Dining Out

garber6th

Went to dinner with friends over the weekend. I had no idea it was going to be one of those 11 course "tasting" menus until I got there. I was a little nervous because I just didn't know how I was going to deal with all that food, and also not knowing what was going to be served. Fortunately, the courses were tiny and fortunately my friends were happy to share what I couldn't eat, and it was also fortunate that my new stomach let me know when to stop! I am such a planner when it comes to my eating, probably almost to the point of being a control freak, but that's what I need to do to stay on track. I am so glad I was able to have some sort of control even though the situation was out of my hands!

JreedyJanelle

Good for you. I can never finish a meal when we go out, and it is scary when you don't plan the meal yourself, but it sounds like you did well and that is a success in my book.

GlenErin9

You're doing great! I'm a huge plan ahead girl too. I can get quite anal about it. ⭐️

GlenErin9

JreedyJanelle wrote: »

Good for you. I can never finish a meal when we go out, and it is scary when you don't plan the meal yourself, but it sounds like you did well and that is a success in my book.

I make a habit of ordering a la cart (off the menu) when I go out to eat now. I might order a 4oz steak by itself or a single taco instead of ordering a full meal. I haven't been to a restaurant yet that hasn't let me do this.

pawoodhull

Sounds similar to the Chinese buffet I went to a couple of weeks ago. Love that my sleeve lets me know when to stop eating. The variety of things like yours and the buffet I did allows us to choose a lot of protein items while avoiding the things we don't want.

crepes_

That's so great! I'm still learning the ropes of ordering at a restaurant. I get so nervous and I feel like everyone's going to judge me for not clearing my plate. Like people are going to think I'm snobby and didn't like the food. It's such a strange thing to need to get over. I order a small appetizer and beg my husband to take most of it, haha!

sinderstorm

I usually order an appetizer, cup of soup, or ala carte. If I decide to get an entree, it's usually something I know will reheat well and I just ask for a box. "Its really good, but I'm full. Can I please get a box?" with a smile and I've never been made to feel badly for it.

gardendoc

I travel A LOT for work and eating in restaurants can be challenging. Ala cart is good, asking for a takeout container to be delivered when served allows me to remove what I'm not going to eat right up front. Making sure your dinner companions know what's going on helps.

garber6th

Sometimes when I go out to eat with friends, I will just take a few bites of food from what each of them order. I warned them before I had surgery that I was probably going to do that, so they are totally good with it, and it really works out well :-)

pawoodhull

sinderstorm wrote: »

I usually order an appetizer, cup of soup, or ala carte. If I decide to get an entree, it's usually something I know will reheat well and I just ask for a box. "Its really good, but I'm full. Can I please get a box?" with a smile and I've never been made to feel badly for it.

This! I found if I preface the box request with a compliment on the food and "it's just way too much for me!" I never get asked if my meal was OK. We go to the same place for breakfast after church on Sundays and I love that the staff know me so well now they never give me more than 1/2 cup of coffee and always bring a box if I order anything other than the corned beef hash.

badhair56

when the wife and I go out to eat we usually order just one plate and split it. so far we haven't run into any problems, in fact last Friday we went to Pappadeaux's (cajun seafood) and before we could ask for a second plate the waitress offered to have the cooks split the meal in to two portions. (still ended up with the wife getting part of my share). when we do order different meals, getting a take out box is never a problem and so far i've never been asked about why i didn't finish a meal. by the way having leftovers is great, especially when not to long ago i was one of those "clean your plate, no matter how large the portions are" kinda guys

kimberleei1

I'm only 3 months out and going on vacation next week. Can't eat steaks or salads yet..sigh. Any suggestions?

garber6th

kimberleei1 wrote: »

I'm only 3 months out and going on vacation next week. Can't eat steaks or salads yet..sigh. Any suggestions?

Where will you be going on vacation? Do you know what kind of food will be available?

sinderstorm

Seafood will probably be your best bet at 3mo out. Shrimp, crab, lobster, or white fish (cod, mahi mahi, halibut, tilapia, etc) are all pretty readily available and sat well with me pretty early on. A cup of soup or chili is another option, and if you bring some, unflavored protein powder can kick it up if you're worried about not getting your protein in.

pawoodhull

Kimberleei1, I went to Alaska at 3 months out. The good thing was we stayed with our son and his family so they stocked the yogurt and things like that I could eat. But we did eat out a lot. I tended to stay with a cup of chili or a small hamburger with no bun as they were the perfect size for my 3 month new tummy. If I did order a full meal (like the yummy caribou meatloaf!) I ate for like 3 days off that one meal! Even traveling, you should be able to find some really good protein choices. At 3 months out, the smooth foods and most ground meats work best. Good luck and have a great time!