Can I Eat Low Sodium at Dennys

Can I Eat Low Sodium at Dennys

The Denny’s chain is one that pretty much covers the entire United States. I remember them specifically as a restaurant that was located on highway on and off ramps to feed hungry travelers. Their origins and roots come from the Great American Diner Tradition. Typical Diner fare though doesn’t often lead to one thinking that they could find healthy or low sodium food on the menu, which prompted me and several of you to ask me to find out the answer to; “Can I eat low sodium at Dennys?”

So we dug into the menu to see what low sodium items we could hack out to steer you on the right path to maintain your low sodium lifestyle when eating at a Denny’s. Again, we are basing these reports on the USDA recommendations of 2300 mg or less a day. To ensure we stick with that, we base a meal on 750 milligrams of sodium content. Based on three meals a day. All nutrition info was provided from the Denny’s Website.

What Can I Eat Low Sodium at Dennys

So let’s see what we can eat:

I did include their 2015 Taste of the Holidays Menu Items:

•  The Gouda Apple Chicken Sausage is only 493 mg
• The Jr. Santa Milk & Cookies Milkshake is 220 mg for the 11 oz and 310 mg for the 15 oz
• A slice of Pumpkin Pie will run you 590 mg

Breakfast:

It looks like the best choices here are on the Build Your Own Slam Menu (choose a combo of choices below to stay under your 750 mg):

• 2 Bacon Strips 230 mg
• 1 Chicken Sausage patty 265 mg
• Egg Whites 190 mg
• 2 Eggs 220 mg
• Grits with Margarine 20 mg
• Oatmeal with Milk & Brown Sugar 220 mg
• Sausage 325 mg
• Seasonal Fruit 7 mg
• Toast with Margarine 110 mg
• Yogurt 85 mg

There are no Omelettes, Skillets, or Favorites that come in close to our requirements.

Appetizers:

• The Build Your Own Chips & Queso is 400 mg without sauce.

Soups, Salads, & Sides Menu: 

• The Caesar side salad is 450 mg (without dressing 700+ mg with!)
• Veggie Dippers with Ranch 350 mg
• French Fries 110 mg
• Garden Salad (with no dressing) 450 mg
• Hash Browns 410 mg
• Steamed Broccoli 20 mg
• Steamed zucchini and squash 105 mg
• Mac and Cheese 250 mg
• Mashed Potatoes (without gravy) 250 mg
• Sweet Petite Corn 0 mg

Build Your Own Burger Bar: 

This is a better lunch/dinner option if you opt not to get a bun!

• Beef patty 437 mg
• Seasoned Grilled Chicken Breast 359 mg
• Veggie Patty 491 mg
• Swiss Cheese (slice) 58 mg
• Fresh Avocado 4 mg
• Grilled onion 56 mg
• Lettuce 3 mg
• Mayo 76 mg
• Red onion 0 mg
• Sauteed Mushrooms 1 mg
• Tomato (slice) 2 mg

There is nothing on the pre-built burger menu, dinner menu, or 55+ menu that meets requirements.

Condiments & Dressing:

• Low Fat Balsamic Vinaigrette 140 mg
• Brown Gravy 136 mg
• Honey Mustard Dressing 129 mg
• Pico de Gallo 125 mg

Denny’s has a section of their menu called the Fit Fare section for what I would understand would be healthier options. I am disappointed that only one dish is low sodium from that section of the menu. I encourage them to do much more.

• The Senior Fit Fare Loaded Veggie Omelette meal comes in at 650 mg for an omelette, fruit, and toast.

Kid’s Menu:

• Kid’s Entrees – Mac and Cheese 570 mg
• Spaghetti with Tomato Sauce and bread 440 mg
• Spaghetti with Broccoli and an apple juice 490 mg
• Build Your Own Slam with Egg Whites 95 mg, Bacon strips 230 mg, and fruit 7 mg or Yogurt 100 mg
• Kid’s  Sides – apples with caramel dip 75 mg, just apples 0 mg, French fries 110 mg, Banana slices 1 mg, Grapes 0 mg, Sweet Petite Corn 0 mg, or Broccoli for 20 mg.

 

So, can I eat low sodium at Dennys? Overall, there are some decent choices. I could make a meal, but there is a lot of room for improvement. Especially for their Fit Fare choices.

What do you eat at Denny’s?