Food Scale in Restaurant?

2»

Replies

  • shadowfax_c11
    shadowfax_c11 Posts: 1,942 Member
    The prep cooks and cooks in restaurants actually use food scales ,usually weights in ounces, when they prepare the food portions. Weighing out food portions is an important part of controlling food costs and most cooks take it seriously. Recipes usually call for very specific weights and measurements for preparing a dish. You might be able to ask them to give you weights of the portions they use if you ask. You might not be given every ingredient due to their not wanting you to copy recipes but you won't need to know about herbs and spices anyway.

    If you are polite and treat your server right and are not there during a big rush they may be perfectly happy to accommodate your odd request.
  • shadowfax_c11
    shadowfax_c11 Posts: 1,942 Member
    Restaurant cooks use food scales to prepare your meal. If you ask nicely ,and the place isn't totally weeded, you might be able to get the information you need from your server.
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    This content has been removed.
  • Strawblackcat
    Strawblackcat Posts: 944 Member
    No. You don't know how much butter or oil went into the dish, so you could still be way off, even if you do weigh the food. 3 oz of chicken breast could have been fried in 2 tablespoons of oil that you weren't aware of, which would bring the chicken you're eating to 3X the amount of calories that you thought you were getting. I just guesstimate what's on my plate, leave 25% of my meal behind (restaurant portions are so huge that this isn't much of a problem anyway -- I still leave full) an call it even. I don't eat out much, so one nice meal can't do but so much damage in the first place.
  • tomatoey
    tomatoey Posts: 5,446 Member
    Learn to eyeball things. What does 4 or 6 or 8 oz of chicken look like once it's cooked, against your hand? Pay attention to this when you're weighing stuff at home.

    Assume anything with a sauce is calorific. Probably most potatoes, pasta etc too (unless you go for e.g. al olio pasta). Find some existing high-balling entries in the DB and log that.
  • tomatoey
    tomatoey Posts: 5,446 Member
    Oh do I do that, no way. I have deconstructed 2-3 meals I often have and built them up piece by piece for an MFP meal, though. It's stuff I get fairly often, like burritos from a particular nearby place, so it's worth the effort to me. Otherwise no chance, much easier to find something comparable and guess on the high end.
  • distinctlybeautiful
    distinctlybeautiful Posts: 1,041 Member
    Once you've been weighing long enough you'll get good at estimating what you've eaten. I just try to estimate high.
  • patrikc333
    patrikc333 Posts: 436 Member
    no but I wish I could

    or better, I wish there were nutritional info everywhere, I think it should be fair
  • LolBroScience
    LolBroScience Posts: 4,537 Member
    No, maybe if I was prepping for a show or something and it was close to the date though.
  • peleroja
    peleroja Posts: 3,979 Member
    LolBroScience wrote: »
    No, maybe if I was prepping for a show or something and it was close to the date though.

    When I worked at a steakhouse I used to occasionally get bodybuilder competitors in for a preshow meal and they were super specific about what they wanted - usually a steak of a specific size with no oil or butter, a precise portion of carb, and a small (3-4 oz) pour of red wine (I guess it's "drying"?) We'd weigh it all before sending it out and it was never a problem as they were nice enough to come before or after the dinner rush.

    I've never seen anyone bring a scale into a restaurant, even those guys, and I agree with the majority that it's pretty pointless as you can never know exact quantities of ingredients and/or how things were cooked.

    I choose restaurants with nutritional information available when I can, and when I can't I find something similar in the database and add a couple hundred extra calories of cushion.
  • cnbbnc
    cnbbnc Posts: 1,267 Member
    No. I carry enough crap around on a daily basis without adding a scale. I'll try to look up calorie counts online, but that's as far as I'll go. If I find nutritional info online, great. If not, I just guesstimate.
  • debrakgoogins
    debrakgoogins Posts: 2,033 Member
    No. This is a lifetime process for me, not temporary and I don't intend to weigh food that I eat when I go out forever. I make the best choices I can when I eat out. I log as accurately as possible. I start weighing when I return home. I do admit that I have a scale in the kitchen cupboard at my office though. I spend most of my time at work and eat two snacks and one meal there every day so that is important to me.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    spttdb wrote: »
    I automatically ask for a doggie bag and 1/2 my meal from the start - you can take the other 1/2 home and weigh it or some restaurants give a calorie count and you can decide beforehand. If you're good at eyeing portions that can help also. You can get a good estimate even if you don't know all the ingredients and taking a walk after dinning can help also.

    Ya, I take half my entree home and weight it there. American portions are too big for me.
  • rankinsect
    rankinsect Posts: 2,238 Member
    I just look at the menu beforehand and pick out my options. Then I log them ahead of time using the calories from the restaurant's nutrition info, or if not available, from a similar restaurant.

    I figure any given meal may be off but over time it averages out.
  • riceflourde
    riceflourde Posts: 58 Member
    I have a $15 Mainstays slimline food scale from Walmart. It's my first food scale so I can't compare but I think it's pretty discreet - it looks like a tablet from 2 ft away. They have scales in the back, I agree with just asking your server. You could also call around 2 or 3 pm when it's not so busy. I've asked for the weight of meat even at fast food places.
  • cortesd
    cortesd Posts: 58 Member
    Thanks for all the comments. I was just really curious if anyone had ever used a scale since there are a lot of hardcore "weighers" out there! I take it super serious at home, but just TLAR the logging when I go out unless I have access to the nutrition data (which I don't take as gospel).
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,463 Member
    glassyo wrote: »
    I wouldn't take one to a more upscale restaurant but I totally would to a fast food joint if I still took the time to sit down and eat at one. I was such a regular at Burger King that they would often give me extra helpings of grilled chicken instead of the normal serving.

    Otherwise, I just trust the nutritional information from said restaurants and, if you *really* feel the need to weigh, eat half your meal and take the rest home. Plus, even if you don't know exactly what goes into a recipe, they'll usually tell you any kind of sauces used so that would help.

    Ok, so you take your scale to BK, weigh your whopper, and say it's 9 ounces. Now what? 9 oz of bread, meat, cheese, sauce/condiments etc. How do you assign cals to that?
  • annette_15
    annette_15 Posts: 1,657 Member
    If I was prepping I wouldnt be eating out. If and when I do eat out I just try to make sure I lift that day, make good choices and just guesstimate. Ill add 200 calories of fats as a buffer if it looks like they used a lot of oil and and just call it a day
  • glassyo
    glassyo Posts: 7,736 Member
    lorrpb wrote: »
    glassyo wrote: »
    I wouldn't take one to a more upscale restaurant but I totally would to a fast food joint if I still took the time to sit down and eat at one. I was such a regular at Burger King that they would often give me extra helpings of grilled chicken instead of the normal serving.

    Otherwise, I just trust the nutritional information from said restaurants and, if you *really* feel the need to weigh, eat half your meal and take the rest home. Plus, even if you don't know exactly what goes into a recipe, they'll usually tell you any kind of sauces used so that would help.

    Ok, so you take your scale to BK, weigh your whopper, and say it's 9 ounces. Now what? 9 oz of bread, meat, cheese, sauce/condiments etc. How do you assign cals to that?

    I don't have that problem since I don't get whoppers anymore. :tongue:

    But, if you feel the need to weigh your food at a restaurant, you either take it apart and weigh everything separately or you don't and trust the nutritional info from the restaurant.

    I've gone into Subway and asked if they had a scale to weigh the scooped out part of the bread when I would get sandwiches. They didn't but they were more than happy to package it up so I could take it home and weigh it there. I did it once and from then on I had a ball park figure for what to take off (it was 50 calories, btw).

    It's definitely more difficult if it's something with a lot of ingredients but, like with me, a plain grilled chicken breast? Easy peasy.



  • hannahadrianna
    hannahadrianna Posts: 8 Member
    juliebowman4 wrote: »
    Just my lil'ol'opinion:
    If I feel I can't relax in a social atmosphere with a friend or family member, and enjoy a meal without needing to weigh it.....then I've crossed some line between truly trying to adopt a healthy lifestyle, and obsession.

    This. Exactly.
  • Nuke_64
    Nuke_64 Posts: 406 Member
    Not at a sit down restaurant, but I used to go to my work cafeteria salad bar every day and I did bring a small scale.

Categories