The Unhealthiest Meals at Chain Restaurants

Written by WENDY ANN MITCHELL (Patch Staff)

Extreme eating may be all the rage but do you know how many calories each of those popular meals pack on? Some go as high as 2,000 calories, an entire day’s worth of food, in just one sitting. As bathing suit season approaches, you may want to rethink some of these decadent choices.

Nutrition Action recently posted a list of some of the worst chain restaurant meals based on their caloric content. Which of your local favorite restaurants are on the list? Check it out below.

Outback Steakhouse’s Prime Rib:

The Herb Roasted Prime Rib dinner is 16 oz. of meat with over 1,400 calories. Add a dressed baked potato and the classic blue cheese wedge side salad, a few slices of bread with a light smear of butter and you’ve racked up over 2,400 calories, 71 grams of sat fat and 3,560 mg. of sodium, or two days’ worth, according to Nutrition Action.

The closest Outback to Monroe is located in Shelton at 698 Bridgeport Avenue.

Click here for other Outback locations.

The Cheesecake Factory’s Louisiana Chicken Pasta:

Topped with four slices of heavily breaded chicken, this dish comes drenched in New Orleans sauce consisting of butter and heavy cream. Nutrition Action states this puts you at more than 2,370 calories, plus a few more, depending on how many endless salad and breadsticks you eat.

The closest Cheesecake Factory to Monroe is located in Trumbull at Trumbull Mall.

Click here for other Cheesecake Factory locations.

Red Lobster’s Create Your Own Combination:

Nutrition Action ate at the popular chain restaurant and chose three shrimp dishes (Parrot Isle Jumbo Coconut, Walt’s Favorite, and Linguine Alfredo), a side of fries, a Caesar salad, and one Cheddar Bay Biscuit. This totaled 2,710 calories. Add a 24 oz. Traditional Lobsterita margarita and you’re up to a whopping 3,600 calories.

The closest Red Lobster to Monroe is located in Bridgeport at 4485 Main Street.

Click here for other Red Lobster locations.

Sonic’s Pineapple Upside Down Master Blast:

Vanilla ice cream mixed with pineapple, salted caramel and pie crust pieces in a 32 oz. cup topped with several inches of whipped cream sounds like heaven in a cup but it’s hell to burn off on the treadmill with 2,020 calories, 61 grams of saturated fat and 4½ grams of trans fat, according to Nutrition Action.

The closest Sonic to Newtown is located in Milford at 1365 Old Boston Post Road.

Click here to find other Sonic locations.

IHOP’s Omelette:

The Chorizo Fiesta Omelette, a 1,300-calorie sausage omelette that comes with three buttermilk pancakes. Add four tablespoons of syrup, and you’re up to 1,990 calories, Nutrition Action states.

The closest IHOP to Monroe is located in Orange at 486 Boston Post Road.

Click here to find other IHOP locations.

Click here to see the complete list from Nutrition Action.

Photo: Justin Henry via Flickr Creative Commons