Extreme Restaurant Eating?

[Annie]

As someone who eats out quite often, but watches weight pretty closely, I wonder how many idiots are out there? I love Cheesecake Factory, but their entrees are about 3 meals worth. So? I take home 2/3's. Dessert? Sure, but split it 3 or 4 ways. I mean how difficult is it to figure out the appetizer they are freakin' about is high calorie? Give me a break.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070226/us_nm/restaurants_calories_dc

Group says U.S. restaurants promote "extreme eating"

By Will DunhamMon Feb 26, 2:21 PM ET

Many U.S. chain restaurants are promoting "extreme eating" with dishes that pack at least a day's worth of calories and fat, without giving customers facts about their orders, a consumer group said on Monday.

Displaying restaurant offerings including a cheese-laden chicken-and-pasta dish they dubbed "Angioplasta," officials at the Center for Science in the Public Interest said such dishes help fuel national epidemics of obesity and heart disease.

They urged local, state and national governments to make restaurants list nutritional data on their menus.

Michael Jacobson, the group's executive director, took aim at "table-service" chain restaurants like Ruby Tuesday's and Uno Chicago Grill. Such places increasingly stuff their dishes with extra unhealthy ingredients, he said.

"What we're finding is that table-service restaurants have launched into a whole new era of extreme eating," Jacobson said. "If we're going to deal with the epidemic of obesity and the tremendous prevalence of heart attacks and strokes, we're going to have to do something about restaurant foods."

Jacobson's group often criticizes at a variety of restaurant foods. Some critics deride the group as self-appointed food police.

Jacobson showed reporters an appetizer offered by Uno Chicago Grill that he said contained 2,050 calories. It was a cross between a pizza and stuffed potato skins, with a deep-dish pizza crust crammed with mozzarella and cheddar cheese, mashed potatoes, bacon and sour cream....