eating out at local restaurants

kybassman

How do you log your food when you eat at local or small chain restaurants that MFP doesn't have in their database? Where i live there isn't a lot of national chain places. especially Mexican food. So far i have been just trying to put everything in based on a guesstimate of what and how much is in it. Wondering what others do.

jvcjim

guesstimating is pretty much how i do it as well.

zyxst

I use chain restaurants that serve similar food.

trigden1991

Use the most sensible approximation.

Machka9

One of the things I've done is to look up recipes that seems as close to what I was served as possible and use them as a basis of my guestimate.

Cbestinme

There are some entries in mfp database for things like tacos. I've used those when I get tacos from this little whole in the wall. It's just guessing. If the foods are similar to Chipotle foods you could try to rebuild your plate from the Chipotle entries, that may (or not) be helpful.

aliem

I use chains and then alter for size. If you go off of homemade or internet recipes, I would add a blanket 100-300 calories (depending on how much of the portion you ate and where the food came from.) The reason why restaurant food tastes so great is because they tend to finish dishes and sauces with lots of butter or oil. Since I am a pretty small woman (5'2''), I know that I really should not be eating more than half the portion served even on days that I worked out, unless I want to completely mess up my day's calories.

Karb_Kween

Maybe you can use it as a "treat"

Thats what Id do and leave 600 calories or so off