Enjoy a Healthy Happy Hour at Flyte

Nestled on the corner of 8th Avenue and Division, just a short walk from the bustling Gulch neighborhood, you will find Flyte World Dining and Wine restaurant. Their quaint little patio is the perfect place for a happy hour drink, while relaxing to the soothing sounds of Frank Sinatra after a long day of work. Happy hour spirits include $2-$4 select draft beers, $3 well drinks, $5 martinis and $6 select wines. It’s also the perfect time to indulge in items from Flyte’s lounge and anti-pasta menu for 25% off. These discounted menus are offered in the bar and on the patio. The lounge menu offers sweet potato fries with herb aioli, a veggie burger with cheddar cheese, Bonnie Blue fried goat cheese with a variety of sauces, BBQ pork sliders on sweet potato biscuits, buffalo chicken spring rolls with blue cheese emulsion and the chef’s selection of dessert du jour. The fun begins at 4:30pm and lasts until 7:30pm Tuesday through Saturday.

All of the menu items were tempting, but my friends and I chose something different. We sampled a variety of items on the lounge menu. I chose the veggie burger with sweet potato fries, while my friends decided on the BBQ pork sliders and the buffalo chicken spring rolls. The spring rolls are fried, therefore, this is a food that, as a registered dietitian, I would only recommend in moderation. Healthier options included the veggie burger, sweet potato fries and the BBQ pork sliders. Being on the lounge menu, these small meals are just the right size, so you don’t leave feeling “stuffed.” These portion sizes are more accurate to what Americans should consume on a regular basis.

Focusing on the nutritional value of my meal, I’ll start with the sweet potato fries. Potatoes, regular and sweet, have gotten a bad rap over the past few years with the low carb craze. However, excess carbohydrates are no more fattening than excess calories from any source, including fat, protein and carbohydrates. Excess calories from any source are stored as body fat. Sweet potatoes are high in fiber, vitamins A and C, iron, calcium and complex carbohydrates. A small baked sweet or regular potato only yields about 80 calories. It’s what we pile on top that tends to make them unhealthy. Imagine one tablespoon of butter has 70 calories and one tablespoon of sour cream has 30 calories! This alone adds an additional 100 calories to your healthy potato. Even in the fried form, sweet potatoes only yield approximately 90-100 calories per serving.

Flyte’s veggie burger has a bit of history associated with it. After talking with Chef Ashley Quick, I discovered that the base of the veggie burger is made of Sea Island Red Peas. These peas originated from Africa and represent the variety of heirloom field peas that went into the creation of the dish Hoppin’ John in Coastal Carolina. Sea Island Red Peas cook to a sweet, creamy richness and Flyte receives theirs from Charleston, South Carolina. Red peas are a great source of fiber, protein, complex carbohydrates and B vitamins. As a healthy adult, you need 20-35 grams of fiber a day. One half cup of red peas supplies approximately 4-10 grams of fiber, making this heirloom field pea a great place to start. Ashley described to me they first cook the peas in vegetable stock and then grind the peas with an array of vegetables. Next is the addition of bread crumbs, salt, pepper, herbs and spices. This mixture is then formed into a hamburger patty and cooked. This burger has added nutritional value by being served on a whole wheat bun. You can 86 the cheddar cheese to make this meal even more nutritious.

So stop by Flyte after a busy day of work or just on a lazy Saturday afternoon during happy hour and enjoy an inexpensive, nutritious meal!