Diners can get a day’s worth of calories, roughly 2,000 for an adult, from the Pasta Napoletana entree at The Cheesecake Factory or the Cheeseburger Omelette sold by IHOP, says the Center for Science in the Public Interest in its annual Xtreme Eating Awards. The consumer watchdog group declared the 2,310-calorie Pasta Napoletana to be “worst adapted pasta” and the 1,990-calorie Cheeseburger Omelette as the “least original breakfast.”
CSPI said The Cheesecake Factory was “a double dishonoree,” for the pasta entree “that fuses the toppings of a meat lover’s pizza with a bowl of pasta” and its alcoholic, 950-calorie Flying Gorilla milkshake. The nonprofit described the shake as “the nutritional equivalent of a 20-ounce Budweiser over five scoops of Breyers Chocolate ice cream.” CSPI designated the Flying Gorilla as “worst cocktail design.”
The watchdog group awarded its first “Xtreme Putting Profits Before Public Health Award” to the pizza chain Domino’s, “the largest industry voice opposing calorie labeling.” The Trump administration has delayed implementation of an FDA rule to require restaurants to list calorie counts for their offerings. “Americans deserve to know what we’re eating, but Domino’s would prefer that we’re kept in the dark,” said CSPI senior nutritionist Lindsay Moyer. While it puts a spotlight on highly caloric restaurant dishes, CSPI said “even the typical meals served at restaurants are a threat to Americans’ health because they increase the risk of obesity, diabetes, heart disease and more.”
To read CSPI’s list of Xtreme Eating awards, click here. To read FERN’s story on the pizza industry’s fight against calorie labeling, click here.