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Applebees, Cheesecake Factory top annual list of restaurant food with most calories, fat

HARTFORD — Imagine eating more than day’s worth of calories or 18 packets of salt in just one sitting. You may have done it if you’ve eaten at...
applebees sampler

HARTFORD — Imagine eating more than day’s worth of calories or 18 packets of salt in just one sitting. You may have done it if you’ve eaten at one of these restaurants!

The Center for Science in the Public Interest is out with their annual list of Xtreme Eating Awards — foods like “burger platters that make McDonald’s Quarter Pounders look like sliders.”

CSPI says American’s chain restaurants are “pouring gasoline on the fire” of the obesity epidemic, pointing to the trend of re-purposing and mismatching traditional meals, like ‘friend chicken and waffles eggs Benedict,” “cheeseburger egg rolls,” and macaroni and cheese sandwiches.

“Unfortunately, these extreme meals are more like the rule, not the exception,” said CSPI dietitian Lindsay Moyer.  “America’s restaurant chains are serving up meals that seem engineered to promote diabetes, obesity, heart disease, and strokes.”

Related | 25 restaurant salads that have more calories than a McDonald’s Big Mac

The Cheesecake Factory is no stranger to the list. The popular chain has earned a spot in the top 9 every year since 2007.

The top 9 biggest offenders of 2016 are:

Applebee’s: Build Your Own Sampler

In this dish, you can pick two to five appetizers or bar snacks. If you choose the cheeseburger egg rolls, brew pub pretzels, chicken quesadilla, boneless wings, and spinach artichoke dip, that’s 3,390 calories and 65 grams of fat. And that’s before the entree arrives.

Maggiano’s Little Italy: Marco’s Meal For Two

If you choose the mozzarella marinara, Taylor Street baked Ziti with Italian sausage, Fettuccini Alfredo, and Warm Apple Crostada for dessert, that’s a four-day supply of saturated fat for each of you and 2,840 calories.

The Cheesecake Factory: Fried Chicken & Waffles Benedict

If that is your brunch of choice, this popular dish fills you with 2,580 calories and a four-day supply of saturated fat.

Dave & Buster’s: Short Rib & Cheesy Mac Stack

Mac and cheese is showing up in all kinds of dishes these days. When you put it in a sandwich along with a short rib at Dave & Buster’s, you’re eating 1,910 calories and two days worth of saturated fat.

Sonic: RT 44 Grape Slush with Rainbow Candy

The icy slush might seem like a fun treat, but if you get the 44 oz. option, you’re sipping down 970 calories.

Romano’s Macaroni Grill: Cremini Pork Shank

Romano’s bills this dish as their “house favorite.” It packs in 1,800 calories and 43 grams of saturated fat.

Uno Pizzeria and Grill: Whole Hog Burger

You may want to stick to the pizza at Uno’s. The Whole Hog Burger promises over a pound of meat and four types of cheese, tallying 2,850 calories and three days worth of sat fat.

Jersey Mike’s Subs: Giant Chipotle Cheese Steak

A sub might seem like a normal lunch portion, but this 14-inch monster is loaded with 1,850 calories. CSPI says that’s equal to two Subway foot-long Roast Beef subs.

Buffalo Wild Wings: Dessert Nachos

Maybe the dessert isn’t so bad if you’re sharing it with the table. But it better be a big table, since it has 2,100 calories and 64 grams of saturated fat.

What do you think? Are you totally grossed out by these meals or believe everything’s alright in moderation? Let us know on the FOX 61 Facebook page.

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