Do restaurants weigh their food cooked or uncooked?

shiragatama

Hi there! I'm going to Pappadeaux to celebrate my mother's birthday tonight, and luckily they serve "naked fish" with just the filet and vegetables; my question is though, when the menu says "___ oz," do they mean that the fish was that amount of ounces before they cooked it, or that the final cooked filet is said-weight? They are offering 7 oz and 11 oz of salmon.
I know that cooking will reduce the ounces in the fish, and I just want to make sure I'm not ordering too much, calorie-wise.

(Also, one more question, around how many calories do ya'll think are in 7 or 11 oz of salmon after its been char-grilled? I'm assuming it would be different than raw calories, as the fat renders off when grilled, etc)

bpetrosky

Protein portions on the menu are listed at their uncooked weights (i.e. 6 oz steak, 4 oz chicken, etc.).

cmriverside

yeah. Raw weights.

monkeystikx

I've professionally cooked,for many years, weights are always pre-cooked/raw. Depnding on the meat, moister level, degree of cooking etc, you can expect the cooked meat to lose anywhere between 20%-30% of the original weight.

Dee_D33

While that would typically refer to the raw weight, know that restaurants don’t weigh their portions prior to cooking them and they may vary. I have worked in the restaurant industry for 6 years and know now a lot I didn’t before. Menu calorie counts in and of themselves are guesstimations. Fillets of any meat can vary by enough to add or subtract calories from the count and the a lot of things are simply “eyeballed” such as the oil on grills, soup in a bowl, various toppings and sauces or cups of dressings. Just a forewarning. While I doubt the variation is enough to set you back it should be noted.

mmapags

Dee_D33 wrote: »

While that would typically refer to the raw weight, know that restaurants don’t weigh their portions prior to cooking them and they may vary. I have worked in the restaurant industry for 6 years and know now a lot I didn’t before. Menu calorie counts in and of themselves are guesstimations. Fillets of any meat can vary by enough to add or subtract calories from the count and the a lot of things are simply “eyeballed” such as the oil on grills, soup in a bowl, various toppings and sauces or cups of dressings. Just a forewarning. While I doubt the variation is enough to set you back it should be noted.

I would disagree with you as a Head Chef/ Owner. Portions of meat and fish are cut and weighed for portion and cost control. Things like oil when cooking not so much. It's true that menu calorie counts are guesstimations but main course portions of proteins, veg and starch are weighed or scooped with a portion scoop by any operator that wants to be profitable and for the purpose of giving a consistent experience to the diner.

jefamer2017

When I worked for a beef processing plant we cut steaks for Outback, Chili's and a few other chain restaurants. We would weigh a 12oz steak at 11.5 to 12.5oz a 9oz would be 8.5 to 9.5. Smaller cuts would be a quarter ounce +/-

rickdkitson

I thought that a lot of restaurant meat came in portion control packages. Each steak, chop or fillet was vacuum sealed in an individual package and all in the box were in the same weight range.

If that is the case then it must refer to raw weight as it is weighed and packed at the plant.