Oh Lord! Chinese buffet lunch meetup for work...

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lwhitman208
lwhitman208 Posts: 22 Member
in Motivation and Support
Yikes! Chinese buffets are a complete weakness of mine... Traveling with my District Manager today and he says we're stopping at one for lunch, made my heart skip a beat.

I've already come to terms with going over my calories today... But I'm hoping it'll be "minimally-moderately" over.

I try to focus on low-carb, so there's always a ton of great choices for me. Sucks on the sodium though.

Looking for any tips from fellow food lovers on how to handle the overwhelming urge to eat all the food. 🍜🍖🍤

Replies

  • bigbandjohn
    bigbandjohn Posts: 769 Member
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    Bulk up with veggies on your plate... the less sauce, the better.

    Egg drop soup is actually not a terrible option either. A pint is between 150 and 200 calories on average.

    Avoid anything with deep fried items in it (General Tso's, S&S Chicken, etc).

    Just commit yourself to making good decisions. Depending on the place you may even be able to order off a menu. One of our buffet restaurants near me has that option (full menu + buffet). That would help you as well.
  • lwhitman208
    lwhitman208 Posts: 22 Member
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    bigbandjohn wrote: »
    Bulk up with veggies on your plate... the less sauce, the better.

    The green beans. 👌👌👌
  • BrettWithPKU
    BrettWithPKU Posts: 575 Member
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    You gotta have a protein. I'd go ahead and eat any meat that 1) isn't mostly breading and 2) isn't drowned in sugary sauces. I'd eat vegetables and fruit (most Chinese buffets have a surprisingly good fruit selection). As long as you're not doing keto or something, a little bit of rice or lo mein never hurt anyone.
  • lwhitman208
    lwhitman208 Posts: 22 Member
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    BDonjon wrote: »
    You gotta have a protein. I'd go ahead and eat any meat that 1) isn't mostly breading and 2) isn't drowned in sugary sauces.

    I'm thinking pepper steak... Mmmm... Depending on what it looks like. Sometimes you get lucky and the ribs aren't saucy, and I ain't afraid of ribs on a business lunch!
  • ritzvin
    ritzvin Posts: 2,860 Member
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    Pre-log some stuff likely to be there, and try to stick close to the pre-planned portion sizes.
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
    edited January 2019
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    I LOVE our local Chinese buffet! Fortunately, they raised their prices, so we hardly ever go there anymore, but generally, I only choose the same few things that I really enjoy, hit the veggies, and set firm limits on fried food. After logging a few times, I found my meals always pretty much fell at 1000 calories, and I planned the rest of my day around it, sometimes aiming for maintenance calories. Of course, you may not want to spend that amount of calories on your meal, but just make sure whatever you eat is worthwhile to you and don't go nuts :)
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
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    BDonjon wrote: »
    You gotta have a protein. I'd go ahead and eat any meat that 1) isn't mostly breading and 2) isn't drowned in sugary sauces. I'd eat vegetables and fruit (most Chinese buffets have a surprisingly good fruit selection). As long as you're not doing keto or something, a little bit of rice or lo mein never hurt anyone.

    This reminds me, for a chicken dish, I will often just go with the bare breaded chicken and drizzle a small amount of sauce from the dish I like on it. Hate mushy chicken soaked in sauce.
  • cariwaldick
    cariwaldick Posts: 189 Member
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    I try to limit myself to one plate. Look for steamed vegetables, and make half your plate veggies. Don't let the cost make you overeat; who cares if you're paying enough for three meals, stick to your plan. As mentioned, there's usually a good selection of fruit and salad to choose. I skip the rice and lo mein for their mostly empty calories. If you splurge on something high in calories, only take a small portion. Drink water instead of soda. Don't eat dessert.
  • lwhitman208
    lwhitman208 Posts: 22 Member
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    Thanks guys!

    They had steamed salmon ((YUM)) so I started off with that and green beans. Even with some Dim Sum it wasn't so scary to log.

    BTW if anyone's in the Bryan/College Station area of Texas, it's called Ye Star. Soooooo good!
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,182 Member
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    If you get to Dallas the King Buffet in Plano is a Chinese buffet that's very highly regarded.
  • cariwaldick
    cariwaldick Posts: 189 Member
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    You're not far from me! I'm in Lewisville, so my closest Chinese buffet is Regal Buffet. Sushi is my weakness, and all that rice is not helpful. Salmon and green beans are my go-to.
  • Crafty_camper123
    Crafty_camper123 Posts: 1,440 Member
    edited January 2019
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    This is kind of funny, but the Chinese Buffett has become one of the places that is easiest to come away with a low calorie count. Mine has a hibache grill and a sushi bar, so those are my go to's. I load my plate with veggies and a protien. Sometimes I will have a small side of the fried rice depending on my calorie goal. Or maybe will have a bowl of egg drop. Then I have a few sushi roll pieces as my 2nd plate. They run somewhere around 50cals a piece if I avoid the fried ones. For dessert I hit the fruit bar and have whatever fresh fruit they have available. If I play my cards right, I can get out of there for around 700-800 calories.

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