Tisk, tisk Corner Bakery!

After a visit to the doctor this morning, I promised my daughter we would have lunch out, so we stopped by our local Corner Bakery cafe. This is our favorite place to eat as we are both able to get something we enjoy (mac and cheese with fruit for her, a trio salad for me).

We grabbed a table and while waiting for our food to be delivered, I noticed the new tablecard hugging the salt/pepper stand: "100 Corner Combos Under 600 Calories."

Intrigued and more than a little excited, I started reading the list. (Here's the full list if you're interested.)

As I read, I was almost giddy with all the choices and in awe that I could enjoy so many yummy things for under 600 calories.

Then I got to the fine print at the bottom: "Side items not included in calorie count."

Huh??

So I went on their web site to see what the average calorie count was for the sides they suggested. Basically, you would have to add an extra 140 calories for a cup of chicken noodle soup, 320 calories for a cup of broccoli cheddar soup, 160 calories for a small side salad, and so on. That means these lunches realistically run between 750 - 950 calories.

For a woman trying to lose weight, the recommended calorie intake is between 1,200 - 1,500 calories a day. Ordering one of these special meals at Corner Bakery could cost almost half your calorie intake if you didn't read the fine print. Eek!

Eating out is hard when you're trying to make healthy choices and I've learned that educating yourself beforehand is critical. Even ordering a salad, which seems so healthy, can be a diet saboteur depending on the dressing!

Thankfully, most restaurants are publishing their nutritional information online these days, which makes it easy to reference and plan ahead. For restaurants I frequent regularly, I've printed out the nutritional info and keep it in my purse for quick reference. There are even iPhone apps that allow you to look up this information for restaurants in your area, which is super handy and helpful!

As for today's lunch, I enjoyed a bowl of Roasted Tomato Basil soup with spicy croutons for a mere 320 calories. And on a cold, blustery day like today, it was exactly what I needed!