Food Scale in Restaurant?

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  • cnbbnc
    cnbbnc Posts: 1,267 Member
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    No. I carry enough crap around on a daily basis without adding a scale. I'll try to look up calorie counts online, but that's as far as I'll go. If I find nutritional info online, great. If not, I just guesstimate.
  • debrakgoogins
    debrakgoogins Posts: 2,033 Member
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    No. This is a lifetime process for me, not temporary and I don't intend to weigh food that I eat when I go out forever. I make the best choices I can when I eat out. I log as accurately as possible. I start weighing when I return home. I do admit that I have a scale in the kitchen cupboard at my office though. I spend most of my time at work and eat two snacks and one meal there every day so that is important to me.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,988 Member
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    spttdb wrote: »
    I automatically ask for a doggie bag and 1/2 my meal from the start - you can take the other 1/2 home and weigh it or some restaurants give a calorie count and you can decide beforehand. If you're good at eyeing portions that can help also. You can get a good estimate even if you don't know all the ingredients and taking a walk after dinning can help also.

    Ya, I take half my entree home and weight it there. American portions are too big for me.
  • rankinsect
    rankinsect Posts: 2,238 Member
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    I just look at the menu beforehand and pick out my options. Then I log them ahead of time using the calories from the restaurant's nutrition info, or if not available, from a similar restaurant.

    I figure any given meal may be off but over time it averages out.
  • riceflourde
    riceflourde Posts: 58 Member
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    I have a $15 Mainstays slimline food scale from Walmart. It's my first food scale so I can't compare but I think it's pretty discreet - it looks like a tablet from 2 ft away. They have scales in the back, I agree with just asking your server. You could also call around 2 or 3 pm when it's not so busy. I've asked for the weight of meat even at fast food places.
  • cortesd
    cortesd Posts: 58 Member
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    Thanks for all the comments. I was just really curious if anyone had ever used a scale since there are a lot of hardcore "weighers" out there! I take it super serious at home, but just TLAR the logging when I go out unless I have access to the nutrition data (which I don't take as gospel).
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
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    glassyo wrote: »
    I wouldn't take one to a more upscale restaurant but I totally would to a fast food joint if I still took the time to sit down and eat at one. I was such a regular at Burger King that they would often give me extra helpings of grilled chicken instead of the normal serving.

    Otherwise, I just trust the nutritional information from said restaurants and, if you *really* feel the need to weigh, eat half your meal and take the rest home. Plus, even if you don't know exactly what goes into a recipe, they'll usually tell you any kind of sauces used so that would help.

    Ok, so you take your scale to BK, weigh your whopper, and say it's 9 ounces. Now what? 9 oz of bread, meat, cheese, sauce/condiments etc. How do you assign cals to that?
  • annette_15
    annette_15 Posts: 1,657 Member
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    If I was prepping I wouldnt be eating out. If and when I do eat out I just try to make sure I lift that day, make good choices and just guesstimate. Ill add 200 calories of fats as a buffer if it looks like they used a lot of oil and and just call it a day
  • glassyo
    glassyo Posts: 7,648 Member
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    lorrpb wrote: »
    glassyo wrote: »
    I wouldn't take one to a more upscale restaurant but I totally would to a fast food joint if I still took the time to sit down and eat at one. I was such a regular at Burger King that they would often give me extra helpings of grilled chicken instead of the normal serving.

    Otherwise, I just trust the nutritional information from said restaurants and, if you *really* feel the need to weigh, eat half your meal and take the rest home. Plus, even if you don't know exactly what goes into a recipe, they'll usually tell you any kind of sauces used so that would help.

    Ok, so you take your scale to BK, weigh your whopper, and say it's 9 ounces. Now what? 9 oz of bread, meat, cheese, sauce/condiments etc. How do you assign cals to that?

    I don't have that problem since I don't get whoppers anymore. :tongue:

    But, if you feel the need to weigh your food at a restaurant, you either take it apart and weigh everything separately or you don't and trust the nutritional info from the restaurant.

    I've gone into Subway and asked if they had a scale to weigh the scooped out part of the bread when I would get sandwiches. They didn't but they were more than happy to package it up so I could take it home and weigh it there. I did it once and from then on I had a ball park figure for what to take off (it was 50 calories, btw).

    It's definitely more difficult if it's something with a lot of ingredients but, like with me, a plain grilled chicken breast? Easy peasy.



  • hannahadrianna
    hannahadrianna Posts: 8 Member
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    juliebowman4 wrote: »
    Just my lil'ol'opinion:
    If I feel I can't relax in a social atmosphere with a friend or family member, and enjoy a meal without needing to weigh it.....then I've crossed some line between truly trying to adopt a healthy lifestyle, and obsession.

    This. Exactly.
  • Nuke_64
    Nuke_64 Posts: 406 Member
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    Not at a sit down restaurant, but I used to go to my work cafeteria salad bar every day and I did bring a small scale.

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