5 Great Alternatives to Typical Fast Food
In the ideal world, your freezer is packed with homemade meals and your fridge brimming with healthy grab-and-go snacks. In the real world though, sometimes fast food on the go feels like your only option.
If you’re otherwise going to hit a drive-through on the way to a show or the mall, this is for you. If you know you’ll eat fast food at an airport sometime in the next month, this is for you. And you’re not alone: About half of Canadians report eating fast food in a given week.
The good news is that our options for eating on the go have improved dramatically. These five chains offer delicious, heart-healthy, nutrient-dense food that can be just about impossible to find in typical fast-food eateries: beans, nuts, fish, whole grains and a selection of fruits and veggies more interesting than plain old lettuce and tomato.
And while just about all restaurant food piles on the sodium, these five have some moderate (but not low) sodium options, if you watch what you order, and they all provide nutrition information online.
(Note: I’ve linked to the locations page for each, so you can quickly find one near you.)
1. Freshii
Two key tips: Add a protein to the base meal and have a (whole-wheat flour) tortilla, quinoa or brown rice, but don’t have them together unless you’re fuelling up for a marathon.
More in my comprehensive guide to ordering at Freshii, including best bets, what to skip, and all about those cold pressed juices, cleanses, and antioxidant elixirs.
2. Mucho Burrito
Your best bet is a burrito bowl or salad, but if you really want a burrito, just go easy on the toppings, because each one adds 100-200mg of sodium on top of the 401mg in the tortilla.
Same suggestion as with Freshii: Have a burrito or rice, but most of us don’t need a burrito with rice in it.
For your protein, try going vegetarian – just ask for lots of beans – or boost your fish quota and try the shrimp. Skip the chorizo and the option to have your burrito “smothered.”
3. Extreme Pita
Extreme Pita and competitor Pita Pit both display their nutritional information on a poster you can peruse while waiting to order. Bravo for transparency and supporting people in trying to eat better.
4. Good Earth Coffeehouse
This is another restaurant with whole, plant-based ingredients, including whole grains (Slow Cooked Steel-Cut Oatmeal, Wild Rice & Edamame Salad), legumes (Lentil & Bean Stew, Minestrone Soup), and vegetables (Roasted Veggie Breakfast Bowl, Beet & Goat Cheese Salad).
5. Subway
I know. I know. Subway won’t make any “exciting new restaurant” lists, but they offer a host of veggies, including avocado and spinach, as well as several full-sized sandwiches under 700mg of sodium, which you won’t find at Tim Hortons.
Try the Tuna or Oven-Roasted Chicken (add avocado) or Veggie Delite (add swiss cheese).
As you can see, if you need to eat on the run, you don’t have to settle for burgers and fries! Hope you enjoy some of these alternatives to typical fast food offerings.
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