HELP eating out

Okohme

So I have a family dinner type thing tomorrow that I'm sort of socially obligated to attend. It's at a restaurant I have never been too before, but I know it's Mexican food. Here's my issue, I looked at the menu and there is ONE vegetarian option. Fine. Whatever. But I am left with cheese enchiladas and guacamole for my options for dinner, which makes things on a diet a little tricky. How weird/bad/taboo is to like bring a bag of carrot sticks or something along to supplement my dinner, give me some fiber and freshness in an otherwise cheese drenched meal? I eat carrots a lot to help me or steamed feel fuller when I'm hungry, but as a side effect, I have come to find meals with zero fresh vegetables pretty unsatisfying. If I were making my own meal it'd be 1/2 chopped bell peppers, onions, tomatoes, carrots, etc. I'm having some anxiety at the thought of having no control here and the thought of a big greasy pile of cheese being my dinner.

JeromeBarry1

So you're vegetarian? Ask the waiter to suggest something that fits your needs. You're not the first one they've had and they have a plan.

PaytraB

Eat the carrots before you go to the restaurant, if you must. This will take away a lot of the hunger and make you more aware of the food in the restaurant.
Celebrations will always be part of life, so learning to maneuver through the meals is a useful tool.
Plan ahead by exercising a bit each day and not eating back the calories. This will give you a calorie cushion. Since this dinner is tomorrow, plan on exercising a few extra times in the coming week to offset the meal.
Tomorrow, eat through the day but veer towards more vegetables to keep consumption lower. This way, you won't be hungry through the day and still have a larger portion of calories left for dinner.
Plan ahead by eating a bit less for a few days to "save" the calories for the dinner. Again, since the dinner is tomorrow, plan on eating less for a few days in the coming week.

You've got this! You can do it. Stay aware and enjoy the meal. It takes a bit of planning but don't be afraid of a good cheesy meal occasionally. If the cheese can be slid off to the side, have some of it only.

Let us know how it goes. Have fun.

Okohme

PaytraB wrote: »

Eat the carrots before you go to the restaurant, if you must. This will take away a lot of the hunger and make you more aware of the food in the restaurant.
Celebrations will always be part of life, so learning to maneuver through the meals is a useful tool.
Plan ahead by exercising a bit each day and not eating back the calories. This will give you a calorie cushion. Since this dinner is tomorrow, plan on exercising a few extra times in the coming week to offset the meal.
Tomorrow, eat through the day but veer towards more vegetables to keep consumption lower. This way, you won't be hungry through the day and still have a larger portion of calories left for dinner.
Plan ahead by eating a bit less for a few days to "save" the calories for the dinner. Again, since the dinner is tomorrow, plan on eating less for a few days in the coming week.

You've got this! You can do it. Stay aware and enjoy the meal. It takes a bit of planning but don't be afraid of a good cheesy meal occasionally. If the cheese can be slid off to the side, have some of it only.

Let us know how it goes. Have fun.

Good point, I guess I'll eat my fresh veggies beforehand. I'm currently using Fitbit which is day to day rather than weekly, so it makes one big dinner a little harder.
RE the cheese: Given the menu, cheese is literally my dinner. That's all.

007Aggie

Do they not offer fajitas? Most places will have peppers and onions with their fajitas.

Beans? Surely they have them, but double check if they are vegetarian. Often refried are not but a lot of places also offer black as an option.

Salad? No taco salad? Lettuce, tomato, guac, rice, maybe see if you can sub peppers and onions for meat, and hopefully add a veggie bean option.

kathrynjean_

If you're that concerned about the cheese, I would just order without it or ask them to go light. I am vegan (so no dairy) and often order items at Mexican/ Tex Mex restaurants with no cheese and sour cream (e.g., burritos, tacos). I've never had a problem with this and it's always still tasty!

As someone else suggested, fajitas are a nice option (if available) because you make your own.

ccjlgrider

Just order veggie fajitas or "chicken fajitas hold the chicken." Lol!

littlechiaseed

This is always a problem for me especially while traveling so I look up a menu in advance if I can and I will eat something before if I can and just get a salad or something but I have totally brought my own nuts and seeds to put on a salad to make it more filling and to add some protein. You could also call int place in advance to see about veg options, Mexican food is very easy to do vegetarian. Ask about the beans...rice is usually fine and they can do a side salad. Sometimes I get a baked potato. I wouldn't bring carrots that's weird..just sub out a side for a salad. Surely they have salad stuff if they serve tacos.

PennWalker

Okohme wrote: »

So I have a family dinner type thing tomorrow that I'm sort of socially obligated to attend. It's at a restaurant I have never been too before, but I know it's Mexican food. Here's my issue, I looked at the menu and there is ONE vegetarian option. Fine. Whatever. But I am left with cheese enchiladas and guacamole for my options for dinner, which makes things on a diet a little tricky. How weird/bad/taboo is to like bring a bag of carrot sticks or something along to supplement my dinner, give me some fiber and freshness in an otherwise cheese drenched meal? I eat carrots a lot to help me or steamed feel fuller when I'm hungry, but as a side effect, I have come to find meals with zero fresh vegetables pretty unsatisfying. If I were making my own meal it'd be 1/2 chopped bell peppers, onions, tomatoes, carrots, etc. I'm having some anxiety at the thought of having no control here and the thought of a big greasy pile of cheese being my dinner.

I feel for you. There are very limited options for vegetarians at a lot of restaurants.

I wouldn't bring the carrots.

Instead of that, I would eat something at home so I wasn't starving (and absolutely keep that to myself) and then eat light at the restaurant. Like someone else said, ask the waiter to suggest something or just order a few side dishes.

Okohme

Thanks for the input, all. I will ask them about the black beans and the rice when I get there, I know the pintos(refried) are NOT veggie friendly. I love fajitas my issue is the last time I ordered fajitas I got some pork mixed into mine and was sick the rest of the night so I am wary of them now. Guess I'll load up on my carrots at home and hope for the best.

dwatkins23

I'm a huge bean burrito fan, too. One local restaurant here does a black bean burrito with sauteed onions and peppers that is to die for

Maybe you could ask for a taco salad but scrap the meat for some black beans (minus shell, cheese, and sour cream)? That, with lettuce, guac, pico, and salsa would be YUMM-O!