Discover the unhealthiest chain restaurant appetizers packed with fat and sodium.
Mixed into the menu at our favorite chain restaurants are, unfortunately, some of the unhealthiest appetizers you can get. The keyword here is appetizers, not even the main entree, is days worth of calories, fat, and sodium with shockingly high numbers. It’s not that you can’t have a treat once in a while, it’s just good to be aware of what you’re eating, so you can eat less of it or share it. Here are five of the unhealthiest chain restaurant appetizers you can get right now.
The Bloomin’ Onion
Outback Steakhouse
Don’t be fooled, this vegetable based app has a massive fat and sodium content. The Bloomin’ Onion from Outback Steakhouse is delicious, but quite bad for you. Coming in at about 1,950 calories, 155g of fat (yikes!), 56g of saturated fat, and almost 4,000mg of sodium (3,840mg), this deep fried app might be something to share with the table or skip completely.
Fried Macaroni and Cheese
The Cheesecake Factory
With a shockingly high fat content, The Cheesecake Factory’s Fried Macaroni and Cheese is about 1,310 calories, 96g of fat, 47g of saturated fat, and almost 2,140mg of sodium. These deep fried, cheesy balls full of carbs are heavy on the calories, sodium, and frankly everything, so be aware before ordering.
Neighborhood Nachos with Beef
Applebee’s
Applebee’s Neighborhood Nachos with Beef is another that will set you back. This appetizer has about 2,000 calories, 127g of fat, 57g of saturated fat, and around 5,000mg of sodium. None of it’s healthy, but that fat content and level of sodium are shockingly high, and certainly something to be aware of when ordering.
Texas Cheese Fries
Chili’s
Chili’s Large Texas Cheese Fries might be tasty, but you’ll be looking at about 1,800 calories, 122g of fat, 51g of saturated fat, and around 5,000mg of sodium. Again, similar to the nachos from Applebee’s, the fat content and level of sodium is astronomical for one day, let alone one meal.
The Cactus Blossom
Texas Roadhouse
As a long time fan of Texas Roadhouse, I can confidently say their food is delicious. While many items taste good, an appetizer with this amount of calories, fat, and sodium is certainly something to be well aware of before ordering. The Cactus Blossom (essentially their version of a blooming onion) will set you back about 2,250 calories, 135g of fat, 26g of saturated fat, and around 5,000mg of sodium.
Jess Kelly
Jess Kelly is an accomplished freelance writer and journalist with nearly a decade of experience contributing to renowned media outlets, including The Huffington Post, Cosmopolitan, AAA, Elite Traveler, Eater, Food52, Insider, Wine Enthusiast, Kitchn, AAA World Magazine, Thrillist, Conde Nast Traveler, Lonely Planet, Hemispheres, and TravelPulse. Read more about Jess
