NutritionDoc

Panera is a chain of "fast casual" restaurants, like Au Bon Pain and Cosi. Many patrons choose the popular You Pick Two, which offers two out of three options - soup, half a sandwich and half a salad.

 

But nowhere does the menu board say that most soups have 600 to 1000 mg of sodium, or that a 230 calorie cup of Broccoli Cheddar soup has half a day's bad fat - 9 grams.

 

And how many customers would know that a cup of Baked Potato Soup has more calories (230) and far more bad fat (7 grams)  than a 1 oz bag of potato chips.

 

Want one of Panera's grilled paninis?  You might lose interest if you knew that they have more calories (680 - 890) than a Pizza Hut Personal Pan Pepperoni Pizza (640) And some paninis make the pizza's bad fat (12 grams) and sodium (1530 mg) look good.

 

Likewise, Panera's Signature Sandwiches make much of McDonald's menu look good. A Chicken Caesar on Asiago Focaccia, has 920 calories and 15 grams of bad fat - about as much as 2 Quarter Pounders.

 

If a sandwich comes with poultry and cheese, ask the server to leave out the cheese.

 

Opt for eighter an apple or a whole grain baguette (140 calories) to go with your soup or salad.

 

If you ordcer a You Pick Two, make one  of them half a cheeseless salad like the Classic Cafe, Grilled Salmon, or Fresh Fruit Cup.