It’s easy enough to remain-health conscious on campus, where salad bars and nutritional labels abound in every dining hall. But watching what you eat becomes harder when you step outside of Northwestern’s nutrition-conscious bubble and into the foodies’ heaven that is downtown Evanston.
Worry not, my calorie-counting friend. It is possible to eat healthy when you’re eating out, even at the food joints you already call your favorites.
Chipotle
711 Church Street
You may be surprised that the place that serves burritos as big as your head makes this list, let alone tops it. But there are ways to make your faux-Mexican meal a sensible dining choice.
DO get rid of the carbohydrate- and calorie-filled tortilla. Order a Burrito Bol instead: skipping on the burrito tortilla eliminates 290 calories, 9 grams of fat and 44 grams of carbohydrates. The soft- and hard-shell tacos are hardly better, with 255 and 180 calories, respectively. Look for yourself at Chipotlefan.com.
DO replace corn salsa with tomato salsa. Corn is deceptive. It looks like, tastes like and even is a vegetable, but nutritionally, corn bares more resemblance to marshmallows than it does to green beans. Replacing your corn with tomatoes eliminates 80 calories and 19 grams of carbs.
DON’T spring for sour cream and guacamole. Both contain 10 grams of fat and more than 100 calories. If you need to have one or the other, go for the guacamole; it provides you with 40 percent of your daily recommended dietary fiber.
DON’T order a salad with dressing. Do this, and you’ll be wrong to believe you’re eating healthy: Chipotle’s salad dressing packs a whopping 330 calories and 31 grams of fat, more than any other item on the menu. Eat some rice instead.
Noodles & Company
930 Church Street
DON’T let the name deceive you: Noodles & Company is more than just pasta. The restaurant menu is divided into three regional cuisines: American, Asian and Mediterranean, each of which contains a salad option. All of the salads are significantly healthier for you than their pasta counterparts.
DO go for a filling salad. The safest pick is the Chinese Chop Salad, which has 250 calories and seven grams of protein. Filled with soy-sesame flavoring, this salad is as big as the pasta dishes and doesn’t taste like a sacrifice at all.
Café Mozart
600 Davis Street
I was drawn into Café Mozart by the window signs advertising “America’s Healthiest Frozen Yogurt.” The place serves Only 8 Frozen Yogurt, a brand that advertises all natural frozen yogurt with zero fat and zero cholesterol.
DO exercise portion control. A small-sized portion of the frozen dessert contains only 32 calories and 7 grams of carbohydrates. The not-even-close-to-sinful treat tastes better than the frozen yogurt in the dining halls, too.
Pomegranate
1633 Orrington Avenue
This “fruitful endeavor in Mediterranean cuisine” is a bargain for cash-pressed Northwestern students. With many vegetable-based dishes, the menu is generally healthier than the fried Burger King competition.
Do try the grape leaves, stuffed with rice, wheat and vegetables. Each grape leaf contains only about 35 calories. The Tabbouleh Salad is also a healthy choice: a cup of Tabbouleh contains about 190 calories and 6 grams of protein.
Sashimi Sashimi
640 Church Street
Of Evanston’s many sushi spots, Sashimi Sashimi is an economical choice, serving rolls for around $3.95. The restaurant offers 21 varieties of sushi and 28 kinds of Maki rolls.
Don’t skimp on protein. Healthy eating often dismisses meat, but it’s an integral part of the diet. Plus, iron deficiency isn’t fun when it makes your limbs fall asleep in class. The six-piece Spicy Salmon Maki is light on calories and loaded with protein with a combination of salmon, avocado, cucumber and spicy mayo. The best part: the flavorful entrée contains fewer than 250 calories but still packs 12 grams of protein.
Pita Pete’s
1571 Sherman Avenue
The place advertises itself as “healthy eats.” You can get practically anything you want in your pita, or even toss the pita aside and make it a salad. Owner Pete Lutz said the restaurant takes the healthy route whenever possible.
“We’ve got whole grain brown rice, we use sea salt if we use salt at all and when we cook on our grill we use canola oil,” Lutz said.
DON’T fear the presence of carbs. The pita itself is just 210 calories with only one gram of fat, Lutz said. The rest of the calories come from the meat, vegetables and dressings. Pita Pete’s gives you the power to make your meal as healthy as you like.
“We give customers a lot of options, but I won’t tell you everything that goes out of here is healthy,” Lutz said. “Some people make poor choices.”
DON’T fall into the poor choice-maker category: fill your pita with low-calorie vegetables like cucumbers, peppers and mushrooms. Skip the more caloric veggies like olives and marshmallows (eh hm… I mean corn.).
DO dress the pita with lighter toppings. Salsa, fat-free Italian dressing or vinaigrette make healthy eating even healthier.
Photo by Tom Giratikanon and Tracy Fuad / NBN.