Dinner at a resturant

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bstull
bstull Posts: 6
in Food and Nutrition
It's my birthday next week and me and the parents are going out to dinner. My problem is that i dont know what will be a good thing to order. We will be going to Finley's or Olive Garden. Any ideas, anyone?

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  • jbwilliams
    jbwilliams Posts: 1
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    those restaurants are programmed into the calorie counter on here. i'd type in "olive garden", pick a dish that sounds good, and add it just to see what the calorie content is. last week, i checked "cheesecake factory white chocolate raspberry cheesecake"--ONE slice is 900 calories! guess what i DIDN'T order!
  • hugh_rynal
    hugh_rynal Posts: 19 Member
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    If its your birthday then go ahead and treat yourself...............it only happens once a year ! Cheers !
  • shazzannon
    shazzannon Posts: 117 Member
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    those restaurants are programmed into the calorie counter on here. i'd type in "olive garden", pick a dish that sounds good, and add it just to see what the calorie content is. last week, i checked "cheesecake factory white chocolate raspberry cheesecake"--ONE slice is 900 calories! guess what i DIDN'T order!

    Yeah, I wish I would have done that before I ate dinner yesterday. Had a slice of dulce de leche cheesecake and it was more than my allotted calories for the entire DAY. Such a shame...
  • slim4lyf
    slim4lyf Posts: 33 Member
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    So you are afraid to fall into the trap of Restaurent Eating. Well, don't be scared to go. First of all the servings are way to high in anything, you can cut everything in half and take the rest home.( have somebody else eat it!) The same goes for Dessert. Split with somebody. Easy if you go with Family.
    Plan for this in advance. You know what you will be up against. Do check the Menu and find something you like, and if you eat it all up so be it. You start over fresh the next day. Add a little more walking the next few days and push that water!
    I will be facing this in 2 weeks for our Anniversary, in 3 weeks for Graduation, in 8 weeks for my husbands birthday. Guess what I am trying to say is that we live with Food Celebrations. You will learn how to eat what you like just not as much over time.
    Good Luck :-) and have a great Birthday
  • swisswife
    swisswife Posts: 47 Member
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    I have loads of great excuses for when eating out with friends.....

    I order beef tenderloin steak steak - because I don't cook this at home, roast Lamb with veg because my husband doesn't like lamb and again I don't cook it at home or steamed fish for pretty much the same reason... no one really questions those reasons and it never becomes an issue..... Tonight we go for Indian food and I know in advance that I will have dry chicken Tikka with yoghurt on the side - If anyone comments I will just say I have been thinking about it all day - Not really a lie as I planned the days food by having sashimi and sushi for late lunch at 2.30 so I wouldn't bee too hungry later..... I try to never go out feeling really hungry.....

    That said you should enjoy your birthday - just don't be scared to go out to dinner !! ;)
  • Alysgrma
    Alysgrma Posts: 365 Member
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    Good Morning,
    Most resturants are on line now and should have a menu with servings..try looking it up and just pick a meal... That is what I did when I went to Red Lobster...I knew what I wanted before I even got there because I could go on line and pick & choose what they had to offer.
    Check into it and see what is out there.

    Good Luck, remember it is your birthday and you should be celebrating!!
    Mary:flowerforyou:
  • kwardklinck
    kwardklinck Posts: 1,601
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    I always look up the nutritional information at the restaurant site before I go out to eat. But, with it being your birthday if you want to cheat, go ahead. I cheat one meal every week and it hasn't kept me from losing.
  • kimberly428
    kimberly428 Posts: 237
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    Morning!!! Check out this link below, it has most of the restaurant meals/items broken down for you. I like to look before I go to get an idea of what I am going to get and check out the calories :happy:

    http://www.dwlz.com/restaurants.html
  • DrBorkBork
    DrBorkBork Posts: 4,099 Member
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    The parmesan crusted tilapia at OG is very good. Ask for a to go box with your meal and put 1/2 of it away immediately. Eat only 1 bread stick, no salad (the salad is bad news), and drink lots of water. Ask for no additional seasoning on veggies (reduces sodium intake), and Happy Birthday!
  • TropicalKitty
    TropicalKitty Posts: 2,298 Member
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    As everyone else has said, be an informed consumer! OG is pretty bad. Salt, cream, carbs. But, the portions are huge! And they do offer whole weat spaghetti now. Yummy! The salad it's self isn't horrible, it's that dressing they put on it! Ask for it on the side. So there are ways to lessen the blow.

    Enjoy yourself and don't let the calories, fat, carbs, and what not bother you. I've found that feeling guilty about it, just makes it worse.

    A trick I've started to employ when I know there are going to be less healthy things...we all most likely remember from college, pre-gaming. Except, I don't mean doing shots at home before going to the club! Have some good veggies before you go out so you aren't as inclined to eat as much. Plus, I always feel better knowing that I did put something good in my body.

    There are tricks at other restaurants, too. I'll order broccoli with my steak instead of a baked potato, but I always ask if they can hold the butter and seasonings from BOTH the steak and the veggie (yes, they use tons of salt and butter to cook steak in as well! ugh!). It all goes back to being prepared, asking questions, and finding what's right. And trying to not eat everything they give you.

    Happy birthday!
  • Barneystinson
    Barneystinson Posts: 1,357 Member
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    The parmesan crusted tilapia at OG is very good. Ask for a to go box with your meal and put 1/2 of it away immediately. Eat only 1 bread stick, no salad (the salad is bad news), and drink lots of water. Ask for no additional seasoning on veggies (reduces sodium intake), and Happy Birthday!

    The salad isn't bad news at all if you ask for EVOO + red wine vinegar on the side. It's the sugar-laden dressing that's bad news - avoid it or request they put it on the side. Shrimp primavera, chicken giardano, minestrone, any fish/steak dishes with vegetables on the side are good choices under the 550 calorie range.

    Don't fear restaurants :) There's a host of good options at most all better restaurants out there!
  • bstull
    bstull Posts: 6
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    Thanks for all the great advice everyone. Now I know what I am going to do.:bigsmile:
  • bstull
    bstull Posts: 6
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    Thanks for all the great advice everyone. Now I know what I am going to do.:bigsmile:

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