Understanding What Food at a Restaurant Has the Most Calories

According to a Nesta analysis, some takeaway pizzas contain almost all of the recommended daily calorie allowance, far exceeding the typical single meal guidelines. For those looking to control their caloric intake, understanding what food at a restaurant has the most calories is the first step toward making more informed dietary decisions.

Quick Summary

This article explores the specific dishes and general food categories, from deep-dish pizzas to massive milkshakes, that pack the highest calorie counts. It identifies common pitfalls and offers practical strategies for choosing healthier, lower-calorie alternatives when dining out.

Key Points

• Deep-Dish Pizza and Creamy Pasta: Dishes like deep-dish pizzas and creamy pasta are consistently among the most caloric menu items due to their dense carbs, heavy sauces, and cheese.

• Loaded Burgers and Sandwiches: Multiple beef patties, extra cheese, and bacon toppings can turn a standard burger into a meal containing over 1,300 calories.

• Massive Milkshakes and Sugary Drinks: High-sugar, high-fat drinks like large blizzards and oversized sodas contribute significant empty calories and can exceed 1,000 calories on their own.

• Fried Foods are Calorie Bombs: Any menu item that is breaded and deep-fried, from chicken wings to cheese curds and french fries, is almost guaranteed to be high in calories.

• Customization is Key: To reduce calorie intake, ask for sauces and dressings on the side, substitute vegetables for fries, and consider sharing or taking half your meal home.

• Check Nutrition Information: Take advantage of nutritional info posted online or on menus at chain restaurants to compare options before you order.

Dining out can be a significant part of a social life, but it also presents a major challenge for maintaining a healthy diet. Restaurant meals are notorious for their oversized portions, liberal use of cooking oils, and rich sauces, all of which contribute to surprisingly high calorie counts. While the culprits might seem obvious, many patrons are shocked to discover just how many calories lurk in their favorite dishes.

The Anatomy of a High-Calorie Dish

High-calorie restaurant meals aren't high in energy by accident; they are engineered for maximum flavor and customer satisfaction. This is often achieved through a combination of several factors:

• Excessive Use of Fats: Cream sauces, dressings, and deep-frying methods dramatically increase a meal's caloric density. A Cheesecake Factory pasta, for example, is loaded with creamy sauce, contributing to its massive calorie count.
• Overloaded Portions: Restaurant portions are notoriously larger than a single serving size. A single main course might contain the caloric equivalent of an entire day's worth of food, and all-you-can-eat formats encourage overconsumption.
• Stacked Ingredients: Multi-patty burgers and loaded sandwiches, often with multiple slices of cheese and bacon, turn a simple meal into a calorie bomb. The same applies to pizzas stacked with multiple meat toppings.
• Sugary Drinks and Desserts: The calories don't just come from the entree. Many people overlook the liquid calories from large sugary sodas, milkshakes, and sweet teas. Desserts like a Reese's Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake Cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory can add 1,500 calories to a meal.

What food at a restaurant has the most calories? The Top Offenders

Several restaurant meals have become infamous for their astronomical calorie counts. These dishes often combine fatty proteins, rich sauces, and heavy carbohydrates to create a single, gargantuan plate of food.

Notable High-Calorie Restaurant Meals

• The Cheesecake Factory's Pasta: Many of their pasta dishes, like the Pasta Napoletana, consistently rank among the highest-calorie meals in the industry, with some exceeding 2,300 calories.
• Red Robin's Monster Burger Meals: Combining a double-patty burger with a hefty milkshake and fries can push a single meal to over 3,500 calories, far exceeding most daily recommendations.
• IHOP's Breakfast Combinations: Items like the Cheeseburger Omelette with sides of pancakes, butter, and syrup can contain nearly 2,000 calories and over two days' worth of saturated fat and sodium.
• Deep-Dish Pizza from Uno Pizzeria: A personal deep-dish pizza can sometimes contain over 2,000 calories, essentially equivalent to three smaller dinner portions.
• Buffalo Wild Wings' Cheese Curd Bacon Burger: Topped with deep-fried cheese curds and a high-fat sauce, this burger can approach 2,000 calories, especially when served with fries.

Navigating the Menu: How to Choose Wisely

Knowing which dishes are calorie bombs is crucial, but so is understanding how to make smarter choices. Here are some actionable tips:

• Plan Ahead: Look up the restaurant's menu and nutritional information online before you go. The FDA requires many chain restaurants to post calorie counts on their menus, making it easier to make informed decisions.
• Question Preparation Methods: Ask your server how a dish is prepared. Opt for grilled, baked, or steamed options instead of fried or breaded items.
• Control Portion Sizes: Many restaurants serve portions large enough for two or three people. Ask for a half-portion, share an entree with a dining partner, or immediately box up half the meal to take home before you start eating.
• Customize Your Order: Don't be afraid to request modifications. Ask for sauces and dressings on the side, substitute fries for a side salad or steamed vegetables, and skip high-calorie extras like bacon or cheese.
• Think Beyond the Entree: Be mindful of liquid calories from sodas and cocktails, as well as the bread basket or free appetizers. Drink water instead and share a dessert, or skip it entirely.

High-Calorie Dish Comparison

Item	Restaurant (Example)	Estimated Calories	High-Calorie Factor
Pasta Napoletana	The Cheesecake Factory	2,310+	Creamy sauces, large portion size
Monster Burger Meal	Red Robin	3,540+	Multiple meat patties, rich sauces, large shake and fries
Triple Whopper with Cheese	Burger King	1,350	Three patties, multiple cheese slices, bacon
Large Blizzard	Dairy Queen	1,360+	Ice cream, candy mix-ins, large serving size
Signature Deep Dish Pizza	BJ's Restaurant	2,160+	Thick crust, multiple meat toppings, cheese
Large Order of Fries	Five Guys	1,310	Deep-fried, large portion size

Conclusion: Making Mindful Choices

Navigating restaurant menus for a balanced diet requires awareness and a strategic approach. While it may seem daunting to find out what food at a restaurant has the most calories, the information is readily available for most chain eateries. By identifying the high-calorie culprits—often those rich in fats, large in size, or loaded with sugar—you can make educated decisions to control your intake. Making small changes like ordering grilled chicken instead of fried, opting for a side salad over fries, and skipping sugary drinks can significantly reduce the overall calorie count of your meal, allowing you to enjoy dining out without derailing your nutritional goals. For more in-depth guidance on choosing healthy options while dining out, reliable resources like the Center for Science in the Public Interest are a great starting point.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which fast-food item is generally known to have the highest calories?

Meals that combine multiple elements, such as a double-patty burger with cheese, a large shake, and a large side of fries, tend to have the highest total calories. Examples include the Red Robin Monster Burger Meal or a Burger King Triple Whopper with bacon and cheese.

Are creamy pasta dishes always high in calories?

Yes, creamy pasta dishes, especially those with rich cheese or cream sauces, are typically high in fat and calories. A single serving can easily contain more than a day's worth of saturated fat and significant calories, as seen with dishes from The Cheesecake Factory.

What should I look for on a menu to avoid high-calorie meals?

Look for words like 'crispy,' 'fried,' 'creamy,' 'smothered,' 'loaded,' and 'double.' These indicate high-fat preparation or added high-calorie ingredients. Instead, look for 'grilled,' 'baked,' 'steamed,' or 'broiled' options.

How can I reduce the calories in a restaurant meal?

Simple strategies include ordering sauces and dressings on the side, swapping fries for a salad, choosing a smaller portion size, and drinking water instead of sugary beverages.

Are restaurant appetizers ever healthy?

Many restaurant appetizers, especially fried ones like mozzarella sticks, onion rings, or cheese curds, are extremely high in calories. Consider ordering a fresh salad with light dressing on the side as a healthier starter.

How do large milkshakes compare to full meals in terms of calories?

Large, specialty milkshakes or blizzards often have calorie counts comparable to an entire entree. A large Dairy Queen Blizzard can have over 1,300 calories, and a Monster Milkshake at Red Robin can be nearly 1,500 calories.

Is it better to split a large meal or order a 'healthier' entree?

Splitting a large, high-calorie meal can often be a better option than eating an entire, slightly less caloric entree by yourself. For example, sharing a large pizza might be a lower-calorie option than a single, high-calorie pasta dish.