America’s Healthiest Restaurants: How We Ranked Them

To zero in on the healthiest restaurants, we separated national chains that offer sit-down service from those that have primarily counter or fast service and scored each group based on criteria from our expert panel.

Out of the 43 sit-down and 53 fast-service chains that we initially looked at, those that did not provide any nutritional information were automatically eliminated and not listed here (maybe next year, Cheesecake Factory!). The rest were judged on healthy food preparation; the availability of organic or hormone-free foods; whole grains on the menu; limited or no trans-fats in all dishes; low-sodium options; healthy beverages; and portion control; as well as how easily you, the customer, can access nutritional information—so you know exactly what you’re getting in your spaghetti and meatballs.

Editor’s Note: We apologize for not posting the entire list of restaurants that were initially considered. Because this piece originally appeared in Health magazine with space restraints, we chose to only publish those sit-down dining and fast-food establishments that made the top (and a few at the bottom) of our list. Thank you for your feedback, and we will keep this in mind when we compile our next America’s Healthiest ranking.

Next: (Please search)

• The Best Casual Dining Spots
• The Best Fast-Food Fare
• 6 Independents Leading the Way
• How to Eat Out Without Gaining a Pound
• And Now, the Not-So-Healthiest
• Back to: America’s Healthiest Restaurants

By Tracy Minkin

Last Updated: February 12, 2009
Filed Under: Dining Out

America’s Healthiest Restaurants: How to Eat Out Without Gaining a Pound

Steer clear of menu pitfalls with these tips from our experts Hope S. Warshaw and Cheryl Forberg.

Order it your way
You’re the customer, and most restaurants will do everything they can to keep you happy. So don’t be afraid to nicely ask to have that shrimp special grilled instead of fried.

Think tapas
Don’t feel compelled to order an entrée. You can put together a healthier meal out of two or three appetizers and side dishes.

Beware of the four Cs
Crunchy, cheesy, crispy, and creamy. Those words are code for fat-dense foods.

Say bye-bye to bread
There’s no need to test your willpower. Take just one slice, then ask the waiter to remove that breadbasket from the table.

Undress your salad
Dilute your favorite salad dressing with a squeeze of lemon or a few drops of vinegar.

Wrap it up
Get your doggy bag up front. Wrap up half before you dig in—out of sight, out of mind … and mouth.

By Brittani Tingle

Last Updated: July 16, 2008
Filed Under: Dining Out

New Web site and iPhone App Lets You Find Good Food Near You

by Amanda MacMillan

Looking for healthy-food options in an unfamiliar neighborhood? Just log on to GoodFoodNearYou.com (or use your iPhone or BlackBerry to access the free downloadable application) and enter your address or ZIP code: Up pops a list of restaurants and food vendors in your area, with suggestions for smart menu choices at each location.

This nifty tool is still in its infancy, and it’s certainly not perfect yet: So far most of the restaurants in their database are fast-food and casual-dining chains, so no matter where you are you’re likely to get a list that includes Dunkin’ Donuts, Burger King, and Ruby Tuesday. And while many of the “healthiest choices” are salads or low-fat entrées, some are a little odd: At 7-Eleven—the nearest establishment to my home in Brooklyn—the Web site suggests I try a 1/3-pound Biggest Bite hot dog with 45g fat, 480 calories, and 3g carbs. (Considering the limited selection of prepared foods offered at 7-Eleven, though, I guess that’s not too bad.)

The next version of GoodFoodNearYou, the company assures me, will include more mom-and-pop places and individual restaurants, and eventually they hope to roll out technology that allows any restaurant to add its own coordinates and nutritional information to the database. For now, it’s helpful at least to find out some of the stats for popular chains near you, since many of them aren’t yet sharing calorie counts on their menus—and it may help you decide on where to eat your next meal.

GoodFoodNearYou was created by Global Fitness Media, a Los Angeles–based company founded by fitness pioneer Jake Steinfeld, CEO of Body by Jake Global and chairman of the California Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness. Global Fitness Media is also launching an exercise-and-healthy-eating Web site complete with online personal trainers, called FitPlanet, this spring.

Related Links: (Please search)
America’s Healthiest Chain Restaurants
Top 10 Healthiest Fast Food Restaurants
How to Eat Out Without Gaining a Pound
More iPhone Apps for Healthy Living and Eating

Last Updated: March 6, 2009
Filed Under: Dining Out

Healthiest Fast Food Values

by Tracy Minkin and Brittani Renaud
From Health magazine

Watching your spending? Who isn’t, right? Here are the top three healthiest picks from the value menus.

McDonald’s McChicken Sandwich (Dollar Value Menu): This pick weighs in at just 360 calories and 3 grams of saturated fat.

Burger King’s Whopper Jr. (Value Menu): If you love a burger, this is your healthiest budget buy: Just hold the mayo and it’s a 290-calorie lunch.

McDonald’s Ice Cream Sundae (Dollar Value Menu): Order strawberry and get 20% of your daily calcium for less than 300 calories.

Last Updated: February 20, 2009
Filed Under: America's Healthiest

Healthiest Fast Food Indulgences: Best of the Bad Foods

by Tracy Minkin and Brittani Renaud
From Health magazine

Sometimes, you just gotta have what you crave. Go right ahead: These are the best of the “bad” foods, says judge Frances Largeman-Roth, RD.

Breakfast Sandwich: Au Bon Pain Scrambled Eggs, Tomato, and Spinach Wrap; 390 calories, 15 grams of fat. It’s not the absolute lowest for calories and fat, but it delivers 6 grams of fiber and 18 grams of protein, plus 15 percent of your daily calcium.

French Fries: McDonald’s Small Fries; 230 calories, 11 grams of fat. Even though Burger King lets you order their fries with no added salt, McDonald’s still comes out lower in sodium (160 mg) and has 1 gram less saturated fat than Burger King’s value size.

Chicken Nuggets and Tenders: McDonald’s 4-piece Chicken McNuggets (190 calories, 12 grams fat) or Burger King 4-piece Chicken Tenders (180 calories, 11 grams of fat). Burger King has 10 fewer calories and 1 less gram of total fat, but McDonald’s is lighter on sodium. Take your pick.

Last Updated: February 20, 2009
Filed Under: America's Healthiest

America's Healthiest

By Tracy Minkin and Brittani Renaud
From Health magazine

Who hasn’t unwrapped a sandwich while driving down the highway or pulled a hard U-turn into a fast-food joint on the way home from a late meeting or soccer game? We practically live in our cars, so we need quick food, and please, we’d like it to be healthy.

Well, guess what: We surveyed the nation’s 100 largest fast-food chains, as defined by the number of locations, and found many are creating menus that look more and more like what we’d cook ourselves (if we had the time)—from nutritious soups and healthy salads to fresh whole grains and sensible desserts. Even better: They’re offering good-news Mexican, Asian, and Mediterranean fare.

Using criteria that was created with the help of our expert panel, we scored the chains on such factors as the use of healthy fats and preparations, healthy sodium counts in entrées, availability of nutritional information, and the use of organic produce to determine the 10 highest-ranking restaurants.

One big surprise: A traditional fast-food chain, McDonald’s, cracked our top 10. Sure, it’s the home of the Big Mac, but did you know it also serves a mean yogurt-and-granola parfait? Here, the standouts that are making grabbed food healthy food.

#1 Panera Bread
Over 1,230 locations nationwide (and in Canada)

This bakery-café-based eatery wowed our judges with a comprehensive menu of healthy choices for every meal. “Variety makes it easy for everyone to choose healthy,” praises registered dietitian and panelist Marisa Moore. What does that mean for you? For starters, you can pick from two whole-grain breads for your sandwich and have an apple with it instead of chips (though the chips are fine, too—they can be baked!). Half-size soups, salads, and sandwiches make it a cinch to control portion size. Also, most of the chicken is antibiotic- and hormone-free, a rarity for large chains.

Panera also won top honors for kid fare, dishing out RD-approved crowd-pleasers like squeezable organic yogurt, PB&J (with all-natural peanut butter), and grilled organic cheese on white whole-grain bread.

We love: Delicious, nutrient-packed combos like a half–Turkey Artichoke on focaccia bread with a bowl of black bean or garden vegetable soup.
Danger zone: Sticky buns and cheese danishes are on display at the counter.

Last Updated: March 6, 2009
Filed Under: America's Healthiest

America’s Healthiest Fast Food Restaurants: Meet Our Experts

by Tracy Minkin and Brittani Renaud
From Health magazine

How we picked our winners
We started with a list of the 100 largest quick-serve chains in America, as defined by the number of locations. Using criteria that was created with the help of our expert panel (below), we scored the chains on such factors as the use of healthy fats and preparations, healthy sodium counts in entrees, availability of nutritional information, and the use of organic produce to arrive at our top 10.

Andrea N. Giancoli, MPH, RD, is a L.A.–based dietitian and a National Media Spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association.

Amy Jamieson-Petonic, RD, ADA spokesperson, is the author of How to Lose Weight and Feel Great Without Dieting and No Nonsense Nutrition: Real Nutrition for Real People.

Chef LaLa is a certified nutritionist, author of Chef LaLa Presents Best Loved Mexican Cooking, and owner of Savor! Catering in L.A.

Frances Largeman-Roth, RD, is the Senior Food and Nutrition Editor at Health and author of the forthcoming Feed the Belly: The Pregnant Mom’s Healthy Eating Guide (Sourcebooks, Inc., May 2009).

Marc Lawrence, MD, is a board-certified Physician Nutrition Specialist in California, and founder of BuddySlim.com, a social networking site for weight loss.

Marisa Moore, RD, LD, is a registered and licensed dietitian in Atlanta and a National Media Spokesperson for the ADA.

Last Updated: February 20, 2009
Filed Under: America's Healthiest