Restaurant guide for IP
:wave:I was wondering if anyone could give me ideas of what to eat at restaurants. I have several things in the next month that require me to go to dinner and thought it might be good to have some input from you guys. I do know one restaurant is Red Lobster but I'm not sure of the other one's yet.
Thanks guys! :hun: |
I eat out quite often and still have managed to keep the weight coming off week after week. Here is what do;
Salads with protein (fish or chicken) and allowed veggies I ask to mix in mushrooms, tomato (my coach let's me have), red onion, whatever . . . and then I just get olive oil and white vinegar on the side and add my sea salt (I bring) and pepper. or. . . I order a meat entree of chicken, beef or fish and asked for steamed veggies. I tell people absolutely no dairy (they think I'm lactose intolerant then and are really careful to make sure no dairy in anything or on the meat). Bring your own salt! It seems to do the trick and I get to eat out. Hope it helps! |
Thanks so much for the info. It definitely helps!
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Hi! Here is my 2 cents on the subject! My hubby and I have date night every Friday! This means going out for a nice dinner and then a movie, or theatre etc. We have managed to still have this weekly treat while on the plan by tweaking how I order my food. I start my ordering a pitcher of ice water with lime wedges. I always ask for my meat to be dry cooked, no added oils or fat, and instead of the potatoe or rice I ask for a double serving of the steamed vegetable with no oil or butter. Some restaurants may give you a hard time with the veggies. Say they are serving carrots - but you can't have them. However if you know they have broccoli or asparagus available, explain that you cannot eat the carrots, and they will assume it is due to an allergy and grant your request. I always try to go to a restaurant that has a salad bar. That is very helpful when everyone else is having an appetizer! If not, then order a side salad with oil and vinegar on the side. I actually bring in my own dressing and bbq sauce to the restaurant to add to my meal! If anyone ever questions me, I explain that I have various food intolerances or restrictions and must supply my own compatible items. Haven't had anyone give me a hard time about it yet! If you are unsure if the item has cream, sugars, starch etc, then ask the server. They should have a list of ingredients available in the kitchen to double check for you!
Good luck! Just remember to be creative and have fun with it! Kris |
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At restaurants I have learned to scan the entrees, salad, and side choices for what types of veggies the kitchen uses. I review salads to see what works, what modifications I will have to make. Things I frequently order or have ordered easily are: BRUNCH/BREAKFAST: buffets: eggs and steamed, sauteed, or grilled veggies. Omelette with veggies. sometimes a piece or 2 of bacon. spinach eggs benedict no bread, no sauce. Buffets in general are ok. you do have to keep in mind salt but any lunch or dinner buffet will offer chicken, roast beef cuts, fish, veggies, and salad. Hamburgers or chicken sandwiches: ask for it to be done protein style meaning no bread and extra lettuce on either side as a "bun". No cheese. Use steamed mushrooms if you like mushrooms. I have them hold all the condiments except the mustard. If I know I am going out for a burger, I try to take a walden farms ranch, bacon ranch, or thousand Island packet with me to use as a sauce on the burger. I always replace the fries with steamed veggies and order the "add on for a bit more" side salad. Salad bars are a very safe bet. We have a few of the sweet tomatoes/soup plantation places here and I have seen the inside of all of them I think! It is great because you really can eat easily, stay completely on plan no matter how strict you are. I know they don't have much for protein so, I get a bottled water, a cup with ice, pour 1/2 the water into my cup and use the other 1/2 to make up an IP protein drink. Then I get a coffee cup, (free with purchase of a drink), add hot water and brew a bag of tea! I also ask them at the steamed veggies counter if they can make me some steamed veggies that don't have any butter, salt, or carrots. They have always been accomodating. FONDUE: The melting pot is in our area. It is great! I get the chicken or seafood/shrimp. and use a chicken broth or oil fondue. I confirm that the seasoning in the pot do not include sugar. I also ask them to bring extra veggies and no potato or bread. Works great every time! BARBECUE: I get unseasoned, smoked turkey or chicken at a place near us with extra veggies, steamed dry and a salad.. sometimes a spinach salad is nice. I also like to get Barbecue chicken DRY.. not sauced at all just done on a grill. STEAK/Prime rib: These are pretty easy. Just get the small cut or plan to get a box early on, and box what you know you can't eat then to take home for later. As far as restaurants I have been able to find things, with some modification, I usually review the restaurant website before I go and call them to confirm how things are prepared: (some I list below may be local to Arizona only) Don and Charlie's - had prime rib with broccoli and a modified salad. This was my birthday dinner place. I called ahead to the restaurant and the manager helped me make a great choice. He went over the 3 dishes that were available to me without sugar in the seasoning. He even helped me figure out how to get the best salad! http://www.donandcharlies.com/ The Melting Pot -My date and I did the spinach mushroom salad without dressing, the seafood trio and the chicken breast individual fondues with the oil and the mojo sauce pots with lots of veggies. http://www.meltingpot.com/locations.aspx?z=&n=307272 Buster's - Steak or prime rib, spinach salad, veggies steamed. http://www.bustersrestaurant.com/ Gallagher's - smoked turkey, steamed veggies, basic green salad OR a spinach salad modified OR a chicken Caesar with my dressing and no croutons http://gallaghersaz.com/ Applebee's - a modified salad, or the asiago peppercorn steak or grilled dijon chicken with portobello. I make lots of modifications to these but they work. No cheese, no sauce, dry veggies. sub potato with extra veggie, get a small side salad. http://www.applebees.com/Menu_Under550.aspx Red Robin - the chicken ensenada is good without sauces, use lemon juice and oil or your own dressing, and I add a small side of broccoli steamed dry. I also order most of their burgers or chicken protein style, no bun. Pf Chang - I ordered from the gluten free menu. I got seared tuna, no sauce or drizzle. I got the side of seared spinach to go with it. In and Out burger - protein style hamburger, mustard only no fries Islands- Turkey burger, no bun, with steamed veggies and side salad. I have also done a chicken breast or the chicken caesar salad The Yard House- Seared tuna with asparagus. no rice just extra veggies. added side salad. Sushi-I get a few pieces of sashimi.. salmon or tuna.. or the shrimp (ama ebi) (you can do the sushi ebi style if you want happy hour price but) don't eat the rice. Some edamame, steamed veggies, and a small salad no dressing Red Lobster -SOOO many things work. Fresh fish, wood fired, grilled any of it just no sauce, no bread, no cheese, no rice. Get lots of veggies and a salad. Maggiano's Italian - Not so hard. Great salad options! Chicken piccata, herb roasted chicken, seared pork medallions, fresh fish, Salmon with lemon.. I modify any of them to fit the diet. Sides to add are:asparagus, spinach or broccoli http://www.maggianos.com Have you figured out other restaurants yet? |
Thanks Carla! That's a really good idea you guys have to keep an "emergancy" bag with you. I'm gonna have to try that. The only other restaurant I know of is Olive Garden which we are going to this weekend.
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I find Italian is one of the hardest because so many Italian restaurants think only of serving Italian pasta dishes or dishes with sauces. So many great Italian recipes are low carb and can be served sauce free or with lower fat. |
I had looked at the website for Olive Garden and saw a few things I think would be ok just have to make a few adjustments to them. Thanks for all the info!
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We are going for Chinese today. Any ideas??
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All chinese places offer white meat chicken, shrimp, scallops, pork, beef and have steamed broccoli, mushrooms, spinach, bok choy, leek, bean sprouts, asparagus. Just look for what sounds good. They will usually make or accomodate any changes and prepare it steamed. Just be sure to watch for the hidden starches in sauces, msg and seasonings. It is the main reason I go steamed and sauce free. |
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Is Chicken spicy Teriyaki bad? I have been hoping to through this for dinner one night but wasn't sure.
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I did some research and found that authentic terriyaki is very simple and is just soy and sugar. Overtime additional seasonings like garlic, pineapple, and sesame or spices/peppers were added. I found a sugar-free terriyaki online and then modified it to my taste. I use a low sodium soy, splenda, garlic, and a little red pepper for heat. It makes a thin sauce like a marinade but it works for me to get the flavor. |
Hi everyone :) I am new to IP and dont know much about foods. I was wondering if anyone knew if we can have polish bigos (hunter's stew)? i know it has tomato paste but other than that its just cabbage, sauercraut and sausage and meat scraps, well ... and some seasonings I guess ;) I feel so guilty bc I had some and now Im worried it will push my weigh loss back by days :(
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it depends on how long you have been doing IP the amount of impact the tomato paste will have. It might not effect you at all. Don't worry about it. It is done and, at least it wasn't a dessert or pasta dish.
showgirlaz, thank you so much :) I guess you are right at least I didnt eat humangous pasta dish lol I've been on the diest for 8 days only, it just gets so difficult when Im feeding my 18 month old and bc of work schedule I sleep very little so Im hungry a lot |
What do you do when the restuarant doesn't have oil and vinegar dressing? I haven't been able to find any dressing packets to take with me.
HELP! |
Great thread.. I'm going to sticky it :D
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When a restaurant doesn't offer oil and vinegar I ask if they have oil. If yes, ask if you can get a little dish of oil (salad oil, canola oil, olive oil, sesame oil, peanut oil... OIL) and a plate of lemon wedges. If they have no oil, you can still do the lemon wedge. You can also do a small amount of salsa. Try ordering or purchasing at your health store or grocery some of the walden farms packets of dressing. Each person finds one they like. FOR ME, I like the Italian. I can keep it in a ziplock bag and have a few in my handbag at a time. Then at a restaurant, I doctor it up with a little extra oil (if they have it), some lemon, my sea salt (I use real salt brand), and some fresh pepper. This is good too on top of steamed veggies. My little sister found some very small container that seal tight at walmart. She makes her own dressing and carries it with her in a ziplock bag. You could do the same or you could use a similar container to keep a little oil with you. You can always find the lemon wedges! :) Quote:
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Restaurants
I've been to Outback Steakhouse a couple of times. They've been very good about the steamed broccoli with no butter, and I'm not crying over 6 oz. steaks. The salads are overpriced everywhere you go, so I usually skip it and have it later.
You can ask for no-bun at a lot of fast food restaurants, but you usually end up with a piece of meat, some lettuce and a slice of tomato and wonder why you just paid that much. If you need something fast, I recommend and of the chicken sandwiches from Carl's Jr -- no sauce or ketchup, etc. -- but you'll find that they'll transform any of their sandwiches to low-carb if you simply request it, and they're the only fast food place I know of that actually presents it as though it was a sandwich, with enough lettuce to wrap it and make a good "bun". If I go to lunch with friends, though, I typically grab their side salad (I ask if they'll make me one without carrots and cheese), and instead of dressing I use their fresh salsa (it's just tomato, onion, jalapeno, cilantro, salt and lime juice). It's cheap and easy. You can do the same at a Cafe Rio/Costa Vida/Bajio. Just get the salad with grilled chicken and use the pico/salsa instead of dressing. Skip everything else you can't have. On a different note, I've found I spend a lot less money by not eating out, partly because when I do eat out it feels like a rip-off. Phase 1 is highly restrictive, there are many things you can't eat, and the longer you're on the diet, the more creative you get cooking at home. I think I make a better steak than most places, and that it's a lot cheaper. That means that I can spend that money on other things or simply saving it. Hit the movies instead of Applebees. |
Red Robin, Islands, and In- and- Out burger will also present their hamburgers/turkey/and chicken as "protein style/low carb" sandwiches. Red Robin and Islands will sub a side salad for the fries which is nice and, you can order a side of broccoli steamed no butter.
T |
Another great forum...(can you see I am lurking instead of cleaning). Summer always presents problems for me. Tonight we are eating at the bar for bike night...think I will order a burger ..no bun. Tomorrow is more of a problem. We are going to a baseball game (not a BIG league game...In Cleveland, they used to offer salads). I thought I could take in a salad, but was told NO, a few minutes ago. Again...probably a burger with no bun (just hoping they have utensils...but I will probably just try to bring my own)...any other ideas for these "motorcycle" nights and baseball? (looks like i will be doing a lot of that this summer).
Showgirlaz....that was an amazing post about how to eat in restaurants. It is pretty much what I did when I was on IP before, but you just refreshed my memory. Thanx for that. |
We have a chain called "Mongolian Grill" and I've seen something similar under other names (Chang's Mongolian, Mongolian bbq). Its like a giant salad bar with meats, veggies, etc. You make up a bowl of what you want and they stir fry it in front of you. You pick all your own "toppings" from lime juice to 4 different kinds of oil, etc. So you know EXACTLY what you are getting. And it's really good! The only danger: it IS all you can eat, so keep track of when you hit your limits!
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I've thought about trying a Mongolian grill, just haven't pulled the trigger. That's a great idea.
I've asked Carl's Jr. on two occasions if they would make me a fresh side salad ($1.69) without the cheese and carrots. They've had no problem doing that. It takes a bit longer, but I'll wait. And I top it with their pico (tomatoes, onions, jalapenos, cilantro). Going out to eat is getting old... |
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What are motorcycle nights and what do they include/involve? Do you always eat in a bar location? For the baseball games, is it a minors game or local league? Do they have a website of what is offered in the concession stand? I like going to the baseball games at our spring training and at our Diamondbacks Ball park. They also sell salads and veggie trays. I wish more people realized SOME of us out here are willing to buy healthy food. In the absence of the available foods, and if you can't discreetly sneak stuff in, (probably shouldn't say that :o) , the only suggestions I have are to eat the pickles, hot dogs or hamburgers minus the buns. At the bars, I have been able to get a grilled chicken breast and a caesar salad with my own dressing, hamburger protein style or minus bun, sometimes even steamed veggies. |
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We were traveling this last weekend and went out to lunch two days in a row. I just ate one of the bars that I had put in my purse before we went in the restaurant and then, I ate side salads only dipping my fork in the oil and vinegar dressing before I took a bite. I was probably under on my veggies for lunch because most of it was lettuce, but I still lost weight and with this being so early in the program I didn't want to chance trying to get Olive Garden to steam some veggies. |
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They will also bring you lettuce so you can make lettuce wraps instead of bringing tortillas or rice. So so good!!! :carrot: |
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Qdoba Mexican Grill ended up being a great place for eating out on IP. They will make you a salad without the taco shell, they will stir fry vegies for you in a little oil to put on your lettuce and then you can have them add some chicken to the salad as well for a fantastic fajita salad. Instead of dressing I just squeezed a couple lemon slices onto the salad and my IP salt I brought with me. There are other Mexi bar type places like this (you go through them like a subway) I'm guessing they might work well in a similar fashion.
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I love going to Mongolian BBQ's! That was my favorite restaurant before IP, so this works out great and I don't miss the rice. My local one will even give me some of their dragon spice to take home. :)
Over the weekend we went to a Japanese restaurant that had an habachi grill, Benihana style but better. This works out pretty well because you can skip the rice, have the salad without dressing (I used soy sauce) and get grilled meat and veggies. I'm pretty sure the dipping sauces have some sweetener, so I stayed with the soy sauce. The only thing I did have that I had some reservations about was the miso soup. I figure it's soy based, though fermented, and there's really not much else to it. It didn't bring me out of ketosis but we'll find out how the weekend affects weight loss Wednesday. The other place we went was Cracker Barrel which we've done before. I have the grilled steak, green beans, collard greens and a side salad with my own WF dressing. Their country way of preparing things hasn't been an issue, but I don't seem to be as sensitive as others. |
Hello everyone. I had a great experience eating out for lunch today at Applebee's! I ordered their salmon, with no sauce, and asked for double veggies (had to leave the carrots). Server says no problem! Then I ordered a side salad.....and without me asking, she named the usual toppings and asked me if they were OK....which all of them were not. Then she volunteered to add onion, broccoli, and mushrooms to the salad if I wanted. Wonderful service and such kindness to my unusual requests! She said these things are readily available and should not be hard to get at any Applebees. :carrot:
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What great info here! Thanks to all.
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Thank you!!!!
http://www.maggianos.com
Have you figured out other restaurants yet?[/QUOTE] I am on my 3rd week and getting overwhelmed because didn't know what to eat when going out - now I have plenty of ideas - so excited!!! |
I'm going for Korean food today but I'm not sure Kalbi is safe because of the sauce. Any suggestions. I could always have a vegetarian dish, but would like to have some meat also.
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I would go for a different item that uses a sugar free sauce. Try to stick with SHINSOLLO meats. They are cooked in a beef broth so lower in carbs (usually). Eat your veggies IF YOU CAN GET THEM WITHOUT A SAUCE. Many of the veggie dishes are made with a little sugar. Be cautious with the kim chi, most are ok but some use sugars. Call ahead to the restaurant. Tell them you need items that are gluten free and sugar free. Ask what they suggest that won't use a starch or sugar in the sauce. They may have some simple grilled meat options or other marinades. |
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Mexican!!!????
Hello all!~
I hope your weekends are going well and of course IP friendly! :D I am meeting my dad for dinner tomorrow. I tried to take control of where we were going but theres a mexican place hes been dying to try out :mad: I said fine but now im freakin out about what i can eat there.... Today marked the end of my first week on IP!! (dont weigh in until tomorrow though) I feel great so i really dont wanna mess up and eat the wrong thing.... Any tips for what to get at a mexican place????? Thank a bunch! :carrot: |
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a taco salad (and don't eat the shell, bring your own dressing); if they serve fajitas you can ask them what is in the marinade or if you can get it marinade free? that would all work, put it on a big bed of lettuce instead of in wraps? most mexican restaurants have some "american" food like hamburgers :( hmmm, or you can call you dad and make plans to go somewhere else for tomorrow, and plan a date to go to the Mexican place when you are done. That would be my choice...maybe a nice steakhouse? |
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