Using New York's calorie-disclosure regulation to get the most for your money.

When New York City adopted a new rule last year requiring chain restaurants to prominently post calorie counts for every item on their menus, it was supposed to be the Day of Judgment for the fast-food industry. Knowledge is the key to winning all modern wars, and calorie information is the new weapon in the war on fat. Who could bear to utter the words "super size" while staring at the calorie counts? 

Actually, a lot of people. In fact, calorie counts are just as useful a tool to increase your calorie consumption as to reduce it. For those seeking to maximize their calorie count per dollar, the bounty of nutrition information available is a huge boon.

Years ago, in a period of extreme undergraduate poverty, I spent a lot of time staring at fast-food menus and wondering what would get me the best payoff per dollar. Usually, I settled on cheeseburgers, because at the time (this was some years ago), they came at two for a dollar. This seemed like the wiser, more frugal choice than the Big Mac, which I preferred. Yes, I was that broke.

Fortunately, nobody has to face that kind of choice now without adequate information. But doing the calorie-per-dollar math is still a pain, so we've decided to do it for you for a sampling of fast-food choices. We've stuck to the items that could reasonably hold body and soul together for some time. You can take in more calories by just eating donuts. But you will die.