Going out to dinner is one of my favorite things to do, but I know from experience how tricky it can be to make sure you’re ordering correctly, especially while living that diet life. Even if you’re not on a so called “diet” but you’re still trying to make some healthy changes with your lifestyle, I’ve included some quick tips below. These will guide you with what to look for/avoid while perusing the menu that will hopefully help ya next time you’re out! Disclaimer: This isn’t an end all be all nor is it an always type of thing, more or less general guidelines to help steer you in the right direction 🙂
- Avoid the words fried or breaded. Baked or grilled is always a better option whether it be for an entree or an add on for your salad.
- Sauce. If it’s creamy, I’m usually steering clear. If it’s creamy and I wanna try it, then it’s going on the side! I’ll do this with any chicken, beef, or salmon dish! A lot of extra calories come from the extras like sauce and dressings so just be aware!
- Same mentality with salad dressings–I always order it on the side because I use ~75% less than they offer. I avoid the creamy dressings and usually go with a balsamic or a lighter vinaigrette. Sometimes I’ll even use my salsa or hummus as the dressing.
- Ask um to go easy on the oil and butter! Right when you think you’re making moves, the chefs are dropping half a stick of butter on your entree. I usually try and mention someway or another to please just remove that step entirely for me. “If you could keep it light on the oil and butter when preparing it please.” (I used to say I was allergic to butter and oil and then I decided to not be 100% extra ).
- Sub your starchy carbs for some veggies or fruit. Carbs are not bad, but if you’re getting an entree that is already carbohydrate dense, subbing for a lighter side option isn’t a terrible idea. I write this with this one with breakfast in mind since I was just at First Watch this weekend. If I’m ordering breakfast potatoes or a splitting a waffle, I’ll pass on the toast or complimentary muffin. This time I didn’t order a side of breakfast potatoes, decided to stick with the tomato slices and then enjoyed the toast with some preserves! Once you get the hang of it being flexible will come easy!
P.S. I see you table bread lovers. WHY YOU GOTTA FIGHT WITH ME AT CHEESECAKE. I love it too, but sometimes if it’s sitting there it is hard to say no. Depending on who I’m with, if they’re okay with it, I’ll just ask the staff to hold off from bringing it to the table because temptation is a mother ya feel?
I hope these quick tips were helpful for ya and next time you go out the menu doesn’t seem so daunting. However, if you’re like nah I’m totally going with the fried, sauciest option I can find then by all means. These were tips, not mandatory guidelines for your everyday life, and we all need to live a little at some point! #AMIRIGHT
Until next time!
-Lauren