How to Make Good Choices When Traveling

How to Make Good Choices When Traveling

Stop at Applebee’s

May 20, 2017

By now, you know that cooking and eating are important to me. Some would even say an obsession. New recipes and food combinations excite me. One of the reasons I love to travel is to experience customs and rituals that push me into new areas.

Currently, I am on an epic road trip from Milwaukee, Wisconsin to Richardson, Texas via Rochester, New York. Why? My son finished his second year at RIT and is going to his seven-month co-op in Texas. What mother wouldn’t love to join her son and make this 2,100+ mile journey?!? Did I mention that we have all of his college belongings in a small car?

Today is day four. Three hotels. Six restaurants. One breakfast in the car. One breakfast in a hotel. One skipped breakfast. In past travels, my mission was to find hidden restaurant gems, but this trip is different because I am on a schedule and don’t have time to venture far from the highway or want to drive extra at night.

After eight and a half hours on the road the first day, I just didn’t feel like searching or driving to a restaurant. In the same parking lot of the hotel was an Applebee’s, so I decided to eat there for dinner.

Imagine my surprise when I opened the menu and found calorie counts for every single menu item. Many restaurants include some calorie counts, but this list was simply fascinating. After twenty minutes of intense scrutiny of the menu, the waitress took my order for a chicken quesadilla appetizer.

This Tex-Mex dish was far from my desire of a salad, but it seemed the better choice. Many people think salads or vegetarian dishes are healthier and have fewer calories, and I admit to those thoughts on occasion. This menu forced me to face the facts and realize that when in a restaurant, it is difficult to make a good choice.

Which have fewer calories? Answers are at the bottom of the page.

  1. Pepper-Crusted Sirloin and Grains OR a child’s Grilled Cheese Sandwich
  2. French Onion Soup OR Mozzarella Sticks appetizer
  3. The classic burger OR Oriental Chicken Salad
  4. Triple bacon burger OR BBQ Brisket Tacos
  5. Chicken Caesar Salad OR Shrimp Wonton Stir Fry

 

When you cook food at home, it’s easy to know whether something is high or low in calories because you know the ingredients. Even if you eat prepackaged food, the calories are listed, so you have some knowledge to help you make appropriate decisions. But, in a restaurant, you are at the mercy of the chef. 

Calories aren’t everything, and these numbers are estimates at best, but it is one way to understand the ingredients in the food you are eating. I don’t know the answer to making choices in every restaurant, but Applebee’s makes it easier. After looking at this menu, I understand why eating in restaurants contributes to weight gain in the US. By the way, the menu calories do not match the website numbers.

I have many more days on the road and restaurants in my future, but this information will help me to make better choices, which is especially needed because of my lack of exercise. Will I eat at another Applebee’s? Probably not, while I appreciated the menu, the food could improve.

Here are the calories listed on Applebee’s website.

  1. 380 vs 640
  2. 380 vs 460 You will probably eat all the soup, but you would share the mozzarella sticks.
  3. 630 vs 1420 The salad has over double the calories of the burger! 
  4. 1170 vs 1220
  5. 800 vs 630

By the way, the Blue Ribbon Brownie Bite has 380 calories, the same amount as the Pepper-Crusted Sirloin and Grains and French Onion Soup and lower than every other choice I gave you. Who would guess that?

As always, happy eating and cooking!