Long Island Iced Tea - How Many Calories?

It's Friday. It's hot out. You're pumped for the weekend and can't wait to get it started. The perfect solution? A Long Island iced tea is a great drink to wind down the end of the summer work week with. It's cold, sweet and sure to get you buzzing before you reach the ice cubes. An added bonus? Made basically from a selection of spirits, plus some lemon and a dash of soda, it's fat-free -- but what about the calorie count?

According to AOL Health, a 12-ounce LI iced tea from TGIFriday's is a shocking 520 calories -- as in, more than a Big Mac and more than 25 percent of your recommended daily caloric intake! Sheesh -- a couple of those and you might as well have inhaled the biggest dessert on the menu. Lesson number one: Fat-free does not mean calorie-free. Lesson number two: Sweet, strong drinks come with a hefty price that you'll be paying in added inches to your waistline.

Some better options? Wine is usually your best bet -- white wine is slightly more waistline-friendly. Can't stomach the vino? A mojito might hit the spot, and though it comes with its fair share of sugar, it's still a far cry from 520 calories (For the record, a mojito has about 160 calories.)