Large Movie Popcorn with Butter: 1,220 Calories
A large "buttered" popcorn at the typical movie theater contains about 1,220 calories, San Francisco Chronicle restaurant critic Michael Bauer reminds us, quoting a decade-old survey: "You would have to swim 162 minutes to burn off that popcorn—longer than your average motion picture."
Not exactly what I want to read before a weekend in which I plan on finally seeing Star Trek (the IMAX version was sold out last week).
That reminds me, though, that it's cheaper and healthier to just sneak in a snack of my own. What snack(s) do you sneak in to the movies—and how?
Add a comment:
Previewing your comment:
HTML Hints
Some HTML is OK: <a href="URL">link</a>, <strong>strong</strong>, <em>em</em>
Comment Guidelines
Post whatever you want, just keep it seriously about eats, seriously. We reserve the right to delete off-topic or inflammatory comments. Learn more at our Comment Policy page.
If you see something not so nice, please, report an inappropriate comment.
54 Comments:
gummy worms and cracker jacks, hidden in one of my big slouchy hobo bags
deadhead22 at 9:45PM on 05/15/09
The local theater where I lived in Ohio had Reese's pieces at the candy counter (and cheap!) so I'd just buy them there. Now that that is no longer an option... it's easy to just carry a bag of them in my purse.
gingercookiewithlime at 9:46PM on 05/15/09
Chocolate covered raisins. *drool*
If I were doing something healthier...I dunno...nuts maybe? Or homemade granola. That could be fun.
lawofmurphy at 9:58PM on 05/15/09
cotton candy, as a fake beard.
wotstaters at 10:11PM on 05/15/09
I hate eating during movies. I just bring a pack of gum.
shoneyjoe at 10:16PM on 05/15/09
Oh, this is such a good one, Adam! First of all, I always carry a big day bag or tote, in which I sneak in the goods.
Then it depends. I will bring real food like sandwiches or wraps, if it is a matinee or a double feature. I almost always bring in bottled water or spritzers, and candy.
Most commonly it's Trader Joe's chocolate covered raisins and red vines, but it varies. We hit the drug store for goodies sometimes like junior mints, red vines, poppycock or fiddle faddle, Reese's etc. I also like to bring Marcona almonds or really good truffles to snack on. Or, even Girl Scout Cookies. Whatever sounds good and is around.
And no, I don't bring all of these things at once! I'm not that crazy of a foodie. :)
Enjoy the movie! I am planning to hit the Imax for a Star Trek matinee early next week. I can't wait!!
Cheers,
~ Paula
Paula Maack at 10:27PM on 05/15/09
P.S. If you get the popcorn without "butter", it is one of the least fattening and most filling things you can eat. High in fiber, too!
Paula Maack at 10:30PM on 05/15/09
Trader Joe's Trek Mix (cashews, almonds, cranberries) and a mini bottle of water so don't have to buy the expensive drinks.
cholmaneee at 10:51PM on 05/15/09
During a screening of Journey from the Fall, a fantastic movie about the fall of Vietnam and escape of the Vietnamese boat people and their resettlement in America, it was an overwhelming Vietnamese audience. Knowing this, we snuck in Vietnamese style beef jerky and dried spicy squid... if only we had nuoc mam dipping sauce...but none the less talk about the pungent aroma!!!
ravenouscouple at 10:56PM on 05/15/09
Nothing. I just get the child size popcorn and a bottle of water. Still costs about $9 though. My matinee ticket last time was $5.
lambowner at 10:57PM on 05/15/09
I love making a chocolate bark out of Ghiradelli 60% cacao chocolate chips and Grape Nuts cereal.
gummybear at 11:13PM on 05/15/09
Let's see....M&M's or Reeses Pieces, strawberry Twizzlers, and York peppermint patties are usually my choices, although last week I replaced the chocolate with the new Peanut Butter Whoppers. (They were pretty addictive, btw, although I missed the chocolate....) And I always wish that I could figure out a way to sneak coffee or hot chocolate in there, since theaters are always freezing, but I haven't figured that one out yet.
kimberlymac at 11:13PM on 05/15/09
Once I snuck Taco Bell in using an old shopping bag since the theater was in the mall. :)
ilovepancakes at 11:35PM on 05/15/09
sliced apples, pretzels, chocolate covered raisins, and black licorice! just stuff it inside my purse :p
Deeberry at 11:48PM on 05/15/09
I make 94% fat free microwave popcorn and carry it in a giant purse. Or sometimes Red Vines (but not Twizzlers).
masha339 at 11:57PM on 05/15/09
Got to be Peanut M&M's, cheaper than purchased in the theatre, adn they go with the small tub of popcorn with butter. Savory and sweet...and I call it dinner.
BananaMonkey at 1:27AM on 05/16/09
I always seem to sneak in wierd stuff like vietnamese sandwiches or landjaeger jerky or cheese and crackers. I love big purses!!!
maz2401 at 2:40AM on 05/16/09
Sour Patch watermelons, but I buy them at a store since the movie theater packs are kinda big on portion size.
Movie popcorn butter always smells like earwax to me.
geenersaurus at 2:58AM on 05/16/09
carrot sticks, my own two cans of diet coke, and red vine licorice!
ChristineB at 3:29AM on 05/16/09
I sneak things in all the time: salads from whole foods, summer rolls, bagels, candy from the drug store, chips and popcorn from whole foods, pizza, sandwiches, fruit, prosciutto, even beer. Usually I'll just stick things into my bag, but I've gone to the movies on several occasions with a grocery bag from whole foods, and no one has ever stopped me. I don't think anyone really cares unless you make a mess.
bionicgrrrl at 3:51AM on 05/16/09
As a long-time manager of a movie theater, I can't bring myself to sneak in food (guilty conscience). While I am appalled by the prices theaters charge for their food, I understand that the concession stand is what generates the income to keep their business running. So, I actually make it a point to buy concessions when visiting a theater I like. My favorite combination- small popcorn (no butter) and a bag of peanut M&M's... mixed together... delicious!
plaurel at 4:11AM on 05/16/09
I don't like the movie theater "butter" on my popcorn....so I always just get the plain stuff and a Diet Dr. Pepper.
When I was younger I would sneak in candy and sodas...in college I would sneak in rum to dump in my soda...ah the good old days...
radish at 4:17AM on 05/16/09
Australian-style strawberry licorice from Trader Joe's and other assorted gummy candies.
I love popcorn but there's no way I can bring myself to spend close to $10 on a bucket at the movies when I can make even better (and much less costly) popcorn at home!
avocadoboba at 4:48AM on 05/16/09
Um, for those of you who have popcorn without butter to save calories, a small movie popcorn on average has 573 calories:
http://www.glamour.com/health-fitness/blogs/shape-up/2008/09/movie-popcorn-without-butter-9.html
Obviously it varies depending on how much they cram into the container, but even without the fake butter oil on it, it's not diet popcorn, and there is still butter and oil on the popped stuff (I think the kernels are pretreated, perhaps--anyway, it isn't nude).
I don't eat in the movie theater, I am not coordinated enough to eat and watch a film at the same time. As a kid, of course, I did get the popcorn. But I don't really *like* popcorn, I guess I liked the idea of eating it in the movie theater.
HeartofGlass at 5:27AM on 05/16/09
Ok, this is how I learned you should never go to the movies by yourself. The one and only time I did was years ago when Disney's Beauty & the Beast came out. I took a box of Milk Dud's in with me and proceeded to eat the whole box before the movie even started. I did not feel well after that.
Lesson: There's a reason to go with someone. To SHARE the junk food!
arm1970 at 6:52AM on 05/16/09
A bottle of water is $5, so I always bring one in my big ass purse along with a book to read while I wait for the movie to start.
dhorst at 8:48AM on 05/16/09
we've taken burritos from our favorite mexican place before, along with candy and such. when you are a poor couple with kids at home you don't have time and money for dinner and a movie...just dinner in a movie!
sfred at 8:53AM on 05/16/09
I will not lie I sneak food every chance I get. But sometimes I get the urge for salty goodness in the theatre ergo nachos with extra yellow cheese substitue. I have since learned that it's caloric value is somewhere along the number. 1500! Thank god I'm skinny I got room to eat that crap LOL
philadooklyn at 9:00AM on 05/16/09
@plaurel: I wondered if there were any movie-theater employees out there who would eventually read this. For the record, I rarely sneak stuff in. I usually do small popcorn (with butter or "butter topping," whatever they have) and a small Coke. My first job was in the concession stand of the town movie theater, so I know the theaters don't like the sneakin'.
@everyoneelse: When I do sneak, though, it's usually cashews. I tried peanuts once, but they're too loud--and unless you brought a plastic bag in (also loud and rustly), you've got nowhere to put the empty shells.
Adam Kuban at 9:46AM on 05/16/09
Great middle eastern bakery around the corner from our most frequented movie theatre=hummus and pita!!!
Fudluvr at 10:04AM on 05/16/09
I usually just bring a drink -- a 700ml bottle of Diet Pepsi cost more than $3 at the theatre, twice the regular price.
piccola at 11:02AM on 05/16/09
i dont mind paying for popcorn at the theatre, but i never, ever get it with butter-so foul. however, i do sneak in a salt shaker, so i can resalt as i munch. occassionally i'll bring along some water, but for the most part i'll indulge in a coke. it's one of the rare times i do drink it & really, nothing else washes down popcorn better than a little carbonation. besides, movie theatres are being hit by the economy hard too-i like to support them, so they don't close.
gastronomeg at 11:07AM on 05/16/09
I mainly bring gum - but my favorite snack to bring is Tasti-D-Lite! Eating time is somewhat limited because of the melt factor - but you can have some delicious trailers. Mmmmmmmm...
Star Trek was awesome!!!
teenagefoodie at 11:18AM on 05/16/09
I wonder how many of those calories are from the "butter" vs. the popcorn.
unavaca at 11:22AM on 05/16/09
I don't usually sneak stuff in. Sometimes a bottle of water or gum, but that's about it. I *would* buy myself a small popcorn, but even when you get it unbuttered, it tastes horribly oily and salty. I like my popcorn pretty much plain, just the kernels from the bulk bin air popped with either no added oil or just a marginal amount to get some chili powder to stick. When I was little and my parents would pay I used to get Sour Patch Kids, but now that I have a better concept of money (aka using my own money makes me realize it's finite), I have trouble justifying the prices.
cycorider at 11:30AM on 05/16/09
The movie theaters I frequent are all in malls with a Victorias Secret also in the mall, so I always use a Vic Sec shopping bag for my food. Sometimes I even put the pink tissue paper on top. I try to eat healthy at the movies, so I bring in grapes, walnuts,pretzles, etc. Sometimes I bring candy (red licorice is a fave) and sometimes I bring a spiked bottle of cranberry juice. However, I don't hit the movies too often.
Shayrose at 12:34PM on 05/16/09
I'm certainly jinxing myself by saying this, but I am almost always able to get away with walking into the theater with a coffee in my hand. I do try to be discrete about it (e.g., holding it by my side, going with a group of people, etc.), but the theater employees either don't notice or don't care.
SEAtoNYC at 12:48PM on 05/16/09
My kids bring in baggies of M&M's and water bottles and I make microwave popcorn at home and bring that in with diet sprite or ice tea (movies only carry diet coke it seems). Not only cheaper but less calories and portion controlled.
I don't feel guilty. If theatres didn't charge $8 for .10 of popcorn and $5 for a bottle of water maybe they would make more money because people wouldn't feel ripped off and compelled to sneak food in.
DCLSweetspot at 1:16PM on 05/16/09
Since I was let in on the secret that microwave pop corn is a sham, I make a big batch at home and bring by own popcorn. If you put regular pop corn kernels in a regular brown paper lunch bag, roll up the top and put it in the microwave.. it makes pop corn! No artificial butter, no crazy additives, no lugging out the air popper. It just takes a bit of trial and error to figure out how much pop corn and for how long depending on the microwave.
I usually bring some red nibs and diet coke to go with it. It's so satisfying to make that can crack sound in the theatre. :)
doyouloveanapple at 2:11PM on 05/16/09
The theatre I usually frequent is part of a mall with a Starbucks so hiding my coffee is never an issue.
I like to sneak in drugstore candies and snacks like pretzels. A few times I've gone so far as to sneak in real foods like burritos, sushi, or a sandwhich. Without fail though, I always buy my drink at the theatre.
But on special occasions, like midnight showings, I indulge in the concession stand and get red vines, buttered popcorn, and a coke.
SaltyDonuts at 3:15PM on 05/16/09
I'll stick a coke from the fridge into the freezer for 30 min. Then just before I leave, I'll pop a single serve 100 calorie bag of popcorn. (The SO doesn't like popcorn) I'll throw them in my huge purse and be out the door. By the time the movie is starting, the coke is still cold, but not frozen at all. You just have to wait for just the right loud moment in the trailer to pop the top! :) MUCH better portion sized, and cheaper!
UptownGirl at 4:18PM on 05/16/09
the movies ain't the movies for me without gummy bears and jelly beans. With the price the movie theaters charge for a ticket in Brazil, i don't feel bad at all sneaking stuff in. I like taking in sour candy as well, and chocolates. Chocolate covered raisins are also nice, as are the colored mentos and chewing gum... see, even though i bring massive amounts of candy it barely makes it to the middle of the movie... And although i don't really like popcorn, i have a soft spot for the pink prepopped stuff... I just never find it.
The one thing i buy from concession stands are ice tea. Lots!
sweetieBird at 4:32PM on 05/16/09
oh, and i forgot to add that in Brazil movie theaters are obliged by law to allow food in. What they don't allow are cans and icecream. That being said, my Man likes to bring in a few McDonald's cheeseburgers and fries, and the large diet coke. Well, he doesn't really care about my snacks, and neither do i for his.
sweetieBird at 4:36PM on 05/16/09
candy. I can get it from Dollar Tree for $1.
Soda & water
sometimes popcorn
sandwiches
mickey D's
etc.
nrkelly at 8:14PM on 05/16/09
When they lived in Chicago, my son and his wife each took a bottle of wine and a straw in the inside pocket of their parkas - this was only feasible in the winter - and a few snacks in the pockets.
This would be more difficult in Southern California, I suppose.
MikeLM at 8:42PM on 05/16/09
What HAVEN'T I snuck in? Some of the highlights are a 40-oz of beer (college years) and 12 beers (adult years with 2 backpacks), chicken tikka masala with nan and many diet cokes.
kwhit at 9:55PM on 05/16/09
I just never brought food in movie theatres other than once in a blue moon, maybe popcorn, or a fave candy, but I just wanted to watch the movie. I was usually going out for dinner afterwads, or when younger, had dinner already.
chanterelle at 10:36PM on 05/16/09
A Flask.....great time!
ShrtCke at 11:12PM on 05/17/09
I always sneek in food. I just can't bring myself to pay those inflated prices. My cache usually includes Dollar Store movie candy, homemade cookies or bars, water and cheddar popcorn.
Martini Me at 11:03AM on 05/18/09
It wasn't sneaking so much as I bought it and stuck it in my bag, a large pack of Starburst (years ago when I still ate candy). The ticket taker asked me to open my bag and it was on top, and I was like oh shoot. It was especially annoying because the movie was starting and we'd parked pretty far, so BF shoved it under his shirt (we walked outside) and we went back in. That really annoyed me, but I understand - they sell Starburst at the theater.
Another time, we'd just gone to Dunkin' Donuts (for him), and he was holding the bag, the ticket taker was like "You can't bring that in." So BF put it under his shirt and said "Ok how about now?" using the logic that they don't sell donuts there, and he wanted a donut, but the ticket taker was like no. So he went outside and stuffed it under his shirt more carefully and went in.
Is it just us who gets searched/stopped? lol I swear we don't look like we're carrying anything in particular! I have occasionally tossed sweets into my bag but not for the movie. Lately, when we go to the movies, we just pay for the concessions there because it's easier and because the way he sees it, it is a night out and you might as well just pay - like being on vacation and paying for things you normally wouldn't. (Clearly, we have no children yet - I imagine all snacks will be packed into my bag before movie trips with children.)
feistyfoodie at 12:39PM on 05/18/09
Since I've moved out to Los Angeles it seems like sneaking food into a theater here hasn't been that big of a deal. The theater I usually go to is part of an outdoor mall area with several different food establishments surrounding it. We almost always go eat before we go to a movie, and if I have a diet coke from Rubio's in my hand as I go into the movie, no one seems to mind. So maybe it's a little different out here?
As for food, I've brought in a subway sandwich before, squished down in my not-so-large purse. And no, it wasn't a five dollar footlong.
sfuller84 at 12:49PM on 05/18/09
Pint of Jim Beam!
greenolivemedia at 4:35PM on 05/18/09
My friends and I sneak in burritos and chips from the mexican place across the way. YUMMM!
If not that, then I usually just grab a bottle of water and buy some kind of candy at the concession stand. I used to, without fail, buy cherry coke but that was before they changed a small to about a gallon and make it 4.25. Siigh.
laurenette at 5:54PM on 05/18/09
Just to clear up a previous post with the glamour.com link -- If you read the article, the person had extra doses of butter added to the regular amount of butter. The 500 calorie small popcorn was the one without extra butter, however it still had the regular amount of butter.
Unbuttered popcorn (popped in oil) only has 55 calories per cup.
yakky at 2:46PM on 05/29/09