Which one do I choose??

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scribella
scribella Posts: 2 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi all... hoping someone here can provide enlightenment :)

I'm going out to an 'American-themed' restaurant tonight (in Germany) and although the precise menu isn't available online, the website says that they serve the following:

Burgers
Pork side spare ribs
Mac and cheese
Chicken wings
Poutine

... all served with homemade fries.

I have absolutely no idea about this kind of food - and I can't find any like-for-like comparisons online. The portions in the website photos look huge, so obviously I'm planning to do all the usual sensible things - like only eating half of it and focussing on the protein/veg (if there is any veg), rather than the fries, etc.. I know a lot will depend on how the food is prepared and the sauces that are used, etc., which I have no way of knowing in advance... however, as a general rule of thumb, does anyone know which of these dishes would be overall less calorific? They all look to be equally swimming in calories to me, but I'm not familiar with this kind of food, so I don't know what would be the lowest calorie choice from the options available.

Felling slightly panicky, as I've been doing really well with my weight loss recently and don't want to inadvertently blow it!

Can anyone help? :)


Replies

  • jasonpoihegatama
    jasonpoihegatama Posts: 496 Member
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    Yum will there be desert as well?
  • foxtrot1965
    foxtrot1965 Posts: 133 Member
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    The wings, of they are in sauce get the hot sauce (or mild if you can't do heat). And offer a few to others.
  • missysippy930
    missysippy930 Posts: 2,577 Member
    edited February 2019
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    I’d go for the burger, skip the cheese and bacon and a side salad. If they have steak (that’s pretty American, most restaurants serve steak here) I’d pick steak and a salad.
    Btw, I think poutine is Canadian. The only place I have had it is Montreal.
  • mbaker566
    mbaker566 Posts: 11,233 Member
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    missysippy930 wrote: »
    I’d go for the burger, skip the cheese and bacon and a side salad. If they have steak (that’s pretty American, most restaurants serve steak here) I’d pick steak and a salad.
    Btw, I think poutine is Canadian. The only place I have had it is Montreal.

    northern midwest is a fan of poutine as well. it's easy to find in many places in wisconsin.

    look at tgif or ruby tuesdays for comparable menus

    one indulgent day will not make or break your weight loss journey though be ready to see a weight gain tomorrow. lots of restaurants use a lot of salt.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,944 Member
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    Wings are fried, plus they have the skin and you're getting mostly fat with wings.

    As far as everything being served with fries you should be able to do a substitution for vegetables or soup or salad.

    Mac and cheese is carbs and fat. Little protein.

    I agree with people above. Find a TGI Fridays or Ruby Tuesday or Applebees entry, log it and move on.

    I rarely go out to eat and when I do it's so I can have things that are fried, so I'd probably get the fries. :lol:
  • missysippy930
    missysippy930 Posts: 2,577 Member
    edited February 2019
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    mbaker566 wrote: »
    missysippy930 wrote: »
    I’d go for the burger, skip the cheese and bacon and a side salad. If they have steak (that’s pretty American, most restaurants serve steak here) I’d pick steak and a salad.
    Btw, I think poutine is Canadian. The only place I have had it is Montreal.

    northern midwest is a fan of poutine as well. it's easy to find in many places in wisconsin.

    I totally get that😉! Sconnies totally like their cheese curds, but gravy? Talk about calories and fat! Totally not worth it. It may be just me, but prefer my French fries without gravy and cheese curds. Bad enough (calorie wise) by themselves.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
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    missysippy930 wrote: »
    mbaker566 wrote: »
    missysippy930 wrote: »
    I’d go for the burger, skip the cheese and bacon and a side salad. If they have steak (that’s pretty American, most restaurants serve steak here) I’d pick steak and a salad.
    Btw, I think poutine is Canadian. The only place I have had it is Montreal.

    northern midwest is a fan of poutine as well. it's easy to find in many places in wisconsin.

    I totally get that😉! Sconnies totally like their cheese curds, but gravy? Talk about calories and fat! Totally not worth it. It may be just me, but prefer my French fries without gravy and cheese curds. Bad enough (calorie wise) by themselves.

    Poutine just doesn't sound appealing to me, but then I don't even put gravy on mashed potatoes, and it sounds like it would make the fries soggy and thus spoil them. Cheese curds are nice, but I don't particularly want them with fries or gravy.

    I'm in the northern midwest, sort of (Chicago), and it's not a common dish around here. I can totally believe it would be in Wisconsin, though.
  • cheryldumais
    cheryldumais Posts: 1,907 Member
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    Here's a breakdown of what each of these are:

    Burgers - Ground beef generally grilled and served inside a bun with ketchup, mayonnaise and lettuce and tomato or mustard and relish or some combination of that. Some have bacon and cheese added. Pretty high fat food.
    Pork side spare ribs - Ribs in America are usually grilled but have a sweet tomatoe and vinegar sauce called barbeque sauce brushed on them. This cut of pork is pretty high fat.
    Mac and cheese - Macaroni baked in a Cheese sauce usually very high fat.
    Chicken wings - The wing of the chicken often deep fried (sometimes coated with bread crumbs before frying) with either a sweet or hot sauce applied. Tends to be fatty because of the skin to meat ratio.
    Poutine - Canadian dish usually French Fries (potato strips deep fried) with beef gravy and cheese curds on top.

    As you can see there is a reason why North Americans tend to struggle with weight issues, lol. I agree with many of the commenters that you would be better off with the burger, no bacon or cheese and a side salad. Good Luck.
  • lporter229
    lporter229 Posts: 4,907 Member
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    If you are not familiar with this kind of food, then just go and enjoy it. One meal won't kill you. Despite most of the things you listed being calories bombs, they are also quite tasty. Go and enjoy, just don't get addicted and eat it every day. Like many Americans, that's what will make you fat.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
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    cheryldumais wrote: »
    Burgers - Ground beef generally grilled and served inside a bun with ketchup, mayonnaise and lettuce and tomato or mustard and relish or some combination of that. Some have bacon and cheese added. Pretty high fat food.

    In general, the reasons burgers can be calorie bombs is high cal bun, large portion size, adding high cal toppings like mayo (which lucky for me I hate) and cheese and perhaps bacon, and because in a restaurant it is going to be a higher fat cut of meat.

    Not getting fries (or eating just a few), and eating only half of the burger, and not getting higher cal toppings would make it less calorific.

    On the other hand, a burger made at home can be quite reasonable in its calories.

    This aside, I'd get whatever looks best and seems most interesting if this is food that's unusual for you. Ribs vary a lot depending on how well-made they are, the sauce involved, so on, but that's what I'd likely have if they seemed to be good ribs based on feedback.

    I'd also eat low cal the rest of the day or save up cals through the week.
    Rkra2127 wrote: »
    Does potato has nutrients?

    Huh? Yes, potatoes have nutrients. French fries tend to have a lot of calories for those nutrients, though, as they have lots of added fat.
  • kellyjellybellyjelly
    kellyjellybellyjelly Posts: 9,480 Member
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    scribella wrote: »
    Hi all... hoping someone here can provide enlightenment :)

    I'm going out to an 'American-themed' restaurant tonight (in Germany) and although the precise menu isn't available online, the website says that they serve the following:

    Burgers
    Pork side spare ribs
    Mac and cheese
    Chicken wings
    Poutine

    ... all served with homemade fries.

    I have absolutely no idea about this kind of food - and I can't find any like-for-like comparisons online. The portions in the website photos look huge, so obviously I'm planning to do all the usual sensible things - like only eating half of it and focussing on the protein/veg (if there is any veg), rather than the fries, etc.. I know a lot will depend on how the food is prepared and the sauces that are used, etc., which I have no way of knowing in advance... however, as a general rule of thumb, does anyone know which of these dishes would be overall less calorific? They all look to be equally swimming in calories to me, but I'm not familiar with this kind of food, so I don't know what would be the lowest calorie choice from the options available.

    Felling slightly panicky, as I've been doing really well with my weight loss recently and don't want to inadvertently blow it!

    Can anyone help? :)


    @scribella what did you end up choosing?

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