Just curious: what's your go-to choice when menus have nothing you'd want to eat?

LiveInLeggings

Usually an appetizer and a salad is plenty. That way I get something small and tasty and my greens as well.

RadishEater

COGypsy wrote: »

I'm part of a supper club that gets together for dinner once a week. We take turns picking places to go, so there are definitely times when the restaurant and its menu are not what I'd prefer. When that happens, I usually will just have an appetizer or else I order a couple of side dishes a la carte and sort of invent my own dinner. We went to a BBQ place a couple of weeks ago. I'm not big on BBQ, so I ordered a side of beans and a side of cornbread and ended up having a really tasty dinner!

Not big on BBQ??!??
Are you eating good BBQ? As a southern chick who lives in the north, I find people are playing fast and loose with the term BBQ and what's good BBQ.

I am fortunate to have a small restaurant in town that has sauced covered ribs that the meat slides off, a hearty Mac n cheese, and greens that taste like bacon.
Pecan pie could use some work though

brig220

A couple of high protein appetizers, they are usually more tasty and lower in calories because of size. I like be mussels, humus, bruschettas, roasted veggies, etc.

motivatedmartha

jrwms714 wrote: »

Hi, all. I've been on maintenance for almost 3 years, using MFP for 6. We eat out a lot, and sometimes there is nothing on the menu that I would eat. (I've become a picky eater and am very health conscious ... almost vegetarian/vegan, but not quite.) I always check the menu online beforehand, so if there is NOTHING, I will pre-eat and then have a side salad. If there is a Caesar, I order it without croutons, some extra Parmesan, and dressing on the side, with broiled salmon shrimp on top. I am very satisfied with that. I have found similar things when it is a more ethnic restaurant. I don't feel at all deprived when the menu is one that doesn't work. Years ago, I would have been frustrated about this, but for a long time I have been pretty happy with my food choices, and the way I relate to food for the past bunch of years. But I was just curious as to what others do when they have this situation?

I thought your choice sounded pretty good and I would probably go with something similar. When going out in a bigger social group I understand how you may not want to veto their choice of restaurant if you're the only one not happy with it. I joined a large group out for a pub lunch where most of the menu choices were far too heavy for me at lunchtime and the veggie options (I'm not veggie but it is often a good choice for a lighter lunch) were all cheese and cream based. Luckily I found an interesting salad with feta. Eating out is sometimes more about time spent with friends and family than the meal.

DX2JX2

kballsocc wrote: »

COGypsy wrote: »

I'm part of a supper club that gets together for dinner once a week. We take turns picking places to go, so there are definitely times when the restaurant and its menu are not what I'd prefer. When that happens, I usually will just have an appetizer or else I order a couple of side dishes a la carte and sort of invent my own dinner. We went to a BBQ place a couple of weeks ago. I'm not big on BBQ, so I ordered a side of beans and a side of cornbread and ended up having a really tasty dinner!

Not big on BBQ??!??
Are you eating good BBQ? As a southern chick who lives in the north, I find people are playing fast and loose with the term BBQ and what's good BBQ.

I am fortunate to have a small restaurant in town that has sauced covered ribs that the meat slides off, a hearty Mac n cheese, and greens that taste like bacon.
Pecan pie could use some work though

Those ribs are overcooked. The meat shouldn't slide off. It should still have a little bit of a tug to it but yield without too much effort.

Southern indeed.

RadishEater

Okay, they don't quite slide off. But many places I have been to, you have to gnaw the meat off, and it is definitely overcooked and dry.

Also to comment further on @motivatedmartha post, I am wavering on a common theme that eating out is more about time spent with family or friends than the meal. Perhaps because I love to cook tasty things, and read food memoirs (Julia Child's was great), I prefer to enjoy my meals even when I eat out and not have to order something I could easily make at home aka a salad.

I have been debating sides of the idea of why can't the activity be something that everyone enjoys, hiking, shopping, watching a movie etc.. It wasn't till I joined myfitnesspal, how much of my social life revolved primarily around dining out. Cutting back on eating out lets me enjoy the meal and not just eat salad and finding neat activities to do instead is also a plus. I think next up is waterfall rappelling.

vegmebuff

I will usually forgo any menu item and ask for:

Lightly steam assorted veggies
and
poached plain piece of fish
hot sauce on the side

or
fresh green assorted salad - dressing on the side
and
steamed or poached fish

never 'trust' restaurant's dressing/sauces, etc., they typically use lots of sodium/sugar/fat, etc.,

However, their are some places that do serve good quality/healthful items and tend to go there...

motivatedmartha

@kballsocc

Agree - most of my immediate family gatherings do focus on activities other than eating out. We prefer actual activities or eating in where food can be prepared to meet everyone's preferences. Hubby and I rarely eat out on our own as it seems pointless to leave home to sit in a restaurant to eat food that neither of us are fussed about. We prefer to go out walking together, swimming or theatre/cinema. BUT our family is spread out geographically and occasionally we meet up at a pub for lunch. On such occasions it is really good to catch up with them all and I do not mind what there is to eat. As I am neither a steak or burger person I prefer to find a salad and veg combination I have not tried before.

SabAteNine

I don't usually go to restaurants when I'm home, except sometimes to one close to work where I know the menu inside and out. If I'm travelling it's another story, and meals are usually arranged for groups of people so there is no way I can pick and choose where to eat. However, I can pick:

• Salad with dressing on the side
• Chicken / turkey breast with steamed vegetables & small salad
• Loin with grilled veggies
• Aubergines parmigiana or a bowl of good pasta, if the right place
• Appetizers. Cheese plates used to be my favorite
• Seafood with a side of seafood if at sea.

I also can choose not to finish the whole restaurant serving... though not if it's meat. I am of the simple principle that meat should never be thrown away.

There's a lot of subs one can do as well in most restaurants, you just need to ask!

AudreyJDuke

Chicken salad

kristingjertsen

We often end up in restaurants where it is hard to eat healthy when we eat out as a family. I can usually get a salad (hold the cheese and croutons) and some kind of grilled meat and veggies. When the trip is to a restaurant where there are no good options for me (fast food, donut shop, etc.), I usually have a glass of water with lemon or opt out of going. Last night, I ate an apple and peanut butter before we went out because I knew that we were likely to end up eating fast food due to a family activity. That way I did not eat the wrong stuff.

paperpudding

kballsocc wrote: »

I have been debating sides of the idea of why can't the activity be something that everyone enjoys, hiking, shopping, watching a movie etc.. It wasn't till I joined myfitnesspal, how much of my social life revolved primarily around dining out. Cutting back on eating out lets me enjoy the meal and not just eat salad and finding neat activities to do instead is also a plus. I think next up is waterfall rappelling.

I would say because eating together is a long time thing that humans have done socially - shopping together would be my idea of hell.

and watching a movie isnt very social - you can't chat and laugh together.

Waterfall rappelling is fine if everyone in your family wants to do it and there is a waterfall handy - cant quite see my 78 year old father going for that one, even if it was an activity near us.

Reality for most family groups is that eating together is a good medium for social catch ups that everyone can participate in.

rainbow198

I'm fine eating just sides like a salad and/or finger foods. When I stopped eating meat I quickly learned that I shouldn't go to parties or events hungry so this works for me.

I also have no problems not eating a meal. I went to a kid's party where the food didn't look appetizing and the store bought cake looked dry and covered with bright, weird looking food coloring. I slowly snacked on a fruit salad (2 helpings), sipped on water and made great friendly conversation.

After the party we went out and ate a yummy, satisfying meal. I no longer waste calories on things I don't want or eat things to make others feel better.

When going out to a restaurant I always look at the menu online at home and have 2 - 3 options ready. I can almost always find something to eat, but if not again I'm fine with eating sides or an appetizer or two.

msmonicaneo

JRWMS714, I do much the same as you. I pre-eat and have a salad with dressing on the side. I go out to eat to be with friends and loved ones and for me the food is secondary since I know all restaurants over oil, over butter and over salt items. There are some places that I enjoy, and I can make healthy choices there. I enjoy that when it happens. I worked hard to lose nearly 100 pounds and have maintained it for six years. This is now my lifestyle, I worked hard to attain it and now love it, and it’s what I care about, not rich, calorie ladened food. Thanks for sharing how you stay healthy while eating out!

jrwms714

Back at ya, @msmonicaneo ! You have said it far better than I ever did in any of my postings in this thread.