Nord Brue and Mike Dressell started Bruegger's in 1983 when they developed a quick-service bakery with bagels, cream cheese and coffee. Now the Vermont-based company has 295 bakeries in the United States and Canada. Bruegger's menu includes bagels and other baked goods, options for breakfast and lunch, and hot and cold beverages. If you choose carefully, you can purchase a nutritious meal or snack from Bruegger's.
Nutrition Facts
Bruegger's nutrition information is available online. If you know ahead of time that you will be going to a Bruegger's bakery-café, you can use this information to help you choose items that fit within your diet plan. By planning your order in advance, you are less likely to make hasty decisions that can set you back hundreds of calories. Another option is to ask for the nutrition information once you are inside a Bruegger's store and use it to guide your choices.
Bakery
The American Heart Association suggests eating a bagel, instead of muffins or pastries, for breakfast. A whole-wheat bagel from Bruegger's has 7 g dietary fiber. You can choose low-fat cream cheese, such as light garden veggie, with 6 g fat instead of cucumber-dill cream cheese with 14 g fat per 1.5-oz. serving. Desserts from Bruegger's range in nutrition, too. A chocolate-chunk brownie has 26 g sugar, which is more than a third less than the 42 g in a seven-layer bar.
Cafe
Bruegger's serves salads, breakfast sandwiches, lunch sandwiches and soups. The nutrition information varies greatly, depending on the specific item and how you customize it. On the lunch menu, the tuna and cheddar melt lunch panini has 970 calories and 61 g fat, while the garden deli bagel sandwich has only 360 calories and 2 g fat. The basic salad has 30 calories and 2 g dietary fiber, and adding Asian sesame ginger dressing contributes another 260 calories. Vegetable toppings add minimal calories, while ordering a tuna salad topping boosts the count by 520 calories and 46 g fat.
Beverages
Bruegger's serves coffees and other hot and cold beverages. Plain espresso house-blend coffee and plain hot or iced tea each have less than 10 calories per serving. Beverages with milk and flavor syrups have extra calories, sugar and fat. An ounce shot of vanilla syrup has 100 calories and 25 g sugar. A large café mocha has 349 calories, 15 g fat and 35 g sugar. Regular soft drinks get their calories from sugars. A 32-oz. soft drink has nearly 400 calories and 100 g sugar, while a diet soft drink has no calories or sugar.
Portions
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, oversized portions are common at restaurants and encourage people to consume more than they need. You can order half portions of Bruegger's sandwiches, making the calories and fat half of what the nutrition information lists. If you do order full portions and the meal is bigger than you need at the time, split it with a friend or pack some of it up and take it home to eat later.
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