Restaurant Name: Zoës Kitchen
About the restaurant: A Mediterranean-style restaurant, Zoës Kitchen has a clean, urban and contemporary feel to its dining area. It is well lit, comfortable, and is welcoming to all ages. This is a new age “healthy” fast food establishment!
The review team: Cheryl Orlansky, RD, LD, CDE, and friend
All the delicious and nutritious details:
Healthy Dining Choice 1 – The Lean Turkey Pita (just 320 calories and 9 g of fat) with thinly sliced deli turkey, marinated cole slaw and a sprinkle of feta cheese wrapped into a thin pita. A side of roasted veggies (mushrooms, broccoli, onions and carrots) basted in olive oil with a soy-based marinade. Both the sandwich and veggies tasted fresh, healthy and delicious! With the decaf, unsweetened hibiscus tea from the beverage bar (for flavor without sugar and calories), the total calories for this complete meal are 510 with total fat at 26 grams.
Insider tip –With a ¾ cup of vegetables from the shredded cabbage, this is one plant-based sandwich that is crunchy, flavorful and in sync with the newest USDA choosemyplate.gov guidelines. For even more nutrition, request the whole grain pita to increase the fiber content of the sandwich.
Healthy Dining Choice 2 – Spinach Rollups (410 calories and 14 g fat) with spinach, mozzarella, fresh mushrooms, a touch of feta cheese, sun-dried tomatoes and scallions stuffed into four small tortillas and served with a salsa dipping sauce to give it a nice tomato spice balance. A small Greek salad with greens, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, olives, onions, and feta cheese. This entire meal is under 600 calories and 20 gm of fat (not including the small pita slices that come with the salad).
Insider tip – The rollups taste similar to Greek Spanakopita! This entrée weighs in at 1 cup of veggies and with the small Greek salad as a side, it’s a delicious vegetarian meal. If adding salad dressing to the salad, just portion out 1 Tablespoon, as the calories can add up quickly. And trust me, you won’t need the salt that comes along with the dressing!
The verdict: Our dinners came fast, fresh and hot, just as they advertised. I highly recommend Zoës Kitchen and will be back for more.