Healthy Eats at West Acres

When hunger strikes, we understand firsthand how tempting those dreamy scents of cinnamon rolls in our hallways can be. The trick is knowing what healthy options are available instead, and finding the best ways to maximize on flavor without upping the calorie count (extra salsa, anyone?). Whether you’re looking for a snack to tide you over or a full-on meal, healthy options are never hard to find around our eateries.

Scroll down to learn more about some of our favorite healthy dishes around West Acres…

Steak & Arugula Sandwich on Sourdough at Panera

Panera’s salad menu is hard to beat when it comes to healthy, flavorful meals, but thankfully their sandwich menu is full of guilt-free options for those days when their freshly baked bread is calling our name. Our two favorites are the Mediterranean Veggie sandwich (full of veggies, feta, cilantro-jalapeno humms, and more on tomato basil bread – 450 calories for a full sandwich), and the Steak & Arugula sandwich (grass-fed beef, arugula, pickled onions, and more on sourdough – 500 calories for a full sandwich).

Light Smoothie at Orange Julius

Smoothies can get a bad rep for being sweetened with added sugars, but Orange Julius’s “light” smoothie option helps curb those sweet tooth cravings without all the additives. Choosing to make your smoothie light means it is made with water instead of yogurt, eliminating anywhere from 60-300 calories depending on the smoothie, as well as making it dairy-free. Any Premium Fruit Smoothie can be made light. Our favorites are strawberry banana, pomegranate berry blast, and mango pineapple.

Cranberry Toasted Almond Salad with Chicken at Rising Bread Co.

Rising Bread Co. has so many options for sandwiches, salads, wraps, and beyond, but we can always count on the cranberry toasted almond salad with chicken to leave us feeling full and satisfied. A few of the reasons we love this salad: cranberries contain antioxidants and fiber, toasted almonds pack in just enough healthy fat, romaine lettuce is a great source of vitamin A, and chicken is a lean source of protein. Our top tip when ordering salad: ask for the dressing on the side rather than mixed in so you can control how much of it you use.

Black Forest Ham 6″ Sub from Subway

Subway’s Fresh Fit Menu contains 8 of their healthiest options, including suggested add-ons and the calorie counts. We especially love the oven roasted chicken, turkey breast, and black forest ham subs (which all have under 300 calories for a six inch sandwich), but we’d be hard-pressed to find a Subway sandwich that we didn’t enjoy. We always go for the freshly baked 9-grain wheat bread, and load on tons of veggies, like lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, onions, green peppers, and cucumbers, which ends up equaling a whopping two servings of vegetables.

Taco Salad at Qdoba

Qdoba’s taco salad is our go-to mainly because it’s delicious, but also because it’s completely customizable. We always opt out of the tortilla shell bowl and instead take up that extra space with even more fresh romaine lettuce. You can choose your meat or keep it vegetarian with fajita veggies, add in dressing and up to four salsas (we omit the dressing because we think the salsas add more than enough flavor), rice, beans, guacamole, cilantro, and more. The taco salad calorie count starts around 360 calories, but is totally dependent on what you choose to add or subtract from your meal.

Grilled Chicken Cool Wrap at Chick-fil-A

We love this grilled chicken wrap because it just as delicious as our beloved chicken sandwich from Chick-fil-A, but with fewer calories (only 350!) and tons of fresh flavor. Inside this wrap you’ll find grilled chicken, lettuce, red cabbage, carrots, and cheese all wrapped up in a flaxseed flour flat bread. Plus, it’s served with avocado lime ranch dressing on the side so you can control the dressing portion size.

6 oz. Classic Sirloin with Grilled Avocado at Chili’s

This dish from Chili’s is so flavorful, we’d never guess it’s part of their Guiltless Grill menu. You can choose how you want your sirloin prepared, and then it’s topped with spicy citrus-chile sauce, grilled avocado slices, garlic roasted tomatoes, cilantro, and served with a fresco salad. The best part? All this flavor rings in at only 420 calories.

Greek Yogurt Fruit Parfait at Coolbird Creamery

This Greek yogurt parfait is created with the same mesmerizing liquid nitrogen process that Coolbird Creamery makes their ice cream with, but cuts down on calories and bumps up the level of protein (which keeps you full longer). And since it comes with a generous portion of fresh fruit, you can be sure that this sweet treat also packs in some essential vitamins.

Grilled Mahi Tacos at Granite City

While Granite City’s salad selection boasts tons of healthy options (the salmon citrus salad and chicken bruschetta salad are both great options), healthy eating doesn’t need to stick to the salad menu. We love the grilled mahi tacos and Southwest turkey burger for options that are full of flavor but low on calories, and surprisingly, the classic cheeseburger (with a side salad instead of fries) fits into that same category. And since Granite City is generous on portion sizes, we prefer to eat about half of our meal at the restaurant, then box up the second half for a yummy lunch the next day.

All the healthy choices at West Acres make it easy for us to refuel after we finish up our favorite cardio routine (shopping). What are your favorite healthy flavors around the mall? Tag us in your next meal pic with @westacresmall!