Bottom Line: The Jalapeno Ranch Salad from Salad and Go is plenty fresh and chock full of vegetables, but it could use more heat.
I have been reviewing a lot of high-calorie items lately like spicy schnitzel, chicken tenders covered in sauce, sausage topped with green chili, and more. So, I decided it was time to eat something lighter and healthier, and as luck would have it, a Salad and Go opened up near me recently. That is a fast food chain that specializes in salads and wraps, and they have a few spicy options on their menu, so I decided to check them out.
Among the salads that promise a kick are the Buffalo chicken, the fajita with spicy pico de gallo, and the Jalapeno Ranch. I went with the latter, and it comes with corn, grape tomatoes, pickled red onions, bacon, pepper jack cheese, romaine, mixed greens, along with Jalapeno Ranch dressing. Your choices of protein are roasted chicken, buffalo chicken, or tofu (you can also get steak, but that is an extra $1.20). I ordered the Buffalo chicken, but I am pretty sure I got the roasted chicken because it had no heat and did not look like the Buffalo chicken on the menu. No complaints, though, as it still worked out pretty well.
The chicken is in chunks and it is cold, but it went well with all the veggies in the salad. It is tender and has some decent taste, but doesn’t really stand out beyond adding the primary protein factor to the dish. The chopped bacon crumbles added a nice salty pop and a bit of smoke. The pickled red onions are pretty heavy on the vinegar and don’t have much sweet to counterbalance that. On their own, they might be rather strong, but they work quite well in the salad.
The corn was tender and delivered some nice pops of sweetness that brightened up the salad. The pepper jack cheese is barely noticeable, but it adds a little bit of creaminess and saltiness. The greens are fresh and plentiful and bring a nice crunch. There were only a few of the grape tomatoes in there, but they were fresh and tasty as well. The Jalapeno Ranch has the tang you expect from that dressing, but it does not overwhelm, and it seems to have an herby kick. I’m not a big fan of Ranch dressing, but I really liked this. Overall, it is a pretty good salad, but I am thinking the Buffalo chicken might have kicked up the flavor some.
As for the heat, most of that comes from the jalapeno ranch, but that is pretty mild to begin with, so the salad as a whole does not even get to Mild on my scale. Still, as I was eating it, the salad delivered a pretty steady zing. This is not the type of thing you are going for if you are looking for something really spicy, but at least it is fresh and somewhat healthy and has a bit of a kick to it. It would really be nice if they offered some diced fresh jalapenos or serranos, even for an upcharge, because that could turn this into a fresh and spicy feast!
Now, since you are eating a salad, you probably figure that you are eating healthy, but be careful there. Sure the veggies are fresh and packed with nutrition, but the calories start to add up. The site shows the calorie count for the salad at 360. But that is just the base salad and the dressing tacks on another 210 cals. The roasted chicken adds 110 cals and the Buffalo chicken adds 210 (the tofu is 120). So before you know it, you can be at 800 cals for your healthy salad (plus 52g of fat and 3600mg of sodium!) if you get it with the Buffalo chicken. Sure, that’s not too bad for the drive-thru and it is chock full of vegetables, but I don’t know if it really counts as light eating.
The salad costs $6.79 in my area, which is actually pretty good for the drive-thru these days, especially for something that is fresh-made like this. They also have wraps, which are basically just their salad options stuffed in a tortilla, and those are in the $7 to $8 range. They also have breakfast burritos that look pretty tempting and are reasonably priced (under $4), so I will be trying those out at some point. Salad and Go got its start in Arizona and has since spread to Texas, Oklahoma, and Nevada with more stores opening all the time. You can check for a location near you on their website, and this place is definitely worth stopping in for its fresh offerings, though you may have to supply your own chili peppers if you want to really kick things up.
Nutrition Info:
Jalapeno Ranch Salad
Serving Size: 1 Salad
Calories: 360
Fat: 16g (7g Sat/0g Trans)
Protein: 37g
Carbs: 20g
Sodium: 1400mg
Jalapeno Ranch Dressing
Serving Size: 2.5
Calories: 220
Fat: 24g (2.5g Sat/0g Trans)
Protein: 2g
Carbs: 3g
Sodium: 430mg
Roasted Chicken
Serving Size: 2.5
Calories: 110
Fat: 2g (1g Sat/0g Trans)
Protein: 21g
Carbs: 1g
Sodium: 580mg