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    Foodie News

    The healthiest fast food: Drive thru choices that won't crash your diet

    Sarah Rufca
    Feb 21, 2011 | 11:17 am
    • The Cabana Bowls at Taco Cabana are 400 calories or less/
    • Your best breakfast bet? Whataburger's options — including their tasty taquitos.
      Courtesy photo
    • Chick-fil-A's chicken nuggets won't break the calorie bank — if you can avoidthe waffle fries (good luck).
      Photo by camknows/Flickr

    If you're like us, those new year's resolutions have long since seemed like an unbearable cramping of your lifestyle. Who can save money when there are so many sales? How can one workout after work when it means missing happy hour?

    Inevitably our high-minded ideas fall to the wayside.

    But if your resolution was a diet, you've got a shot. Eating healthy is important, but on those days when you just can't handle any more quinoa, it's OK to give a little — without the wagon-crashing guilt.

    Yes, even on a diet you can indulge in a little drive-thru delight. We've gathered some of the best options from the most popular fast food chains, all with around 400 calories, the amount nutritionists say keeps you satisfied, for when your brain says "healthy" and your stomach says "cheeseburger."

    Breakfast

    Breakfast might be the best meal of the day to splurge on food — you've got time to work it off and it encourages a more healthful lunch. (At least that's what we tell ourselves.) Plus whether you like savory or sweet, there are plenty of choices that won't ding you on the scale.

    Whataburger is truly the calorie-counting breakfast king, with a dozen choices under 400 calories, including a cinnamon roll (390 calories), three kinds of taquitos (egg, 330; egg with cheese, 370; bacon and egg, 380), breakfast on a bun with bacon ranchero (340) and even an meal with a pancake, scrambled eggs and and diet soda or unsweetened iced tea (395).

    At Chick-Fil-A, a chicken biscuit is a bit over the target range at 440 calories, but a good substitute could be the chicken minis, which weigh in at only 280. Burger King offers a ham omelet sandwich (270 calories) a three-pack of French toast sticks (300) or an egg & cheese crossan'wich (300).

    At Taco Cabana grab the potato and egg breakfast taco (210 cal) or bacon and egg breakfast taco (230). Good McDonald's choices include an fruit and maple oatmeal (290 calories), egg McMuffin (300 cal), sausage McMuffin (370), Southern-style chicken biscuit (410), bacon egg and cheese McGriddles (420), sausage burrito (300) or the hotcakes (350, but go easy on the syrup — one package contains 180 more calories).

    Chicken

    When it comes to lunch, chicken usually seems like a better choice than high-fat beef, but depending on the preparation and the condiments, you're good intentions can come back to bite you. And remember: Pass on the fries.

    Chick-Fil-A's 8-pack of chicken nuggets are a good choice at 270 calories — you could even get 12 for 400 cal. if you avoid all condiments besides ketchup, mustard, and buffalo sauce. The spicy or chargrilled chicken wrap both run to 410 calories, and the chargrilled chicken sandwich comes in at 300 cal, better than the chargrilled deluxe (410) or regular chicken sandwich (430).

    At Whataburger you can grab a grilled chicken sandwich meal (with a small bun, side salad instead of fries, mustard instead of mayo, low-fat vinaigrette dressing and no croutons) for 390 calories, or splurge and get the Whatachick'n meal the same way for 530. At KFC the Snackers range from 210-290 calories and a drumstick value box runs 420 calories, grilled or fried. Even the notorious grilled Double Down is only 480 calories — if you dare.

    At McDonald's the McChicken sandwich is only 360 calories, the Southern style crispy chicken sandwich is 400 cal and the premium grilled chicken classic sandwich is 420 cal. You could get the regular chicken nuggets (280 cal for six pieces) or the chicken selects premium strips (400 cal for three pieces), but remember, dipping sauce (besides 15-cal ketchup) runs 60 cal or more per packet. Wendy's 5-piece nuggets (230 cal) might be a better bet.

    Burgers

    Yes, this is the reason you're here. The franchise burgers (Whopper, Big Mac) may be out of range but there's always the Whopper Jr. (340 cal) at Burger King, the double cheeseburger (440 cal) at McDonald's, Whataburger's Whataburger Jr. meal (see specifications above) for 370 calories or the Whataburger with cheese (about 400 calories) or a Jack in the Box junior bacon cheeseburger (420 cal).

    South of the Border

    When it comes to places like Taco Cabana and Taco Bell, the best choice is almost always a taco. Between the two Taco Cabana seems to get more taco per calorie, with an order of three chicken flautas for 300 calories, three street tacos for 290 and two crispy chicken tacos for 320. There are also several other tacos (black bean, chicken fajita, crispy beef) for between 180-200 calories. Just beware of adding guacamole (110 calories) or queso (200 calories).

    At Taco Bell, grab a crunchy taco (170 calories), a chicken soft taco (190), a taco supreme (200) or a beef soft taco (210) — you can get a duo and stay safely in the 400 cal range. Elsewhere on the menu there's the bean burrito (370 calories), the chili cheese burrito (380 cal) the MexiMelt (280) the Enchiritos (340-370) and the taquitos (310-320). You can shave 20 calories off many of these options by ordering them "fresco-style" with fresh pico instead of cheese, but did you really come to Taco Bell to not eat cheese?

    Salad

    Frankly, if you want a salad, you should probably be somewhere else. Fast food versions have gotten an (often deserved) reputation for hiding hundreds of hidden calories.

    But if fast food is more about expedience than indulgence and you'd rather keep it green, there are some decent options. Burger King's Tendergrill garden salad is only 290 calories with fat-free ranch dressing or 350 calories with light Italian, and at Whataburger you can get a grilled chicken salad with bacon, croutons and fat-free ranch or low-fat vinaigrette dressing for only 370 calories. Yes, bacon is included.

    For a spicier choice, ditch the Chipotle burrito bowls (those things can run to over 1000 calories!) and try Taco Cabana's new Cabana Bowls, all with lettuce, pico de gallo, sour cream, salsa roja and under 400 calories. Choose fajita (add rice, black beans and either fajita steak or chicken), taco (black beans, shredded cheese, beef or chicken), salad (salsa ranch and fajita steak or chicken) or veggie (black beans and cheese and only 280 calories).

    At McDonald's you've got three salad decisions to make: Do you want a premium Caesar salad (starting at 90 calories), a bacon ranch salad (140 cal) or southwest salad (140 cal); will you add grilled chicken (+130 calories) or crispy chicken (+240 cal); and what kind of Newman's Own dressing do you want, southwest (100 calories), Caesar (190 cal) low-fat balsamic vinaigrette (40 cal), Italian (60 cal) or ranch (170)?

    Our advice? Go for whatever salad base you want, avoid the crispy chicken and either get no chicken and any dressing OR grilled chicken with balsamic vinaigrette, Italian or Southwestern dressing, which will keep the salads in the 300-400 calorie range.

    At Wendy's, a full-size salad can run to over 500 calories even before dressing is included, so stick to the half-size salads. The best bets are the apple chicken pecan (half size 350 cal with roasted pecans and dressing) and the BLT cobb salad (half size 330 calories with dressing). Whatever you do, avoid the Thousand Island dressing, which has by far the most calories, with 160.

    Overall, it seems like the best places to get your low-cal cravings met are Whataburger, Taco Cabana, McDonald's (surprise!) and maybe Chick-Fil-A if you can resist those waffle fries (we can't). Hey, the quinoa will be there tomorrow.

    unspecified
    news/restaurants-bars

    and the winner is...

    Innovative Houston chef is the city's newest James Beard Award winner

    Eric Sandler
    Jun 17, 2025 | 6:00 am
    James Beard Awards 2025 Thomas Bille Belly of the Beast
    Photo by Getty Images for James Beard Foundation
    Thomas Bille is Houston's newest James Beard Award winner.

    Add another Houston chef to the city’s growing list of James Beard Award winners. Thomas Bille, chef-owner of Belly of the Beast in Spring, earned Best Chef: Texas at the James Beard Foundation’s Restaurant and Chef Awards ceremony.

    Held at the Lyric Opera of Chicago on Monday, June 16, Bille was one of five finalists for the award, along with fellow Houstonian Emmanuel Chavez (Tatemo), Emil Oliva (Leche de Tigre in San Antonio), Regino Rojas (Purépecha in Dallas), and Michael Anthony Serva, (Bordo in Marfa). Neither of Houston’s other finalists — Mexico City-inspired cafe Casaema (formerly known as Ema) for Best New Restaurant and fine dining tasting menu restaurant March for Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program — earned awards in their categories.

    A Los Angeles native who moved to the Houston area to be closer to his wife’s family, Bille took a winding path to his James Beard Award. He opened the first iteration of Belly of the Beast in 2020 as a chef-driven taqueria that was known for its ceviches and birria tacos. He then spent about a year at Chivos, an ambitious but short-lived Mexican-American restaurant in the Heights.

    In late 2023, he and his wife Elizabeth opened a new version of Belly of the Beast in a Spring shopping center. It showcased a broader array of Bille’s skills, with a wide-ranging menu that pulled from global flavors — lamb shank rendang, anyone? — that included meat, seafood, and pastas. The new restaurant quickly earned wide acclaim, including a Bib Gourmand in the 2024 Michelin Guide and CultureMap Tastemaker Award nominations for both Restaurant of the Year and Chef of the Year.

    “I feel a depth of gratitude,” Bille tells CultureMap in a text message. “Knowing that my wife and I were able to reopen on our own terms. Gratitude for my family, staff, and guests to give us love and support. It is much appreciated.”

    In an interview from the ceremony shared by the James Beard Foundation, Bille paid tribute to his wife, Elizabeth, for her role in the restaurant’s success.

    “The risk that my wife and I took to open this restaurant is more than worth it. My wife left her industry, she was a national director for nonprofit organization,” he said. “I said, ‘We’re going to reopen Belly of the Beast. I need you with me side-by-side the whole time.’ The first iteration she held down her job and supported us. With her at my wide, I’m able to focus on the kitchen, on the food, and mentoring my cooks. Able to see the bigger picture instead of just being in the weeds all the time.”

    Bille is the second Houstonian to win Best Chef: Texas, joining Street to Kitchen chef-owner Benchawan Jabthong Painter, who won in 2023. Since the category of Best Chef: Texas has only been awarded since 2022, Bille is the first man to earn the title. Prior to being its own region, the James Beard Foundation included Texas in the Southwest, where chefs Robert Del Grande (Cafe Annie), Chris Shepherd (Underbelly), Justin Yu (Oxheart), and Hugo Ortega (Hugo’s) all won awards.

    The only other Texas finalist to win his category was Arjav Ezekiel of Birdie's in Austin, who became the first winner of Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service, one of three beverage-oriented categories the foundation added for 2025.

    In addition to Bille and Ezekiel, Texam Chad Houser, founder of Cafe Momentum in Dallas, received the Humanitarian of the Year Award. Toni Tipton-Martin, a Houston-based author, scholar, and journalist, received the Lifetime Achievement Award. Houstonian Alba Huerta, who won Outstanding Beverage Program for her bar Julep in 2022, presented one of the night’s awards.

    “It’s with deep celebration that we congratulate the 2025 Restaurant and Chef Award winners — distinguished culinary, beverage, and hospitality leaders whose talent and vision are shaping our dining landscape,” said Clare Reichenbach, CEO, James Beard Foundation, in a statement. “These outstanding professionals are the epitome of ‘Good Food for Good,’ elevating our industry’s standards and redefining what’s possible in American cuisine.”

    James Beard Awards 2025 Thomas Bille Belly of the Beast
      

    Photo by Getty Images for James Beard Foundation

    Thomas Bille is Houston's newest James Beard Award winner.

    awardsjames beard awardchefsthomas billebelly of the beast
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