series of books out there called "Eat This . . . Not That." Naturally, I avoided those books like the plague when I was eating under my old rules (Rule 1: If it tastes good, eat it.). Now, though, I have found some of the material in this series useful. ETNT has even merged itself with Men's Fitness online to offer nutritional guides.

Anyway, ETNT highlights just how bad some of the fast casual options are, as well. So what I decided to do was start a series where I compared fast casual food offerings. Targeting fast food is like shooting fish in a barrel. (The city are the fish, the people are the barrel. I can't ever hear that phrase without thinking of Tommy Boy.) I tried to pick a range of national chains, but I know that is hard. Restaurants have weird expansion options. And there are tons of places in Texas and California that I have never tried or heard of. Most of these are places that I have seen in other states, or seen advertise nationally. I have also put up some non-traditional choices. The lineup will change based on what food I am profiling.

For the first showdown, I will look at burgers. If we don't go to fast food places to get their horrible burgers, then we have to go to a fast casual place to get them. Are they actually any better? Here are nine restaurants and how they measure up. For a point of reference, I have included one of the fast food places as well.

• Applebees
• Beef O'Brady's
• Chili's
• Denny's
• Five Guys
• Friendly's
• Red Robin
• Ruby Tuesday
• Ted's Montana Grill
• Wendy's

For this comparison, I included some national chains (Applebee's, Chili's, Denny's, Friendly's, Ruby Tuesday) and four large regional chains (Beefs, Five Guys, Red Robin, Ted's). I used Five Guys because it is strictly a burger joint. Red Robin is known for its burgers. And Ted's, which offers bison meat, often positions itself as a healthier option to beef burgers. Here's the basics of the challenge. I took one burger, one common side, and a Coke from each place and compared them. The Coke at each place was identical, and did NOT include any refills. The burger I chose was not a plain normal one, either. It was a signature one that people would usually order. I didn't intentionally pick the worst one. I picked one that I, as a fat food addict, would seriously consider ordering.

I also included an appetizer and dessert in a separate comparison. Why? Well, because fast casual places offer those - something most fast food places don't. And a lot of times, we will eat an entire meal - which includes appetizer and dessert. Again, I didn't skimp on the choices of those things, either. I picked mozzarella sticks at every place that had them, since that was a common item to order. And for dessert, it was a standard sized one - not a tiny shot glass size. One additional note: I tried to use TGI Friday's as one of the places. However, they do not make their nutritional information available online. That bothers me. I feel any restaurant that refuses to make that info available is trying to hide something. And, for that, I have lost even more respect for them. Well, if I had any to start with - which I didn't. On to the showdown.

DAILY RECOMMENDED DAILY ALLOWANCE
2000 calories, 65 g fat, 2400 mg sodium, 300 g carbs, 50 g protein

APPLEBEE'S
Mozzarella Sticks, Quesadilla Burger, Fries, Coke, Chocolate Chip Cookie Sundae
ENTREE ONLY: 2010 Calories, 123 g Fat, 4490 mg Sodium, 147 g carbs, 82 g protein
WITH APP & DESSERT: 4610 Calories, 251 g Fat, 8240 mg Sodium, 455 g carbs, 144 g protein

BEEF O'BRADY'S
Fried Mozzarella, Cheeseburger Wrap, Curly Fries, Coke, Chocolate Eruption Cake
ENTREE ONLY: 1508 Calories, 78 g Fat, 2625 mg Sodium, 145 g carbs, 58 g protein
WITH APP & DESSERT: 2888 Calories, 158 g Fat, 4457 mg Sodium, 280 g carbs, 90 g protein

CHILI'S
Fried Cheese, Classic Bacon Burger, Homestyle Fries, Coke, White Chocolate Molten Cake
ENTREE ONLY: 2090 Calories, 104 g Fat, 4850 mg Sodium, 221 g carbs, 68 g protein
WITH APP & DESSERT: 4400 Calories, 255 g Fat, 7340 mg Sodium, 413 g carbs, 116 g protein

DENNY'S
Mozzarella Sticks, Double Cheeseburger, Seasoned Fries, Coke, French Silk Pie
ENTREE ONLY: 2180 Calories, 121 g Fat, 3520 mg Sodium, 151 g carbs, 116 g protein
WITH APP & DESSERT: 3700 Calories, 218 g Fat, 6190 mg Sodium, 405 g carbs, 138 g protein

FIVE GUYS
Bacon Cheeseburger, Regular Fries, Coke - they don't offer appetizers or dessert
ENTREE ONLY: 1730 Calories, 92 g Fat, 1410 mg Sodium, 169 g carbs, 61 g protein

FRIENDLY'S
Mini Mozzarella Sticks, Ultimate Grilled Cheese Burger Melt, Waffle Fries, Coke, 3 Scoop Resee's PB Cup Sundae
ENTREE ONLY: 2280 Calories, 130 g Fat, 3530 mg Sodium, 219 g carbs, 58 g protein
WITH APP & DESSERT: 3850 Calories, 222 g Fat, 5780 mg Sodium, 364 g carbs, 98 g protein

RED ROBIN
Jump Starter Cheese Sticks, Royal Red Robin Burger (with egg, bacon, cheese), Steak Fries, Coke, Mountain High Mudd Pie
ENTREE ONLY: 1820 Calories, 101 g Fat, 2567 mg Sodium, 163 g carbs, 65 g protein
WITH APP & DESSERT: 3796 Calories, 197 g Fat, 4817 mg Sodium, 395 g carbs, 110 g protein

RUBY TUESDAY
Fried Mozzarella, Triple Prime Bacon Cheddar Burger, Piping Hot Fries, Coke, Blondie for One
ENTREE ONLY: 2031 Calories, 133 g Fat, 3873 mg Sodium, 146 g carbs, no protein numbers
WITH APP & DESSERT: 2838 Calories, 171 g Fat, 4576 mg Sodium, 243 g carbs

TED's MONTANA GRILL
Bowl of Bison Chili, Kitchen Sink Bison Burger, Onion Rings, Coke, Strawberry Shortcake
ENTREE ONLY: 1850 Calories, 96 g Fat, 5874 mg Sodium, 140 g carbs, 58 g protein
WITH APP & DESSERT: 3570 Calories, 200 g Fat, 8127 mg Sodium, 288 g carbs, 127 g protein

WENDY'S
Double Baconator, Large Fries, Large Coke, Small Frosty
2100 calories, 95 g fat, 245 g cholesterol, 2630 mg sodium, 245 g carbs, 8 g fiber,  73 g protein

As you can see, there are some surprising things to notice.  Wendy's isn't that much worse - and in some cases it is actually better (since it's numbers include a frosty).  The two best, according to calories, are the Beef O Brady's Wrap and Five Guys (stunned, actually).  The worst?  Friendly's new atrocity.  The sodium in just about all of them are completely out of control.  Look at the "healthier option" Ted's salt content.  5874 mg of sodium?!?  That is two and a half days worth.  Also, across the board, you can nearly double your numbers by adding on the appetizer and dessert.  No matter what choice, you are going to just about wipe out an entire day's worth of calories, 4 days of fat, 1-3 days of sodium, a half a day of carbs, and about a day of protein with just ONE MEAL.  Again, that is if you don't put extra condiments on anything, get refills on soda, or add anything else on.  Kind of a startling exam, isn't it?

Well, I plan on doing a few more of these.  There are several foods I could compare, but I want to hear from both of you who read this.  What foods do you want to see compared?  Pizza?  Chicken sandwiches?  Salads?  BBQ Pork?  Put your opinions in the comments and that will help me decide on the next showdown.

Double Down

I have been pretty insulting of the new KFC Double Down sandwich since it dragged it's lard butt onto the American fast food scene.  For those of you who are not familiar with this monstrosity, here is a basic description.  The Double Down is comprised of two fried chicken breasts, which operate as the bun.  Inside, there is bacon, pepper jack cheese, jack cheese, and some mysterious substance known as "Colonel's Sauce."  (There is a "healthier" version that uses grilled patties instead.)  It is being marketed as a "man's sandwich" that is so meaty it doesn't have room for a bun.  The thing looks and sounds horrifying.  It's nutritional information is terrible (540 cal, 32 fat g, 1380 mg sodium -- 460/23/1430 for the grilled).  But, like a train wreck or a torture movie, many people are drawn to it.

Then I found THIS ARTICLE the other day.  (Click on the link if you want to read it.)  This guy is way smarter than me.  He wanted to see if the Double Down was as bad as it appears.  So he constructed a comparison between it and a bunch of other fast food sandwiches (and burritos, I guess).  He added the fat, sodium, and cholesterol in the Double Down and put it up against those same things in other sandwiches.  That is what you see in this first chart.

What you see is that the Double Down actually doesn't fare that poorly - largely due to the fact that there are so many horrible choices for foods out there.  When compared to other chicken sandwiches, the KFC DD has six options worse than it.  And, when burgers enter the argument, it pales in comparison.  Look at the Wendy's and Hardee's numbers!  So, maybe the KFC DD has gotten a bum rap, no?  Well, the writer than goes on to point out that the problem is that the KFC DD actually is worse because it has fewer calories than these other sandwiches.  You are only getting 1/4 of the daily recommended 2000 calories, but you are getting more than 1/2 of the fat, sodium, and cholesterol.  You are getting less bang for your buck.  With the burgers, you probably will feel full for a little while.  With the KFC DD, you will be hungry - maybe even want a second DD.  (Good grief.)  Also, there is absolutely no fiber in the KFC DD, whereas the buns that it abandons brings SOME nutritional value.  This is shown in the second chart - basically dividing the calorie/fat/cholesterol number by calories.

When you look at thing this way, the only thing worse than the fried KFC Double Down is the GRILLED KFC Double Down.  That is because the sodium is higher in the grilled version and the calories are less.  [Trust me.  I tried the regular KFC grilled chicken a few months ago.  It is as salty as beef jerky.  It is horrible.]  The Double Down is even worse that a TRIPLE BACONATOR!  That just makes my jaw drop.  

So, I could have just posted a link to this guy's site.  Why did I bother to write all of this?  Well, I want you to look at that list again.  I have had 27 of those sandwiches before.  While I never have had the triple Baconator, I always ordered the double Baconator when I went to Wendy's.  I have tried the Quad Stacker - but usually got the Triple Stacker.  At McDonald's I would always order a Double Quarter Pounder - with extra cheese.  But it would also include a large fries and large Coke - sometimes with a Frosty or ice cream too.  I never thought about the numbers.  I just ate the stuff because I liked it.  Look at what I would regularly order at these places.

DAILY RECOMMENDED DAILY ALLOWANCE

2000 calories, 65 g fat, 300 mg cholesterol, 2400 mg sodium, 300 g carbs, 25 g fiber, 50 g protein

WENDYS

Double Baconator, Large Fries, Large Coke, Small Frosty

2100 calories, 95 g fat, 245 g cholesterol, 2630 mg sodium, 245 g carbs, 8 g fiber,  73 g protein, 

MCDONALDS

Double Quarter Pounder with Extra Cheese, Large Fries, Large Coke

1650 calories, 74 g fat, 167 g cholesterol, 1777 mg sodium, 196 g carb, 9 g fiber, 55 g protein

BURGER KING

Triple Stacker (no sauce), Large Fries, Large Coke

1610 calories, 77 g fat, 140 g cholesterol, 2120 mg sodium, 200 g carbs, 50 g protein

SONIC

Supersonic with Bacon and Cheese, Mozzarella Sticks, Large Cherry Vanilla Coke

1775 calories, 80 g fat, 211 g cholesterol, 2562 mg sodium, 200 g carbs, 6 g fiber, 69 g protein

TACO BELL

3 Cheesy Gordita Crunch, Soft Taco, Large Pepsi

2220 calories, 108 g fat, 210 g cholesterol, 3625 mg sodium, 249 g carbs, 21 g fiber, 73 g protein

CHICK FIL A

Two Original Chicken Sandwiches with Cheese, Large Fries, Large Coke

1640 calories, 65 g fat, 150 g cholesterol, 3250 mg sodium, 200 g carbs, 12 g fiber, 73 g protein

I didn't go through and find worse case scenarios.  That is what I usually ordered at these places.  I didn't even look up Whataburger or Arby's or Checkers.  I think that the point is made.  It is ridiculous.  The sad thing is that I was not some solitary self-destructive fatso that was doing this alone.  People all over the country eat just like this all the time.  I see what my friends post on Facebook that they eat.  I have eaten with people and had them get the same stuff.  We just don't even think any more.

The point is not whether or not the KFC Double Down is the worst fast food item ever.  The point is that there is actually competition for that position.  I was consuming far beyond what a normal person should eat in a day at one meal!  And so you would have to add another of those numbers for dinner.  And, might as well toss in breakfast too.  Look at those numbers!!!  It is no wonder I was fat.  I'm lucky I wasn't pickled from the inside out.  From the other side, I am horrified at how I used to handle myself.  I guess that I just wanted to give my readers a moment to pause and consider what they actually are consuming.  Go on one of the fast food sites and use their nutrition calculator to see what you really are eating.  Don't take solace in the fact you would never eat a Double Down.  Actually evaluate yourself honestly and seriously.  I wish I had.