Who says there's no such thing as a free lunch? Applebee's, the national restaurant chain, is giving free meals to all U.S. veterans and active duty service members. Reports CBS News.
Good for you if you qualify - even better if you make a healthy menu selection.
That could be hard because none of the items on Applebee's "Under 550 Calories Menu" is on the freebie list.
Here are the free offerings: 7 oz House Sirloin Steak, Chicken Tenders, Bacon Cheeseburger, Double Crunch shrimp, Three-Cheese Chicken Penne, Fiesta Lime Chicken, and the Oriental Chicken Salad.
Of these seven choices, which is healthiest?
If you guessed the Oriental Chicken Salad, you're out of luck. According to Applebee's, the salad has 1,310 calories and 93 g of fat, 15 of which are saturated. The salad also packs 1,470 g of sodium.
The Fiesta Lime Chicken is a little better, with 1,230 calories and 67 g of fat, 16 of which are saturated. However, it packs a whopping 4,390 mg of sodium.
The Three-Cheese Penne pasta isn't going to do your heart any favors. Each serving has 41 grams of sat fat and 3,130 g of sodium.
Surprisingly, your best bet may be the sirloin. It has 240 calories and 10 g of fat, only 4 of which are saturated. Plus, it's comparatively low in sodium at 760 mg.
Steak the healthiest choice? Who knew?
