Deal or no deal?
It’s really a no-brainer for Ryan Maxey, 21, who lives in Wicker Park.
Surrounded by a feast of fast food offerings, he searches for dining options that give him the most grub for his dollar.
“I’m on the go and I don’t have much cash,” Maxey said. “I don’t have time to make a sandwich before school usually.”
So he orders Taco Bell’s 89 cent cheesy double beef burrito or the $1 McDouble for lunch, dinner, snacks in between classes at Columbia College and post-bar munchies.
He’s not alone in his quest for cheap eats. While people still order combo meals — the sandwich, side and drink deals — restaurant industry insiders say a growing number of fast food customers are building meals from value menus. But nutritionists question the health benefits of relying heavily on fast food bargains.
“Yes, they are a dollar. But when you consider the amount of calories and fat that are in these foods, down the road you’ll end up gaining weight and increasing your likelihood of high cholesterol, which leads to heart disease,” said Jennifer Vimbor, a registered dietitian and founder of the Nutrition Counseling Services in the South Loop.
Still, fast food restaurants are catering to customers by offering inexpensive menu items. Last month, KFC became the most recent fast food chain to launch a value menu with items costing roughly a buck.
Instead of ordering combo meals, Maxey says, he mixes and matches off value menus for his meal at roughly the same price. For example, he’ll order two sandwiches — a McDouble and McChicken — and small fries at McDonald’s.
“I usually get more food for my money that way,” he said.
Dollar menus, discounted prices and other value promotions at fast food restaurants — which account for 77 percent of the restaurant industry — are helping the industry overall stay steady.
“They’re really trying to do check-size containment. They’re trying to spend as little money as they can and have a restaurant meal and order the entree or the sandwich and leave off the sides,” said Bonnie Riggs, NPD restaurant industry analyst.
Hungry customers order off the value menu because there are more options and the appeal of the combo meal being a cheap deal is waning, she said.
The question is, are they doing so at the cost of their health?
Experts say there are certain things to watch out for when ordering fast food. It’s important to look not only at the calorie count but what percentage of calories are coming from fat, said Hannah El-Amin, registered dietitian at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. A food item could be low in calories but problematic if most calories are coming from fat because it can increase chances of having high cholesterol, she said.
Fast food customers should watch out for high sodium, seek out fiber when possible and include whole grain, some protein, fruit and vegetables if trying to build a healthy meal, she said.
But beware of piling up on value menu items just because they’re cheap, she said.
“If somebody’s looking to save money in this economy and they want to eat healthy,” she said, “the best option is to pack their lunch instead of eating out.”
Menu swap
Fast food customers are shifting to the value menu, mainly because of price and value, according to research from Technomic, a Chicago-based food service consultant. Research from last March showed 36 percent of consumers order from value menus because items are cheap and 23 percent do so because they feel like they’re getting their money’s worth.
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Experts weigh in
Sure they may be cheap, but how nutritious are the value menus?
With March being National Nutrition Month, RedEye asked dietitians to pick the healthiest and most indulgent items that cost roughly a buck at select fast food chains.
Leonor Vivanco, RedEye
Meet the panel
* Hannah El-Amin, clinical dietitian at Northwestern Memorial Hospital’s Center for Integrative Medicine & Wellness
* Mary Russell, registered dietitian and Nutrition Services director at the University of Chicago Medical Center
* Toby Smithson, community dietitian at the Lake County Health Department and spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association
Wendy’s Super Value Menu
$1.59
* Spicy chicken go wrap:320 calories (including tortilla, lettuce, fillet, ranch sauce, cheese)
* Homestyle chicken go wrap: 320 calories (including tortilla, lettuce, fillet, ranch sauce, cheese)
* Grilled chicken go wrap: 260 calories (including tortilla, lettuce, fillet, honey mustard sauce, cheese)
$1.19
* 5-piece crispy chicken nuggets: 230 calories
$.99
* Crispy chicken sandwich:
330 calories (including patty, lettuce, mayonnaise, bun)
* Double stack: 360 calories (including 2 jr. hamburger patties, 1 slice of cheese, 2 dill pickles, 2 rings of onion, bun, ketchup, mustard)
* Jr. bacon cheeseburger: 310 calories (including jr. hamburger patty, 1 slice of cheese, 2 strips of bacon, mayonnaise,
1 tomato slice, lettuce, bun)
* Value french fries: 210 calories
Hannah El-Amin
HEALTHIEST: Grilled chicken go wrap without cheese: 32 percent calories from fat, 8 percent calories from saturated fat
MOST INDULGENT: Double stack:
44 percent calories from fat, 5 percent calories from saturated fat
COMMENTS: Be sure to ask for no cheese on the grilled chicken wrap.
Mary Russell
HEALTHIEST: Grilled chicken go wrap
MOST INDULGENT: Double stack
COMMENTS: French fries are great if you can eat only a few. Sugary beverages are never a good choice; stick with water, unsweetened tea or diet beverages. Skip pickles to reduce sodium in any sandwich.
Toby Smithson
HEALTHIEST: Grilled chicken go wrap. The grilled chicken go wrap provided the least amount of fat, 2-21/2 ounces of meat group and 760 milligrams of sodium. The sodium recommendations are for 2,300 milligrams/day or less, so this item can fit into a healthy diet. The protein requirements based on a 2,000 calorie/day diet are 5.5 ounces/day, so a 2-3 ounce portion of meat group fits into a healthy meal plan.
MOST INDULGENT: Double stack. This meal was the highest in calories and fat without getting much more as far as nutrients.
COMMENTS: Suggestion to make the double stack a healthier choice would be to take off one of the burgers to make it a single stack sandwich.
Taco Bell Why Pay More Menu
$.79
* Cheese roll-up: 200 calories
* Cinnamon twists: 170 calories
$.89
* Triple layer nachos: 340 calories (including beans, nacho cheese sauce, nacho chips, red sauce)
* Crunchy taco: 170 calories (including cheese, lettuce, seasoned ground beef, taco shell)
* Cheesy double beef burrito: 460 calories (including nacho cheese sauce, rice, seasoned ground beef, tortilla)
$.99
* Soft taco: 200 calories (including cheese, lettuce, seasoned ground beef, tortilla)
* Big taste taco: 420 calories (including cheese, creamy jalapeno sauce, lettuce, red strips, seasoned ground beef, tortilla)
* Bean burrito: 350 calories (including cheese, onions, beans, red sauce, tortilla)
* Caramel apple empanada: 290 calories
Hannah El-Amin
HEALTHIEST: Bean burrito: 19 percent calories from fat, 7 percent calories from saturated fat
MOST INDULGENT: Cheesy double beef burrito: 39 percent calories from fat, 13 percent calories from saturated fat
COMMENTS: Bonus: 9 grams of fiber in the bean burrito. Fiber is hard to find at fast food restaurants.
Mary Russell
HEALTHIEST: Crunchy taco
MOST INDULGENT: Cheesy double beef burrito
COMMENTS: Cheese roll-up also is a good choice; even better if you can add vegetables. Love the fiber in the bean burrito but the sodium content of this item is more than half of the recommended daily amount.
Toby Smithson
HEALTHIEST: Bean burrito. It has a good source of lean protein, almost a 2-ounce portion of meat group, and is fairly low in fat and high in fiber. It had the most fiber out of all the value meal menu options. As with all the fast food meals, the sodium was on the high side at
1,200 milligrams (half of the sodium allotment for the day).
MOST INDULGENT: Cheesy double beef burrito. This burrito contained about 2.5 ounces of the meat group, was highest in calories, fat, and sodium (1,620 milligrams).
COMMENTS: Another option would be two soft tacos Fresco style or the Big Taste taco Fresco style. These choices will provide a 2-ounce meat portion and keep the fat down to 12-14 grams.
McDonald’s Dollar Menu
$1.00
* McDouble: 390 calories (including beef patty, bun, cheese, ketchup, pickle slices, onions and mustard)
* Fruit ‘n yogurt parfait: 160 calories
* Small fry: 230 calories
* 2 apple pies: 250 calories in each pie,
500 calories combined
* McChicken sandwich: 360 calories (including patty, bun, mayonnaise dressing, lettuce)
* Ice cream sundae: Varies in calories depending on the topping. Strawberry sundae has 280, hot fudge has 330 and hot caramel has 340.
* Small soft drink: Coke and Sprite each have 150 calories
* Side salad: 20 calories
Hannah El-Amin
HEALTHIEST: McChicken (no mayo):
310 calories, 32 percent calories from fat,
6 percent calories from saturated fat
MOST INDULGENT: McDouble: 43 percent calories from fat, 18 percent calories from saturated fat
COMMENTS: Ask for no mayo on the McChicken. Try adding BBQ sauce instead for an extra
50 calories. I would suggest adding apple dippers on the side and skipping the caramel sauce.
Mary Russell
HEALTHIEST: McChicken sandwich if you are not following a low-sodium diet
MOST INDULGENT: Apple pies: very little protein, quite a lot of fat (same could be said about the fries)
COMMENTS: Most of these items are not meals. A fruit and yogurt parfait would be a good snack option (calcium, some protein, a little fiber).
Toby Smithson
HEALTHIEST: McChicken sandwich if you are not following a low-sodium diet
MOST INDULGENT: Apple pies: very little protein, quite a lot of fat (same could be said about the fries)
COMMENTS: Most of these items are not meals. A fruit and yogurt parfait would be a good snack option (calcium, some protein, a little fiber).
KFC Ultimate
Value Menu
$.99
* Snacker sandwich: 270 calories for original strip
* Two biscuits: 180 calories per biscuit,
360 calories combined
* Two apple turnovers: 260 calories in each, 520 calories combined
$1.49
* Side salad: 15 calories for the “house” salad without dressing
* Toasted wrap: 340 calories for the original strip
$1.99
* Popcorn snack box: 660 calories
* Plain hot wing snack box:
470 calories
* Snack size bowl: 320 calories
* Honey BBQ sandwich: 310 calories
Hannah El-Amin
HEALTHIEST: Honey BBQ sandwich: 11 percent calories from fat, 3 percent calories from saturated fat
MOST INDULGENT: Popcorn snack box
COMMENTS: I would suggest adding a small side of green beans or three-bean salad to the Honey BBQ sandwich.
Mary Russell
HEALTHIEST: Honey BBQ sandwich
MOST INDULGENT: Popcorn snack box for a meal; biscuits for a snack
COMMENTS: Side salads seem like a good deal because they have few calories. However, the dressing adds fat and sodium, and there is no protein so you will be hungry again soon.
Toby Smithson
HEALTHIEST: Honey BBQ sandwich. This sandwich provides a 3-ounce meat portion and is low in fat compared to the other value meal choices. Add a side salad with Italian light dressing to add more veggies to your meal for a minimal amount of calories.
MOST INDULGENT: Snack box with popcorn chicken and potato wedges. This item was the highest calories, fat and sodium from all the restaurant choices. It is not a good combination for heart disease prevention by having a high-calorie, high-fat (41 grams) and high-sodium meal (1,900 milligrams).
COMMENTS: Add the side salad to your meal with a low-fat dressing.
Burger King
Value Menu
$1.00
* Whopper Jr.:
370 calories (without cheese but with mayo)
* Crown shaped chicken tenders:
180 calories for four pieces
* Spicy chick’n crisp sandwich:
450 calories (with mayo)
* Small soft drink: Coke and Sprite each have 140 calories (16 oz.)
* Small fries: 340 calories salted
* Small onion rings: 310 calories
* Side garden salad: 15 calories
* Dutch apple pie: 320 calories
Hannah El-Amin
HEALTHIEST: None. Too high in saturated fat. Whopper Jr. with cheese still offers 37 percent calories from fat and 13 percent calories from saturated fat.
MOST INDULGENT: Spicy chicken crisp sandwich: 60 percent calories from fat, 10 percent calories from saturated fat
COMMENTS: The term “healthiest” is used very loosely with Burger King. They somehow manage to pack a lot of fat into a small package.
Mary Russell
HEALTHIEST: Whopper Jr. Sandwich without mayo
MOST INDULGENT: Dutch apple pie
COMMENTS: Adding cheese to your Whopper Jr. boosts the calcium (and also the sodium).
Toby Smithson
HEALTHIEST: Whopper Jr. without mayo provides a 2-ounce meat portion that is fairly low in fat (12 grams) and the lowest sodium content. Add a side salad with the low-fat dressing.
MOST INDULGENT: Spicy Chicken Crisp sandwich. This sandwich does not contain much protein for the calories it provides. It also is very high in fat (30 grams) for a sandwich. Sodium also was on the higher side at 810 milligrams.
COMMENTS: Add a side salad with the low-fat dressing and leave off the mayo on the sandwich. Note that the chicken tenders (4 pieces) only provide 1 ounce of a meat portion.
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lvivanco@tribune.com
