Overeating at Resturants

champion818
champion818 Posts: 65 Member
edited November 27 in Food and Nutrition
So I don’t go out to eat at resturants often , but when I do sometimes the menu does not have the calories listed . I even asked my server and he replied “ there is not a calorie count here “ . Although this is rare as most resturants do list calories . What can you do when you are in situations where you have no idea how many calories you are honeslty eating .

For example , I went to a cafe last night and the menu had no listed nutritional values . So I ended up getting a salad and took off the cheese , bread and meat and just had lettuce and a little salt because I was not going to go over calories blindly !

Thanks

Replies

  • RunsWithBees
    RunsWithBees Posts: 1,508 Member
    edited June 2018
    If the portion is obviously too large, get the to-go box at the beginning of your meal and put half of it in there, enjoy the other half in the restaurant. This can save calories and money, as you get 2 meals out of one. You will sometimes have to guesstimate the calories for restaurant calories but they are usually on the higher side because of the often liberal use of oils, dressings and larger portions.
  • staticsplit
    staticsplit Posts: 538 Member
    I just guess and don't overstress. Over the week, if you're pretty sensible, even if you're a bit off in your estimation, it should even out. I was just in Romania for 10 days. Had zero idea what the calories were in anythinggg. I had fun while I was there, also walked a lot. I gained less than half a pound and it's gone now.
  • kbmnurse1
    kbmnurse1 Posts: 316 Member
    Eat.
  • vegmebuff
    vegmebuff Posts: 31,389 Member
    I too rarely go to restaurants (prefer home cooked meals) but of course I do go to them on occasion.

    I usually end up asking the server to see if the kitchen could steam vegetables/poach some fish, etc., sauce is asked to be on the side for salads/entrees etc.,

    Most - if not all the restaurants have been great to accommodate my requests.

    Otherwise I'd be 'picking' off the 'stuff' I don't wish to consume.
  • wmweeza
    wmweeza Posts: 319 Member
    I usually eat about 1/4 to 1/3 of what's on my plate when I go out and take the rest home, or I get an appetizer as my meal and still guess on the calories. If I know calorie counts it's easy, but I have a general idea of what chicken wings have for calories (for example).
    Besides, I don't eat out often enough for it to derail me, and a cheat meal every once in awhile is good for your mental well being
  • stevephi01
    stevephi01 Posts: 240 Member
    As a former chunky chops and am still not quite there, also one for never really gong out and dreading having to do so, may I offer this support. At the outset were live in different countries so our portion sizes and mileage may differ.

    Get a handle on what calorific value is for certain meals, take a mental note and over time you get a sense of a potion size. You also get a sense of which types of meals suit you. You become instinctively aware overall and not have to battle with one meal at a time - getting each one 'just right' - the bigger picture.

    I've just returned from a weekend away, relying solely on restaurant food. I observed my friends, as much as I guess they did me. Breakfast I went all out, many went pretty light. We had a mid morning stop and all of them needed to have something to eat and a coffee or tea. I didn't need to. Lunch time I went heavier than some, went for a slim burger rather than a sandwich. Afternoon stop they were at it again having to have cake and this and that, I sailed through with water.
    Evening meal starter main and desert, mine was a mangy small main, cut the other two out. Having seen me going all out in the morning they were wondering how come I was able to lose as much as I have. I was larger than most of them and am now slimer than many.


    It takes time, but get that balance right.
  • PixelPuff
    PixelPuff Posts: 902 Member
    edited June 2018
    There is usually some form of grilled chicken on every place with a menu... May not come with the healthiest stuff, but at least there is a non deep-fried option 95% of the time. There is a start.

    I'll sub out the sides for veggies (steamed brocco, hell yes), ask for whatever is on the chicken to come on the side (never know with some sauces), etc.

    If they don't have it, and nothing looks particularly healthy... Just friggin' ask. "Any way I can just get some grilled chicken breast with yadda yadda as sides?"

    I do this at Chinese places, too. Chicken & Broccoli, sauce on the side. They always give too much rice - I admit I throw most away, it doesn't exactly refrigerate well.

    (Edit; I also portion stuff out ahead of time. Example, pizza place... I order a small veggie calzone. It was pretty large, so I split it in half and took half home.)
  • Cbean08
    Cbean08 Posts: 1,092 Member
    I eat out a lot, usually at places with no calories listed. I have no problems.

    1. smart choices - choose a meal with components that you are familiar with and that you could estimate calories in. I also choose things that I can easily deconstruct so I can re-portion as needed.
    2. self control and honesty- restaurants typically use full fat ingredients and add butter and oil for flavor. That Mac and cheese is not the same calories as a Lean Cuisine. Don't kid yourself by thinking a vegetable lasagna is "low calorie" or an enchilada is covered in fat free cheese. You do not have to finish your entire plate. And really, no one cares if you do or not.
    3. Eat off a different plate- when your meal plate comes, ask for a bread plate or a salad plate. Portion your amount off the meal plate and onto the smaller plate. Have the rest of it boxed up immediately.
    4. Share- I'm a big food sharer. Sometimes I'll just order a side of vegetables and then eat a portion of my boyfriend's meal and a bit of his appetizer. I get more variety this way and it helps me try new foods.
  • snemberton
    snemberton Posts: 175 Member
    We went out for dinner last night. The restaurant where we planned to go (and I had budgeted calories for my favorite meal there!) had moved to summer hours and closed after lunch on Sundays. :( So we opted to go to the German restaurant instead. German food is not exactly low calorie and since I don't go to this place all that often, I wasn't about to deviate from my favorite stuff. They also don't list calorie counts and have massive serving sizes.

    So instead of gorging myself, I had about a quarter of the small soft pretzel with a couple of small dunks in the beer cheese and one of the (sausage link size) brats. I cut my sandwich in half and only ate a quarter of the potatoes. Guesstimates of similar foods in the database put me somewhere just at maintenance for the day. I estimated on the higher side too, so maybe I was still under? It was one meal and I've been doing well the whole week, so far from a problem at all. And I enjoyed it immensely.

    I wouldn't recommend this approach if you eat out daily or anything, but a couple times a month isn't the end of the world, especially if you are normally doing fine. Just don't feel the need to clean your plate when eating out and try to aim for 1/3 or 1/2 of the portions. Split appetizers with people (and take the smaller portion yourself). Avoid the mindless eating traps like chips and salsa (or be super strict with them - I personally limit myself to 10-12 chips and eat them really slowly). If you get a salad, don't flood it with dressing, maybe remove some of the cheese and croutons, but enjoy the meat for protein. Most places rarely put tons of meat on salads anyway for cost. Overall, just be a little more mindful of portion sizes and condiments and enjoy the treat. If it is an occasional event, it won't be detrimental in the grand scheme!
  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,252 Member
    Have you watched chefs prepare food? They are not weighing ingredients with calories as a concern. Taste and flavor are highest priorities along with speed and keeping the orders moving.

    Calorie estimation from a restaurant is a best guess at best.
  • sharke087
    sharke087 Posts: 30 Member
    I assume that each piece of the meal is 1 serving of that food item and I just “assemble” it myself with the foods I know for certain are in it. I might be a little off, but never by anything too crazy.
  • DragonHasTheSapphire
    DragonHasTheSapphire Posts: 184 Member
    kommodevaran wrote: »
    If it's a rare occasion, just eat and enjoy. In fact, eat an enjoy every meal. Picking at food can lead you towards mindsets you don't want.

    I could never agree more. I wouldn't want anyone to go through what I did.
  • rikkejohnsenrij
    rikkejohnsenrij Posts: 510 Member
    I dont eat out too often. (1-2 a month) so when I do, I just bank up calories before and eat it all :) in 2 weeks we are going out for lobster, steak and chocolate mousse( pre ordered menu)..I'll hopefully manage to walk 8-10 km before that and have 700 cals left over from my normal calories that day as well - leaving me 1400 calories for the 3 dishes :p
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    edited June 2018
    I don't go out often, so I just pick whatever sounds most appealing to me from the menu and use similar entries to log it. I would never ever go to a restaurant to eat lettuce. Waste of money and good time.

    If it's a very regular thing that happens several times a week and you have a say in which restaurant you're going to, maybe have a few restaurant options to choose from that have lower calorie dishes that you like and pick one of these whenever you go out. If you don't have a say, there is nothing wrong with eating at home and just having coffee, ordering food only occasionally.
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