Favorite 'dining out' meals?

humbl3kay

What are your favorite 'dining out' (fast food, sit down, date night out, etc.) meals? How healthy are they? And what's the restaurant?

And what are 'better' choices to order, when eating at a local spot that doesn't post nutrition facts for meals served?

nicoleaprilhardcastle

I personally love going to a steakhouse . I order a 6 oz steak with broccoli and a salad with whatever dressing I like. A little bit of indulgence but mostly good choices.

bri170lb

Red Robin ' s Encinada Chicken Platter - 356 calories and very good!

I also order a 6 oz fillet, salad and broccoli when we go to a steak place.

Jimmy Johns lettuce wraps are good too.

jjskk

I like Chili's Margarita Grilled Chicken. 580 calories. Plus, they don't serve bread so no temptation there.

Linzon

Wendy's chili and a small chocolate Frosty Don't know how 'healthy' it is but it's delicious!

PhoenixJax29

Curry Goat with Rice and Peas and Coleslaw

Strawblackcat

A really nice 100% grassfed steak cooked to medium with a side salad is my absolute favorite...That said, most restaurants don't offer that, so I usually settle for a grassfed burger that I eat with a knife and fork to emulate eating a steak.

Steamed Alaskan crab legs with steamed mussels runs a close second, though.

robot_potato

I usually have a burger and fries, I give myself 2 options. A) I swap my bun out for lettuce or b) I have salad instead of fries.
At red robin's I get popcorn shrimp and split it with my hubby or my 10 year old.
At noodle box I split something good with the hubby, I find their portions quite generous, a half serving is enough and usually costs me about 300 calories.
At the keg I save my calories up and have a steak with shrimp and scallops in bearnaise sauce.

seltzermint555

I love going out for Thai, I generally get any curry or the hot basil with chicken...sometimes I get a thing called Crying Tiger Salad that is basically a cold salad of lettuce, onion & cabbage with tons of spices and lean slices of spicy beef all over the top. I sometimes get a side of jasmine rice with that. SO good. I know the sodium in Thai food is pretty crazy and can show on the scale for a day or two after, but it's worth it, and at least the meals tend to include lots of veggies and some protein.

Mexican is another favorite of mine. I usually skip the chips entirely and focus on enjoying my entree. Favorites are tamales and huevos con chorizo. Yum! If I want to go a little lighter, my favorite Mexican restaurant offers a meal that is basically a bag of steamed broccoli & cauliflower, fajita chicken or steak, and grilled squash, piled on top of a THIN layer of rice drizzled in queso sauce. SO good! My biggest indulgence when eating Mexican is chile rellenos with beans and rice. I usually get that after a major hike and enjoy every bite!

When I go out to dinner with my girlfriends or have a weekly lunch meet up with my dad, I have less control over where I go...so I wanted to add the choices I usually make on those occasions:

Steak N' Shake - double steakburger with no cheese, lettuce, onion, pickle & mustard.
Jimmy's Egg - one ingredient chorizo omelet, fruit cup & cottage cheese.
Burger King - 10 piece nugget with BBQ sauce.
Panda Express - any small entree in a "bowl" with veggies for side, no rice.
Chipotle - steak burrito bowl, no cheese but add 1/2 sour cream and extra veg.
Long John Silvers (rarely go as its not my sort of thing) - one piece fried fish, double green beans.
if going to a BBQ restaurant I usually get a sandwich and leave all or half of the bun uneaten. Sweet potato fries for my side.
At a bar & grill I usually get something like fried mushrooms and share with friends and also have a craft beer or two.

When going to a coffee shop with friends I ALWAYS get black coffee, hot or iced, and if I'm in the mood and have the calories, I get a cookie or pastry to go with it. It cracks me up honestly because several of my girlfriends will be drinking a HUGE mocha and drooling over the small sugar cookie I am eating with my black coffee...saying how they can't see how I eat that and lose weight, never mind the fact that my coffee has 5 cal and theirs has 470.

KarenB927

When we get Chinese takeout, I love the steamed shrimp and vegetables with garlic sauce. It's one of the few "safe" meals for me, since I have celiacs disease. They use nice large shrimp and the garlic sauce is made with corn starch to thicken it, instead of flour. When I'm in the mood for sesame chicken, I make a gluten-free sesame chicken and homemade fried rice. It's a little complicated and takes time to make, but since my husband and I can get 2 meals out of it, it's worth it because the leftovers are a breeze to reheat.

Francl27

Whatever I'm actually in the mood for.

callsitlikeiseeit

i dont eat at many chain places, but lots of local ones (and all the time). my favorite go to dishes (depending on meal/ where i am....)

belgian waffles
fish tacos
paninis

i was actually just saying th other day how we need to try NEW places, as we eat at the same ones all the time lol

humbl3kay

Thanks for the great info. Gonna have to try some of these dishes when the chance arises!! And callsit, I completely understand. My husband did delivery for years to restaurants and now we only go to certain ones, since he knows what the back looks like. ;-) and we are creatures of habit!!

annette_15

We always go to high end restaurants that dont have nutrition info on the rare occasion we do go out, or we go for sushi. I always just skip the bread, apps and get grilled fish or steak with one side of steamed veggie for me, and then I'll try a little bit of whichever side/s dh decides on. If he wants desert I'll have a bite or two, I always get a coffee if he does as I find it keeps me from overindulging. For sushi I typically get an avocado roll, a tuna roll and some edamame... I dont like all the fancy stuff

CooCooPuff

Quail at Mexican restaurants. I don't usually like food with bones, but it's fun to tear into.