Restaurants -_-

healthychanges1

What are some relatively "safe" restaurant foods. I shy away from salads because high fat/calorie dressings and toppings. After reading an "eat this, not that" book I realized that i really have no idea what's good to eat out. I'm going out tonight (not sure where yet) and I'm really scared, haha. I don't want to go over my calories. Can someone give me ideas?

flyingcarbaccio

Grilled chicken and steamed veggies are a safe bet.

EvanKeel

Order salads with the dressing on the side.

Grilled, lean proteins and veggies. Be mindful of sauces. Having a sirloin steak (relatively lean for beef) doesn't count if it's drenched in a buerre blanc. Or go town, enjoy yourself, and make up for later in the week.

jerbear1962

Having cooked for many restaurants you can special order foods if you don't see how they are prepared on the menu, steamed items are usually safe, most grilled item are too. As someone else said get your dressing on the side and dip your salad bites into it. Watch for items that say sauteed, drenched, covered, sitting in or on. If it is a reputable place the wait staff should be able to help..

cmeade20

Most broth based soups are safe. Small steak or grilled chicken breast with veggie sides. Some sort of salad you can eat and enjoy without dressing. And out of all the chain restaurants I've found Ruby Tuesday to be the most low cal friendly.

firstsip

Yeah, out of all of the chain restaurants, Ruby Tuesday and Mongolian BBQ are good ones--between the posted nutrition facts in plain site, and the customization options (both have salad bars, you can eat fully lean protein and veggies at Mongos) are pretty stellar.

But, like someone else said--it's okay to splurge and just not splurge the rest of the week. If I know I'm going out, I do the 80/20 ratio: I'll eat only healthy, non-processed foods the day of, and make sure I get in a really good workout.

easycure

longhorn has a section on their menu of under 500 calorie meals, as does applebees. If they do not post anything like this in the menu, i tend to go for grilled chicken and roasted veggies!

mehaffeymk

i like the restaurants that have a lower calorie section. most restaurants do these days. ruby tuesday, chilis, longhorn, applebees. and if there's a salad with like ranch on it, i asked what their low fat dressing is and get that on the side instead. or you can order several side items of veggies and such like everyone else has said. but the biggest help is the MFP app on your phone! i always search the restaurant and find all their items with calorie counts. really eye opening!

mmarcy7

I usually try to go with some kind of steak house so I can get chicken or steak and a sweet potato (plain) and I pass on the bread. I prefer to go out for breakfast though so I can get a good omelette and bacon.

katkins3

i like the restaurants that have a lower calorie section. most restaurants do these days. ruby tuesday, chilis, longhorn, applebees. and if there's a salad with like ranch on it, i asked what their low fat dressing is and get that on the side instead. or you can order several side items of veggies and such like everyone else has said. but the biggest help is the MFP app on your phone! i always search the restaurant and find all their items with calorie counts. really eye opening!

Beside those mentioned above, IHOP, Bob Evans and even Outback has a pretty good salmon choice. I suggest looking up any restaurants near you to see what they have that can be in your requirements. Sometimes I order a meal and put half of it in a take out box right away for tomorrow's lunch.

lax75

Even places that don't post nutritional info on line often post the menus, so you can figure out the smartest option without hemming and hawing at the table and being tempted to order too much. If I don't see anything I like, I call the place ahead of time when they're not busy (between 3 and 4 in the afternoon is usually good, when they know what the specials are going to be, and the chef is there to answer questions but there's no one eating dinner yet), explain that I have health issues and ask if they can make a suggestion. I often find that they'll suggest something simple that's not on the menu officially, but that they're willing to serve me, like the fish grilled plain. I have to be careful about sodium, and I find that most places are pretty sympathetic to that and want to help. And usually the low-sodium suggestions are ones that are also quite healthy in other ways.

I picked up dinner for my husband at a well-known Italian chain over the weekend, that posts really complete nutritional info on line, offers whole wheat pasta and pizza crust, and generally seems to care about this sort of stuff. But the nutritional info reveals that there is so much salt in everything they make there's nothing I can eat from there. (Hence, the takeout for one, not eating on site.) I mentioned to the person at the counter that although I appreciated all the info they posted, I wished they would develop some menu choices much much lower in salt. She typed it into the suggestion "box" - don't know if it will do any good, but restaurants want us as patrons, after all, so if enough of us speak up about the kind of food we're looking for perhaps they'll respond! Certainly nothing will change if we *don't* say anything!

Merrysix

grilled salmon or tuna, shishkabob with grilled mean and grilled vegies, salads with grilled meat on top and vinegar/olive oil on the side. egg white (or regular egg) vegetable omelette, Also, I often ask for my grilled meat over double order of vegetables like spinach or asparaus instead of potatoes or rice because I eat a lower carb diet. At Indian restaurant I order tandoori chicken and yogurt/cucumber sauce (raita). The key for me is to stay away from the bread and butter and deserts since these are not on my food plan, and I like to save my calories for things like fresh berries, etc.