That's why we have only a handful of Best Bites. They're not smothered in salt and they have less bad fat (saturated or trans), more vegetables or fruit, and fewer calories than typical restaurant dishes. Better Bites are better than what's on the regular menu, but have missing or excessive sodium levels.

Here's the scoop on light and low-carb menus at some of the top chain restaurants. Most of the numbers come from the menus or the companies' Web sites. When critical numbers were missing (T.G.I. Friday's Atkins dishes and three Olive Garden entrees), we had samples analyzed by an independent lab.

Applebee's

How convenient to have calories, fat, and fiber listed right on the menu (okay, at least on the Weight Watchers portion).

So you know before you order that the Tango Chicken Sandwich delivers 370 calories and 8 grams of fiber, for example. And while sodium numbers would help, at least you can decide whether to spend 340 calories on the Grilled Tilapia with Mango Salsa or 170 calories on the Grilled Shrimp Skewer Salad. And you can mull over whether the Chocolate Raspberry Layer Cake or Berry Lemon Cheesecake is worth 230 calories.