Social eating tips

How about just enjoying it and getting back on track the next day or the next meal?
Or planning ahead and saving up calories during the day for the big splurge?

Lunch is the worst one for me. I usually try to eat a small lunch, but often have to go out to lunch with clients and coworkers. My strategy for restaurants is something like this:

Try to go with something healthy like salmon, chicken kabobs...something with lean meat and without sauces, mayo, etc. Then, I usually have them hold something from the order. If the salmon comes with potatoes and rice, I will tell them not to bring one of the two. For soups, I try to pick something not cream based, like chicken noodle, minestrone, etc. Then, I only eat half the soup by eating it slowly so that I am not finished before the main course arrives.

Then, when recording it to MFP, I tend to overestimate the calories, since I have no idea if it was cooked in butter, oils, etc.

I pretty much avoid the chips & bread, pick 1-2 things I'm crazy about and indulge in those (usually cheese or sweets), try to fill up on any veggies/lettuce/fruit that is available, and just avoid items that don't appeal to me much rather than eating them to be polite.

If dining out, I do basically the same thing. I also order "weird" sometimes when I'm with my girlfriends - like get an appetizer and 2 desserts to share with everyone, but no entree. I wouldn't have done that in the past but now I don't really care because I see dining out as an opportunity to have food that I don't cook at home.

I usually don't drink alcohol unless it's craft beer (my weakness) and then limit to one or two.

Potlucks & picnics - take something filling that you can comfortably eat and share. Make the majority of your plate veggies and fruit, grilled meat if available. Enjoy small tastes of rich dishes like macaroni and cheese, creamy dips, desserts, etc. Take a discrete picture of your plate if you want to try to log it later. Survey all the food available before making a plate so you can focus on what you really want to try. Don't park yourself at a table with dips/crackers/snacks and eat mindlessly while socializing.

Restaurants - check out menus in advance, drink non-caloric drinks between alcoholic drinks, have a lower-calorie "go-to" drink (vodka and soda, lower alcohol beers, whiskey and diet) and save heavier drinks for special occasions, order an appetizer and low-calorie side instead of an entree, share a meal with a friend or evaluate your hunger levels after eating half of an entree, log chain restaurant meals that are comparable to your order if you're in a private establishment.

You can enjoy yourself and be social while being mindful of your food choices! You can also eat lighter earlier in the day or plan some exercise to help offset a higher-calorie meal.