Question about going out to eat.

coreymoore1990
coreymoore1990 Posts: 88
in Food and Nutrition
So, we all know that there are days when we're invited to go out to eat, or we just decide "I want something to eat".
My question to you is what do you do about calorie counting? I've noticed restaurants tend to have a calorie count that's a bit over the top. Especially Olive Garden.
Where do you usually eat, and what do you usually get that runs 600 calories or less?

(Excluding drinks, unless you order something other than water)

BONUS QUESTION:
Maybe not all of you, but some of you I know for a fact hit that drive through menu every now and then. What do you usually order?

I usually order the Chicken Fajita Pita from Jack In The Box with a side salad, balsamic vinigerette dressing, and a tea. That is usually 300 something calories it's self. Not bad if you ask me..
Or I get the Southwest Chicken Salad from Jack In The Box.. It's not easy on the calories, but it's definitely filling enough to keep me from eating again until I really need to.

Replies

  • tndejong
    tndejong Posts: 463
    where im at. many of our menus now have the calorie content on the menus. buffalo wildwings, olive garden, backyard bar and grill, chilis, and applebees i know do. since i started on here, i have only ate out a couple times. that was just mcdonalds and subway. mcdonalds i got hamburgers since they were 250 calories. many subway sandwiches are around 300 calories for a 6 inch. i keep seeing ads for dishes under 500 and 600 calories. so maybe ill try applebees this weekend. i eat a lot of salads at home. so would like things not related to that when im eating out. i want to treat eating out as more of a special occasion and a treat now and again. and you can save a lot of money eating at home.
  • jakidb
    jakidb Posts: 1,010 Member
    MOST restaurants have "low cal menus" and for the ones that don't, try eating "half" the portion and taking the rest home. When I go out I try to go with what I "want", but I don't eat all of it (portion control).
    Seldom do I just do a "salad". I think if you plan ahead (modify your intake prior to going out), you'll be just fine.
  • LittleMissNerdy
    LittleMissNerdy Posts: 792 Member
    I try to look up options before I go out. At the same time though, I don't go out to eat very often so when I do, I might just consider it a cheat meal and call it a day. I do enjoy a good salad or salmon though!
  • bluecrush1203
    bluecrush1203 Posts: 22 Member
    I always try to look at the nutrition before I go. If what I want is a little calorie heavy, I'll know to scale back during the rest of the day, and maybe get a good workout in to compensate. Just be sure not to order something just because it "looks" healthy. I've ordered fish or grilled chicken salads at some restaurants only to find out they had more calories and fat than a bacon cheeseburger!
  • DonaA123
    DonaA123 Posts: 337 Member
    bump for later:smile:
  • prokomds
    prokomds Posts: 318 Member
    A lot of big chain restaurants have calorie counts online, so it's a big help to plan ahead a bit. I've had particularly good success at Red Robin (if you get fruit on the side instead of fries you can eat one of their awesome burgers without too much guilt) and Panera Bread (tends to be a little high on the sodium, but with a half sandwich/half salad I get a very filling meal for around 600 calories)

    But if you eat out last minute and want to play it safe, your best bet is looking for something with lots of protein and avoiding empty carb calories like french fries/rice/lots of white pasta/etc. I believe pretty firmly that you shouldn't miss out on fun times in life just because of a few calories!
  • daj150
    daj150 Posts: 815 Member
    I have gotten pretty good at eyeing up portion sizes thanks to lots and lots of cooking at home. So, if a restaurant doesn't have nutrition stats, I try and do a best-guess on everything, usually trying to overestimate since I usually assume they prepare with the fattiest and unhealthiest things, lol; no true for many places, I know, but it's what I do. For places that have nutrition stats, I try and get that info before I go, and either get something that on the low to mid-end for calories, or I get something that may be higher for the whole thing, but I'll only eat half and take back the rest to work.

    The only fast food I ever get anymore is Chick-Fil-A. Overall, pretty decent on the nutrition stats, always satisfying and yummy. I just wish waffle fries and chocolate shakes could be zero calorie items...because they make me feel SOOO good, heh.

    For drinks, most alcohol is listed on MFP, except for local and craft brews for beer. Wine is pretty consistent, just find the type of wine. Liquor you can go generic as well, for the most part; note that clear-liquor is typically less calories than non-clear...there are some forum posts somewhere about the details on this...or you can Google it. For beer, I usually just try and find a name-brand to count for the local or craft beers. Close enough.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    My favorite is Arby's roast beef with three pepper sauce. I get the mid-sized.
  • Dark_Roast
    Dark_Roast Posts: 17,689 Member
    Actually Olive Garden has a couple dinners that aren't terrible, the Apricot Venitian Chicken is fairly low, and tasty. I just never eat the breadsticks and I always ask for the salad dressing on the side. The Lonestar has an entire section for under 500 calorie meals. Jason's Deli also has quite a few low calorie meals. I no longer eat at Applebees or Chili's, luckily my family doesn't want to go to those restaurants anyways. Just shop around, look up the data online before you go.
  • tooliebell
    tooliebell Posts: 177 Member
    Plan. If you know ahead of time you will be eating out, I find it best to plan. Look online for the nutritional information and see what will fit with what you have available for the day. Or if it won't fit, you can plan an extra workout. There have been on the spur of the moment kinda times, when I will look that up on my phone while at the restaurant. Things to stay away from unfortunately, are the fries, pasta and heavy sauces, and the breads. Although just one breadstick or cheddar bay biscuit, or piece of bread won't kill your plan.

    Your new lifestyle isn't supposed to be about deprivation and what you CAN'T have, it has got to be about what can I do to make it fit in with my goals. Makes life so much easier to bear.
  • Skratchie
    Skratchie Posts: 131 Member
    I ask for the kitchen to box up half my food before I ever even get the plate. That way I'm not tempted to eat more than I should.
  • ajewellmom
    ajewellmom Posts: 186 Member
    I have had:

    Burger King - Whopper, no cheese, no mayo with a side salad and water
    Applebees - Low cal menu options
    Harvey's - Veggie burger, small fries (this was a splurge!!) and a water
    Pita Pit - Heavenly petita with chicken and full of veggies
    Swiss Chalet - Quarter chicken dinner with either baked potato or mashed

    There are many good options to be had, particularly if you substitute fries for something better. I did have a nice dinner with my hubby last week where we ate with abandon. I did not feel guilty having a ceasar salad, two slices of thin-crust pizza with chicken and bechamel sauce, a martini and even half a piece of cheesecake. I was satisfied (not overfull either . . . this is a big difference from the Angela from days of old) and knew that this was how "normal" people do life.
  • Annaruthus
    Annaruthus Posts: 301 Member
    Ruby Tuesdays: Chicken Bella (tasty) with Roasted zucchini and spaghetti squash. 454 calories, 48g protein. Can't remember the carbs, but that is pretty low too. I think the fat was at 20g (because of the parmesan sauce on the chicken breast). Delicious.
  • WBB55
    WBB55 Posts: 4,131 Member
    I have a lot of friends that love to go out to eat. And it's a bummer when I'm that person that says "no I can't go, I'm trying to lose weight." To stay accurate with my macro counts, I find it easiest to eat at (1) Large chain restaurants that post their nutrition online, so I can research it ahead of time. Or (2) Short order diners where I can order 2 (poached) eggs, toast (dry) and potatoes, since I know what 600 calories of those foods look like.

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