PrintEat This, Not That: The Worst Foods in America
The Good, the Bad, and the Obvious
Eat This Not That, the selling-like-hot-cakes, snack-sized book by hyper-ambitious and heat-seeking-attention-missile Men's Health editor-in-chief David Zinczenko (with Matt Goulding), proclaims itself to be the "No-Diet Weight Loss Solution" (to eating at national chains). As someone who is on the eternal quest for the no-diet weight-loss solution, I can tell you quite emphatically that this book is not it.
In fact, it aggregates heaping portions of the obvious (did you know that a drive-thru combo meal of a Burger King Triple Whopper with cheese fries and a king-size Coke has 2,200 calories and is therefore not a smart healthy eating choice? I'm shocked) with a few small side orders of surprises (Chipotle's Mexican Grilled Chicken Burrito has 1,107 calories, 113 carbohydrate grams, and 2,656 mg of sodium) and some useful swaps when confronted with national chain menus.
Zinczenko's list of the 20 worst foods in the U.S. includes such surprises as the worst kids' meal, Macaroni Grill's Double Macaroni 'n Cheese (1210 calories); the worst salad, On the Border's Grande Taco Salad with Taco Beef (1,450 calories); and the worst dessert, Chili's Chocolate Chip Paradise Pie with Vanilla Ice Cream (1600 calories).
The envelope, please, for Zinczenko's Worst Food in America: Outback Steak House's Aussie Cheese Fries with Ranch Dressing (2,900 calories, 182 grams of fat, 240 grams of carbs). It is fun to identify and read about these fries, but it's not exactly an earth-shattering revelation. Note to self: Stay away from huge portions of bacon-cheese fries.
Surprising Findings
Once you get past the attention-grabbing numbers and nonrevelations, Zinczenko's book can be useful when you're eating at a chain restaurant that doesn't readily display the calorie counts and nutritional values of all the items on its menu. Here's some of the book's more interesting (and surprising findings).
- A turkey and swiss sandwich from Au Bon Pain has 850 calories because of the combination of the creamy dressing and the swiss cheese. My guess is that if you asked someone at Au Bon Pain to skip the dressing, you'd bring the overall calories down.
- The Chicken Caesar wrap at Blimpie has 937 calories, double the calories of the grilled chicken sub. It turns out that, in general, chicken caesar wraps are the wrong way to go in almost any chain restaurant.
- When you stop at Dunkin' Donuts for breakfast, the ham, egg, and cheese on an English muffin (310 calories) is a better bet than the multigrain bagel with light cream cheese (500 calories).
The most interesting finding in the book is Zinczenko's restaurant report card for fast food restaurants. He awards the highest grade, A+, to Chick-Fil-A, which specializes in fried chicken breast sandwiches. He says that "Not a single sandwich breaks the 500-calorie barrier, a feat unmatched in the fast-food world." Ah, yes, the joys of portion control (most Chick-Fil-A sandwiches are not supersized), the one most useful aspect of weight control, which gets nary a mention in this book.
Related
The Healthiest Chains in the U.S.
Eat This, Not That [Amazon]
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14 Comments:
If this report had come out 20 years ago it would have been news. Do the authors actually think that they're telling us something that hasn't been drummed into our heads for the last decade? Do they think the consumer is so stupid that by now we don't know that a chicken sandwich has less calories and fat than a Big Mac? This sounds like one big snooze to me!
RichardCrystal at 9:12AM on 03/26/08
Agreed, Richard. Of course, the lack of anything groundbreaking isn't exactly a surprise, considering the author is the editor-in-chief of Men's Health. The entire published knowledge base of that magazine can be summed up in four words: "Great sex, awesome abs." Hardly innovative.
The sad thing is, they'll sell a billion of these books, because people will really want to know which ginormous-bacon-triple-cheeseburger-with-fries they can have, and still say they're "eating healthy"...
btcan at 9:48AM on 03/26/08
Ed, I take it this book deals only in chains, not packaged food and so forth, which begs the question: Why would anyone interested in health, weight loss, or, most important, good eats, set foot in one in the first place?
BaHa at 9:59AM on 03/26/08
Ed,
I have been trying the all you can eat Mega Taco bar diet... does it say anything in this book about the pros and cons of this? I'll be honest, I have never felt more satisfied finishing a meal than with this gem of a diet. "Uh.... waiter, can we get some more guacamole over here?!"
Pavlov at 10:10AM on 03/26/08
Ed, thank you for this. I thought I was the only one scratching my head over the apparent success of this book. On the other hand, what a master of self promotion this guy is! I wish I had a buzz machine like his.
elizabethw at 10:14AM on 03/26/08
For goodness sake. This book needs a new subtitle: How Morons Can Make Slightly Less Stupid Eating Decisions
sarahbeam at 11:19AM on 03/26/08
I think this books targets what main stream America is, where unfortunately fast food restuarant chains rule. Ever see the movie or read the book Fast Food Nation- makes you think twice about what you're eating. The book is a good quick flip picture book and there is a section where it discuss package foods- bottom line portion control and read the food labels.
mchow at 1:37PM on 03/26/08
Chick-fil-a?! Home of the deep fried chicken biscuit sandwich? HOT DAMN! If only they would move the the Northwest...
katiekate at 4:11PM on 03/26/08
Although I never eat fast food, I liked the book and actually considered getting it for my ten year old neighbor.
What never ceases to amaze me is how much negative nutrition a fast food meal can squeeze into a simple dish. High calories, high fat, high sodium AND high fructose corn syrup all in a lowly chicken dish. It takes some R&D.
At Chili's, the Crispy Honey Chipotle Crispers have 1,890 calories. The oil I fry with at home has 1,440 calories/cup. Just think the kids could drink an entire cup of oil and still have calories left over for the chicken I saute. Blech!
LearP at 4:21PM on 03/26/08
Chipotle has some fine tasting food, but I believe it is owned by McDonald's corp., correct me if Im wrong...I stay away from the place for that reason alone for my own personal health concerns.
cosmic charlie at 1:27AM on 03/27/08
All practical considerations aside, the book just may have its uses in the fight against fatness simply because of its design. It is small, cute, and strong (not the words or information, but the book itself).
I can see it being purchased and carried about as if it were a powerful rune to be used more as a ritual than as a source of information. Pull it out, put it on the table, and the fear will come upon one. The Right Thing will be ordered simply because the book is there glaring at everyone in sight, saying "Eat This, Not That".
The ability to restrain oneself often has more to do with emotions than facts.
Karen Resta at 9:56AM on 03/27/08
"Chipotle has some fine tasting food, but I believe it is owned by McDonald's corp.,"
Basically McDonalds just funded a bunch of money and chain-expanding knowhow to Chipotle to get them started. There was a good article in Time or some other similar magazine about it. They never really influenced the food side of the business, which has always been about fresh ingredients cooked in-store.
You can cut that 1000 calorie burrito down a whole lot by leaving off the sour cream and the tortilla. The chipotlefan website has a nice calculator for figuring out what each topping "costs" in calories.
I don't eat at Chipotle much anymore since my office moved next to a great Cuban restaurant and a locally owned burrito shop with similar quality just opened closer to my house.
trout at 1:18PM on 03/27/08
Yes, we are all amazed at the success of a book that seems so obvious. Yet, is it really that obvious? Maybe to those of us who read and write on this particular website. But is it obvious to the main stream public who for some reason or other, love to eat at McDonald's? I mean, McDonald's is still in business and thriving! People are eating there regularly, but can't figure out why they are overweight.
I guess the success of this book proves that the obvious, isn't so obvious.
And frankly, it doesn't bother me one bit that what seems like such a waste of paper is a huge success. Maybe we are just upset that we didn't think of writing this book first!
jsnook at 1:21PM on 03/27/08
One thing: calories are not created equal. You said "the ham, egg, and cheese on an English muffin (310 calories) is a better bet than the multigrain bagel with light cream cheese (500 calories)."
I'm pretty sure that's a white english muffin(no Dunkin Donuts here, correct me if that's wrong). Plus the saturated fat.... The bagel may not be a fantastic breakfast, but it's got fibre. I'd say it might be worth the extra calories.
KylaM at 1:15PM on 03/31/08