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The Top 10 Worst Restaurant Salads

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By: Tanya Jolliffe : 10/5/2009 6:13:48 AM : 346 comments : 185,391 Views

Everyone loves a top 10 list and many of them provide a good chuckle or two. Today we bring you a more serious top 10 list that instead of a chuckle, may make your gasp. Why? Here are 10 seemingly innocent salads that contain more than 1,000 calories each!

Here is a top 10 list of some of the worst restaurant salads you just might be eating.

Number 10

Romano's Macaroni Grill Chicken Florentine Salad � 1,020 calories/17 grams/2,830 mg sodium

Number 9

Quiznos Chicken Caesar Flatbread Salad � 1,020 calories/69 grams fat/2,120 mg sodium

Number 8

Quiznos Roasted Chicken Flatbread Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing � 1,070 calories/71 grams fat/1,770 mg sodium

Number 7

Chili's Boneless Buffalo Chicken Salad � 1,070 calories/77 grams fat/4,380 mg sodium

Number 6

Chili's Southwestern Cobb Salad � 1,080 calories/71 grams/2,650 mg sodium

Number 5

Ruby Tuesday's Carolina Chicken Salad � 1,129 calories/71 grams fat

Number 4

Baja Fresh Charbroiled Steak Tostada Salad � 1,230 calories/63 grams fat/2,380 mg sodium

Number 3

Chili's Quesadilla Explosion Salad � 1,390 calories/89 grams fat/2,710 mg sodium

Number 2

Chevy's Fresh Mex Grilled Fajita Salad made with Chicken, Carnitas, Shrimp or Steak - 1,450-1,620 calories/27-37 grams fat/1,570-2,530 mg sodium

And the Number 1 worst restaurant salad you may be eating is�.

Chevy's Fresh Mex Tostada Salad with Chicken, Carnitas or Steak - 1,550-1,720 calories/37-47 grams fat/2,480-3,310 mg sodium

Sometimes you eat at restaurants that do not provide nutrition information for their recipes. You can evaluate how healthy a salad is based on the ingredients it includes to help you make a wise choice.

Be honest � which one of these salads have you had? Are there any on the list that surprised you? Are there others over 1,000 calories that we missed?

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Comments (Scroll to end to leave a comment)

BHAM-MAMA 1/7/2010 2:26:57 PM	Ok the 1,000+ calories gets my attention but check out that fat grams on most of these!!!	346
VEGPUNK 1/2/2010 1:31:12 PM	Never had one and never would. Why does a "salad" need all that junk?	345
PALEROSE1 12/26/2009 5:59:38 AM	Has anyone ever tried the salads at IHOP? I eat there all the time and I don't whats in that salad. By the way they're delicious.	344
GETME99 11/6/2009 5:09:09 PM	Oh No! I eat the chili's cobb salad all the time. who would have thought it could be so bad?!?	343
HANNA2LEDO 10/28/2009 3:32:30 AM	From the name of those salads itself, it really means it has a lot of ingreadients.I still believe that if we want to monitor the calories that we eat,we should be the one preparing it bec the lesser the oil, the healthier it will be.I guess Ceasar's & Vegetables Salad is still the best for me.Not to forget " a teaspoon of Olive oil a day is like an apple a day keeps our doctor away" . Its like being responsible and aware of the foods we want to eat.But if u really cant avoid it...once in a while will be alright....bec sometimes we have to have a cheat day, since our body also needs some of it. ;)	342
BRIMOOR 10/27/2009 12:16:24 AM	I'm not suprised at all the the top 10 list although I've never heard of Chevy's. Especially seeing 2 of the 10 salads are from Chili's. Chili's I believe is up there on the list with the most fattening restaurant chains. I'm very aware of the ingredients and their nutrion value and when I go to a restaurant, I have a pretty good idea of 'how much' I'm getting of each nutrient in the food that I order. I believe a lot of the fat is coming mostly from the dressings and whatever ingredients that were added to the foods to make them worse than they actually are such as hydrogenerated butters and massive amounts of sodium. You have to take into consideration too of the salads that come prepared with salad dressing on the salad. A serving size of dressing is typcially 2 tbsp. and if you're ordering a 'dinner salad', that could have anywhere from 5-10 servings. Sorry this was so long, but as a Health Promotion major in school, I really enjoy learning about living a healthy lifestyle. Brian	341
SASANDRA 10/24/2009 2:44:28 PM	I try not to eat out simply because I do not know what I'm eating calorie and quality wise.	340
PINKTIGER1 10/22/2009 11:40:05 PM	I agree with post 338. How about someone rewrites this article, adds photos of the salad and the ingredients and where all the calories are and how we can eat that salad in a healthy manner. Like was all the dressing actually included. I always get the dressing on the side and barely use any. I also exclude croutons now that I am gluten free and I have asked for no cheese or on the side. I was once allergic to dairy and once I could eat cheese again they put way too much cheese on everything. Before that I could not have enough cheese and that is a ton of calories.	339
JWENZEL723 10/21/2009 10:18:28 AM	Let's get an article like this telling us the 10 BEST salad choices at restaurants!	338
LOUISECM1 10/20/2009 4:22:34 PM	Wow!! Having knowledge is so important when deciding what to order. Those salads are more than I eat in a day!	337
NOTCOMFORTABLE 10/20/2009 10:38:37 AM	I think I may have eaten one of the ones at chilis maybe the explosion one? but im a vegetarian and have them take the meat out. still its a lot even without it. didnt know it was that much!	336
MSFEEFEE1 10/20/2009 2:45:25 AM	OMG! These salads are crazy. I have actually never eaten any of them, and don't plan to in future. Just think how naive I was before Sparkpeople.	335
MOMSHOME 10/19/2009 11:33:56 PM	I'd ask what the BEST 10 are, but I think that's self explanitory. Just yummy assorted greens & various fresh veggies & fat free dressing. What could be easier?	334
PAINTFAIRY 10/19/2009 5:18:25 PM	I'm vegetarian and about 9 outta 10 times, those really bad fattening salad's have meat in them. How bout go for the side salads instead?	333
ROTTENSPICE 10/19/2009 3:24:55 PM	I can honestly and happily say I've never eaten any of these salads. I make yummy salads at home for myself with fake chicken (I don't eat real poultry of any kind), cheese and half an avocado, and it only costs me 400 calories. This is one of the main reasons I don't enjoy eating out anymore, unless I know ahead of time what the damage is. Chefs can't be trusted not to load everything with fat and salt!	332
QUEENLATIFA 10/19/2009 10:27:55 AM	I just had the Ruby Tuesday Carolina Chicken Salad the other day. As soon as it arrived I knew I had made a mistake. Should have read the list of ingredients more closely. The chicken is coated and fried of course, I should have asked for grilled. That would have helped. But the extras included in the salad are what added up. Fortunately, they did bring the dressing on the side and I was able to use a minimal amount. Not able to eat the whole thing either so that helped some too.	331
ZANYJANIE 10/18/2009 6:23:52 PM	What a bummer.........I went out to dinner at Chili's today after church....picked a Buffalo Chicken Salad.....I went over my calories for the day....and I haven't even eaten dinner....but that's okay because I am not hungry...only thirsty from all the stinking sodium.....I went over calories all week because of eating salads out.....I have learned my lesson today.....thank you for all the good information....	330
GRACED24/7 10/17/2009 8:32:26 PM	Wow! This is why I don't eat out as much since joining SP and I cook more meals at home. Thanks for the info!!	329
HEATHERHUSKER 10/17/2009 7:25:26 PM	You know this is probably why a simple side salad is the way to go when out to eat. Also goes to show you that you can't trust others to prepare your food. Diligence is hard at the hands of someone else.	328
AMBI24 10/17/2009 2:24:08 PM	I'm a vegan, so I've never had any of these salads. But because I'm sometime restricted to the salad section of the menu when I eat out, I will say that each of these menu items absolutely ruins the very idea of a salad, which is healthy greens, fresh veggies, some lean protein (like beans), and some light dressing. I don't know how anyone can find, let alone taste, their vegetables when they're buried underneath that much meat, cheese, croutons, and heavy dressing. But perhaps that's the point...	327
SUSANFH46 10/16/2009 7:08:18 PM	Thankfully I've only had the Ruby Tuesdays Carolina Chicken Salad. Won't be eating that anymore. Thanks for the list!	326
BRINA71902 10/16/2009 3:16:15 PM	I absolutely loooove the bbq chicken salad at buffalo wild wings! i would love to see a calorie count on that one. hopefully its not too high cuz i don't wanna give it up!	325
NANNER2121 10/16/2009 11:51:18 AM	OMG a whole day's worth of calories in one sitting!	324
BC_BARB 10/15/2009 11:47:31 PM	Haven't tried any. I love homemade salads so much I don't usually have salads out. Also we don't have too many of those in Canada.	323
SUTTLE09 10/15/2009 6:59:50 PM	I have a little trick about the salad dressings. I have a little bottle tucked away in my car, 2 ounces of my dressing-zero calories,fat and stuff. I do the salad bar or order a garden salad or whatever without dressing...and wala I feel better.Even a chicken salad with chicken breasts pass the calorie test,fat test and the usual. Another tip to WATCH out for...Many of the things on the menu are deceiving for calories...They will list the item, say hot wings, and give the calories,fat,carbs,sodium, and then the last entry sometimes says 1,2,3 or 4..which means very innocently how many servings each one is...Most places consider chicken wings 3 servings..so triple what you see...Bad Bad and sneaky to boot...Check it out...and somewhere like On the Border has tinsy little writing that says."Sides and sauces not included in the counts"...so the dressings,fries ,added cheese slices and mayo,and whatever else you see is xtra counts...and big time add on's...	322
KUKOVEN 10/15/2009 6:29:58 PM	umm well I don't know most of them but now I have an idea of what to avoid lol thanks	321
SECRAWFORD77 10/15/2009 2:03:46 PM	Many restaurants will list their nutrition information on their websites. So if I know that I'll be going somewhere specific, I'll check it out, and try to pick the most nutritionally beneficial menu item. Then when I get to the restaurant, I won't even look at the menu and just order what I know I should get. That way I'm also not tempted by the yummy pictures of the bad stuff when I open the menu.	320
HOTMAMA1980 10/15/2009 12:24:36 PM	I can honestly say I haven't had ANY of those and would never have assumed they were healthy or low-calorie. Usually when I go to Chili's I order something worse than a salad--like steak lol. I think many of us dieters know by now to steer clear from any restaurant and/or fast food salads.	319
KIMMYGAL 10/15/2009 7:23:35 AM	No wonder I like the Chili's Quesadilla Explosion so much, it's horrible for you. Can you say adios?	318
ADONAI8545 10/14/2009 11:21:04 PM	Its a good thing I don't eat salad at any of those places. My favorite salad is actually not in an actual restuarant but at Wendy's! The chicken (grilled of course) BLT salad w/ the dijon mustard dressing. Its perfect and fresh	317
MD1088 10/14/2009 9:30:15 PM	I thought for sure the Wendy's Southwest Taco Salad would be here. But, fortunately, it's not!! I'm sure it's not the best salad for you anyway but, a personal favorite of mine. I think Chili's and Quiznos has some work to do....	316
HOPEFULHIPPO 10/14/2009 9:13:11 PM	I always bypassed the Red Robin burgers in lieu of their salads. Turned out I was eating more calories than my family. Go figure. Trickery!! They are yummy though.	315
LILFLGIRL 10/14/2009 7:36:17 PM	Don't feel so badly getting a Whopper Jr meal, now - do you?	314
SUZY_ELLE 10/14/2009 6:40:16 PM	Add to this O'Charley's Black and Blue Caesar Salad at 1000 calories. Their Apple Crunch Salad has 870, and folks are right, most of the calories come from the dressing. Even if you ask for it on the side, the still pack a whallop for a salad.	313
LIST101 10/14/2009 5:31:16 PM	The classification on calories only is wrong. For example the number 1 with only 37g of fat and some chicken breast inside (good protein) is healthier than many others which get the calories from 70 up g of fat. In general salad with more than 500 cal is suspicious.	312
GWENHAVEN 10/14/2009 2:17:21 PM	I love the Quizno's chicken flatbread salad, but I always order it WITHOUT the flatbread! That's where over half the calories and most of the fat are! I get the honey mustard dressing, which is only 140 calories itself. Then the salad with dressing is less than 400 calories! You just have to be smart. Bread = calories!	311
ABSCHROEDER2 10/14/2009 1:26:06 PM	HONESTLY: The biggest mistake people make is SALAD DRESSING itself! Once you put that dressing on, it ENTIRELY DEFEATS THE PURPOSE OF EATING A SALAD! Unless you toss on some vinegar (NO OIL) or fat free dressing (don't even go low fat--per serving the fat content is usually not even that low). If we're going to get serious about losing weight, make the real sacrifice--no coutons, hard boiled eggs (whites are fine), CHEESE of any kind, especially aged like feta or bleu which have a very high fat percentage, or nuts. Think about it. A McDonald's side salad with no dressing, only veggies, is ONLY 20 calories. 20! If you're going to go out to dinner to a place like this--or anywhere for that matter, like Cosi, Panera, Mia Za's, Red Robin, Applebees, etc--go naked without the dressing and fatty extras. Otherwise you might as well get your taste for your calories and get a huge plate of fettucine alfredo from olive garden (about 1200 cal) rather than waste it on mediocre salad dressing and cheese.	310
JUSTCHECKING1 10/14/2009 12:09:49 PM	If a restaurant doesn't list calorie count for food raises a RED FLAG! I don't go without checking where I'm dining out at. None of the salads would be a option because I wouldn't tempt myself with any of the choices. But I must admit they do sure sound TASTY!	309
INITKUTE 10/14/2009 12:07:24 PM	I would like to add almost ANY Salad Works salads to that. They pile so much food (chicken, pasta, salad dressing) to each salad and say that it's only one meal when really it should be three. I have never tried those salads. I really am careful about what salads I eat. I think any kind of salad dressing is the real kicker...and I will add any meat because you don't know what type of meat that is or what fat percentage it holds. Yay to buying the ingredients and making it at home!	308
HOSTALADY 10/14/2009 11:44:29 AM	I am not surprised at all. These chains have been on my don't go list since changing my way of life 6 months ago.	307
CVHANKINS 10/14/2009 11:28:46 AM	How can you people not know that a 10lb plate of salad could have all these calories??? If you think about it, people who don't like salad either don't eat it, or they add unhealthy things to it to make it taste more appealing. Plus, I don't even think these restaurants advertise salad as a health-conscious choice anymore; I think they just think people like salad. Plus people need to stop linking salad to diet food. Salad just means "bunch of stuff" to me. Pasta salad, tuna, chicken, greenbean, the list goes on and on. And I don't know of anybody who eats a salad that has nothing that blends the ingredients (dressing, oil & vinegar, mayo, etc.) Think about how much dressing you put on your little veggie salad at home to make it "taste good." How much do you think it's gonna take on a big salad from chilis? Then add basically an entire chicken breast (cooked with god know's what!), few strips of bacon, an egg or two, some beans, corn, and tomatoes, etc. When is all that OK when you're not eating a salad????? It's NOT!	306
RNICOLEDREW 10/14/2009 10:40:35 AM	Wow, luckily I do not go to any of these places.	305
MOM2ALEX2004 10/14/2009 10:12:07 AM	I suspect the calorie counts for the Quizno's salads include the flatbread- I distinctly remember looking up the nutrition info for their stuff and deciding that if I asked for no bread it was a great option. Of course, I also don't put the dressing on the salad, I just dip[ my fork in it before spearing lettuce... http://www.quiznos.com/subsandwiche s/Menu/PDFs/NutritionalInfo.pdf	304
MAMA2GRACEE 10/14/2009 10:05:20 AM	OMG! I used to order the Chili's Quesadilla Explosion Salad all the time. It was sooooo yummy. But seeing these nmbers is sickening! No more for me! :-(	303
SHERI1969 10/14/2009 9:48:18 AM	I am fortunate in that the only restaurant I have even heard of out of this list is Quiznos and I have never eaten there. I usually buy a Turkey breast and Ham 6 inch sub from Subway and load it with veggies for a treat twice/month. So I am fortunate. I can imagine what Swiss Chalet's salads are at as well, just with the dressing, and the sodium in them!	302
CHRIS3215 10/14/2009 9:38:03 AM	ALWAYS order an all veggie salad w/out bread & dressing on the side. IF I want meat I have a grilled chicken breast... NO I never tried any of the salads listed.... BUT if I wasnt concerned in my eatting I would have in the old days tried them.. NOT now.. EVER!!	301
DRAGONKNITTER 10/14/2009 9:21:09 AM	i rarely eat an entire salad at one sitting, and often eat half at one time,and eat theother half for lunch the next day. and i always get my dressing on the side (although i've ALWAYS done that, as i don't like a lot of dressing). those things help. and i've never eaten any of these salads,either, lol.	300
STEPHD8589 10/14/2009 7:02:03 AM	I am so glad I read this article! Just a few minutes of reading equals a lifetime of knowledge! I worked as a server at Chilis for a year, and seeing the quality of food and knowing how it's prepared, has made me NEVER want to eat there! But, if you're going to have one of their many 1000+ calories meals- let me offer you this advice: ask that your meal be prepared without seasoning salt and try to make one meal 2 by boxing up half your plate!! This is a great way to turn a 1200 calorie salad into 2 600 calorie meals. Also, you could eat the whole salad and just ask for lowfat ranch or bring your own, or 86 the bacon and bleu cheese crumbles, or quesadilla wedges!!!	299
DYNAMICDEB53 10/14/2009 1:39:58 AM	Have never tried any of these and sure wont know. I do try to read the ingredients before I pick any salads and always have dressing on the side. I know reading the ingeedients or asking questions will help. I am glad today that more resturants nutritional information can be found either online or at the resturant. I have been researching online before we go out for dinner and it does help when you get to the resturant to make better decisions.	298
MAZDAWD50 10/14/2009 12:03:26 AM	I have never eaten any of these salads - don't think we have any of these places in Canada - or at least not in my area. But we do have quite a few places that sell Taco Salads - they are good but I am sure they must be somewhere up there in the calorie department. Just the taco shell alone that is used for the bowl would have an incredible amount. It sure can get discouraging when eating out when even a salad is not a good choice!!!!	297