How do you estimate takeaway and cafe food calories

whatstheword17

What methods do you use to log takeaways? Or foods from canteens, cafes that don't display calories,weight etc.

RAinWA

If it's something that I can easily deconstruct at home, I weigh individual components and log something similar from the database. I had teryiaki the other night and weighed out the rice and the meat.

For restaurants that don't have calorie counts, I just find something similar from a chain restaurant.

It's not perfect but it's worked for me. That's one reason weighing food at home can be so important - you learn what a portion of various foods look like and that helps when you can't weigh your food.

Jackie9003

I look for something similar in the database or try to estimate based on something I've done at home or eaten elsewhere. There's no way it will be accurate but I'd rather put something than nothing.

Lillymoo01

I just find something in the database that is a close fit to what I am eating. If it is takeaway and I am eating at home I will weigh it, but otherwise will guess. If I can't find anything in the database I have been known to look online for a similar recipe and post the url into the recipe builder.
None of these will be accurate but close enough is good enough if it isn't happening all the time. We also need to have a method of weight control that is sustainable and there is no way I never want to eat out for fear of inaccurate logging. To me, that is not healthy.

Xughs

With takeaway I’ve found in the database that there is already some specific entries for general common takeaway foods for example you can select Chicken Tikka - Indian Takeaway and that would give you a ballpark figure, it won’t be hugely accurate but then personally I’ll then Itry and stay a little extra under my calories for the day just to be on the safe side

Danp

My approach is to find the closest matches I can in the database then pick one that's on the higher side for calories without being crazy high.

For example if the search turned up the following options

800 cal
750 cal
420 cal
400 cal
390 cal
150 cal
140 cal

I'd log the 420 cal option as 800 & 750 are high outliers, 150 & 140 are low outliers and 420 is the higher side of the 'reasonable' options. Gets me in the ball park (which is all you can really do when you're guessing) but gives a bit of wiggle room to account for the inherent inaccuracy of guessing.

kgirlhart

For chain restaurants I use the calories that they list on their websites, and often on their menus. For mom & pop restaurants I pick a similar chain restaurant and use their nutrition info.