Healthiest way to eat out... what are your tricks?

* At mexican, portion out 12 chips on a napkin. eat them slowly. Order fijitas, dont eat the tortillas with it. No guac No sour cream.
*At jap/chinese order steamed white or brown rice, not fried. Shrimp entrees are generally low cal there too, or chicken and broccoli.
*Always ALWAYS get dressing on the side.
*Order coffee to end your meal not dessert.
*Pizza should be thin crust and all veggies.
*If you can help it, replace a starch (baked potatoe) with a green (broccoli)
*You can ask for things cooked without butter as well.
*When in doubt, order grilled chicken.

Eat Half an entree and save the rest for dinner the following night. Two dinners for the price of one.

This

If the foods you like to eat at restaurants go over your calorie/nutrient budget, there is a really easy way to stay within budget: eat half your entree and take the rest home to eat later. Most restaurant meals are very large compared to what we need in a meal.

Many studies show that we eat what is in front of us out of habit. If people are given a bowl of soup that keeps gradually refilling itself, they don't even notice! They just eat the soup! So you have to be mindful. Before you even start eating, look at your plate and portion out what you are going to eat then and there, and what you are taking home.

I strongly disagree with the person who said to not eat guacamole, not eat sour cream, not eat tortillas. This sounds like a recipe for feeling deprived, and frankly, tortillas and sour cream and guacamole all have their place in a healthy diet (sour cream, for example, is a great source of protein and healthy fats, and so is avocado.) Butter is delicious and good for you.

And, it is silly imo to go to a restaurant, where people have worked very hard to create recipes that you like, and then ask them to change them. Why are you there in the first place? Because you like the food the way they make it!

Also, NEVER get dressing on the side. Anyone who has prepped salads in a restaurant can tell you this is a huge myth. People who get their dressing on the side usually eat more dressing than do people who get their salads pre-dressed.

This is my dining out routine.

1. I plan to eat out so I have lowish calorie breakfast and lunch (about 200-250 cals each) then my pre-dinner snack.

2. I have a pre-dinner snack - if you are out all day grab a piece or two of fruit. Eat before you go out I here you say? It stops you devouring 3 courses out of sheer hunger. This enables me not to want bread/garlic bread/entree.

3. If possible I check out the menu online to see what the cals are - I don't limit myself to the lowest calorie dish just because it is the only one. I LIKE my food so I look for something I feel like and make myself aware of the calories.

4. I ask for salads without dressing. I eat my salad naked at home so why should I change that when out? IF they are ones like a caesar I ask for it on the side with a teaspoon and measure out how much goes on as I really like salad crunchy not swimming.

5. I ask for my main as an entree size and then really eyeball the amount of food that comes out. Food is not the enemy. Portion size is the enemy. If they don't do entree sized mains then I ask for second plate and serve myself what I think is enough of my dish and either offer the rest around the table as a tasting plate or ask for it to be boxed for later.

6. At a fine dining restaurant I eat roughly half of each course as the servings are usually small - for example, a few fine cuisine restaurants here do the amuse-bouche as and 8 course meal, and it is perfectly acceptable to only eat half of each tantalizer.

edit to add 7. Just because it comes with a side of fries doesn't mean you have to EAT them. I ask to have my plate taken after I finish the main portion and BEFORE i touch the fries on the side. They are just a cheap filler anyway.

If you don't eat out too much, or it's a special occasion then order something you are going to enjoy eating, eat a mindful portion of it but don't let your diet kill it for you either. As I said earlier...food is not your enemy...portion sizing is.

if you know where you are going ahead of time then see if they have a menu online. if i do that then im less likely to gorge myself on something i really would regret the next day

I agree with the guy who said earlier to just go ahead and eat. If you order a meal and take off the sauce, the bread, the tortillas, the cheese, etc. you might as well just sit at home and eat a rice cake and a glass of water. I don't eat out more than once a month because the meal I can make at home for 500 calories is a hell of lot better than the stripped down meal at a restaurant. I f you want to go out, just work out harder that day and enjoy the splurge, eat 1500 cals and realize that weight loss/maintanance is a marathon, not a sprint.