WASHINGTON — The Center for Science in the Public Interest recently blasted Uno Pizzeria & Grill for its fat- and sodium-laden Whole Hog Burger, placing it on its 2016 list of Xtreme Eating awards.
Uno Pizzeria’s response, more or less: “It is what it is.”
The CSPI says the Whole Hog Burger, with hamburger, sausage, bacon, prosciutto, pepperoni, four types of cheese, garlic mayo and pickles, which comes with both fries and onion rings, packs in more than a day’s worth of calories (2,850), three days’ worth of saturated fat (62 grams) and six days’ worth of sodium (9,790 milligrams) — the equivalent of four McDonald’s Quarter Pounders and two orders of fries doused with a combined 18 packets of salt.
Uno Pizzeria issued a statement in response to the CSPI’s list, saying the Whole Hog Burger is exactly what it is supposed to be, and its customers know what they’re getting.
“We created the Whole Hog Burger to be an over-the-top eating experience that would capture the attention of our customers, taste great and be a fun challenge to conquer,” Uno Pizzeria says.
“We are not surprised that the Whole Hog Burger has been recognized on the Xtreme Eating list in 2016 — it was designed for this very kind of thing.”
Uno Pizzeria says it reflects the “go big or go home” attitude of its Chicago roots.
The ridiculous stack of meat and cheese, launched in March, is a popular menu item — so much so that Uno just added a Whole Hog Chicago Thin Crust pizza to the menu.
Uno Pizzeria also points out its menu has more than 100 items on it, many of them healthful choices. Its restaurants also have interactive kiosks listing nutritional content for everything on its menu in their lobbies.
Uno Pizzeria wasn’t the only restaurant singled out on the Xtreme list:
- Fried Chicken & Waffles Benedict at the Cheesecake Factory clocks in at 2,580 calories and 86 grams of fat;
- The Short Rib & Cheesy Mac Stack sandwich at Dave & Busters has 1,910 calories and 42 grams of fat;
- The Dessert Nachos at Buffalo Wild Wings have 2,100 calories, 64 grams of fat and 5 grams of saturated fat;
- The RT 44 Grape Slush with Rainbow Candy at Sonic has 970 calories and 1 1/4 cups of sugar.
Read the Center for Science in the Public Interest’s complete 2016 Xtreme Eating list.
