www.pashas.com Fast food has always been about unhealthy choices. Still is for the most part, but nowadays McSalad chains such as Fresh Salads and Baja Fresh Mexican are yielding fresh profits from gullible dieters. Please pardon our skepticism over the notion of iceberg lettuce, white rice, and Snapple being salubrious. We don't kid ourselves into thinking Pasha's Mediterranean menu of fried falafels, meaty kebabs, or white flour-based, boat-shaped individual pizzas called pide will lead us to the road to wellville either, but they taste better than anything you'll get at the larger corporate franchises, and if you're selective, you can indeed dine on healthy hummus, zucchini pancakes, lentil soup, and bulghur salad, all under ten dollars. More to the point, unlike the fare at other fast-food emporiums, you can eat this stuff regularly and not end up looking like Shrek.

Readers´ Choice: Giardino´s Gourmet Salads