Healthy Restaurant Salads

Healthy Restaurant Salads

By Michelle DeLiso
Smart Salads

Finding a nutritious salad in a fast-food culture seems more like Mission Impossible than an attainable health-conscious goal. But we've got the antidote to the battered, deep-fried blues: a round-up of good-for-you restaurant salads that put a cap on calories and fat.

Sub Place Better

Subway has almost become synonymous with weight loss and their salads deserve a line in the little black book of the diet conscious. Turn any sandwich into a salad: swap the bread on the ham or roast beef sub for the greens -- either option has 120 calories and 3 fat grams. Even lighter: the turkey breast salad: 110 calories; 2.5 grams of fat. Fat-free Italian dressing adds 35 calories, bringing the calorie counts to 155 and 145, respectively. If you're ravenous, you could safely double your order.

Surf's Up

Seafood lovers will enjoy Long John Silver's Shrimp & Seafood salad with fat-free French dressing. At 380 calories and 16 fat grams, it's a smart alternative compared to the restaurant's conventional menu options. (The fish sandwich with just one ounce of tartar sauce, 3 ounces of fries, and a small soda would run you 940 calories and 42 grams of fat.)

Go West

Yes, mall-dweller, you can eat lean at the food court. Chick-Fil-A, a staple at many an American shopping hub, offers the Southwest Chargrilled salad. The corn and black bean blend along with the carrots and red cabbage give it a sweet crunch. With Light Italian dressing it comes in at 255 calories and 13 grams of fat.

Sweet and Sour

Jack In the Box gets it right with the Asian Chicken Salad with grilled chicken. Mandarin oranges, red onion drizzled with the balsamic dressing make it a sweet and tangy delight. The waist conscious will be doubly thrilled with the mere 204 calories and 3.8 grams of fat.

Fruit Is Not Forbidden

Fazoli's offers a departure from their traditional rich, dense fare with the Chicken and Fruit salad. The fresh mixture, including dried cranberries and pineapple, is the obvious choice at 245 calories and 1.5 grams of fat when combined with the fat-free Italian dressing.

Catch of the Day

Forget the prime rib with a mound of mashed potatoes: The Lone Star Steakhouse & Saloon makes the El Paso Salad with Sweet Bourbon Salmon (200 calories and 9 grams of fat). The light Italian dressing adds 50 calories and 5 grams of fat.

Downsize Me

The half-portion, a dieter's mantra, is an option when ordering Panera Bread's salads. Their scaled-back Greek salad with the familiar tangy mix of kalamata olives, feta and red onion comes in at 260 calories and 5 grams of fat, Greek dressing included.

Southside Slender

Is the Mexican food lover in you craving the salsa-beans-and-sour cream combination? Although it lies at the top of the low-cal threshold at 430 calories and 18 grams of fat, Taco Bell's Chicken Fiesta Taco Salad -- without the shell -- is the answer.