I have to attend a luncheon with work at a Mexican Restaurant. I called ahead and asked if they served steamed rice, and the girl acted like she didn't know what I was talking about........... Gheesh!
I usually eat fajitas (without the tortillas) or a fajita salad. I've also asked for extra fajita vegetables to go with the fajita salad. You can ask for all of the high calorie items (cheese, sour cream, guacamole) to be put on the side. I use lots of salsa instead.
How about fajitas, They are usually lean chicken and veggies. You can eat them without the flour tortilla. sorry, posted it before I saw that someone already said that.
Maybe a nice Chicken taco salad w/o the sour cream. They often have light fish dishes available too. At least at the authentic Mexican restaraunts that I've been to.
I don't know what you have available but where I am (pretty close to Mex.) we have places that have awesome and pretty healthy Mexican soups. You can get menudo with chicken (or beef and probably even tongue) and chock full of veggies.
Also, beans are good for you! Just tell them to hold the cheese.
I'd go the fajita route. When you order ask them to prepare them with very little oil (sometimes they use a LOT to saute the stuff!). Eat the veggies and chicken WITHOUT the tortillas. The sodium will probably be high so you might retain some water but I don't think the calories will ruin your day! Let us know what you do!
I will sometimes get a tostada with black beans instead of refried, salsa instead of dressing and chicken, hold the cheese, sour cream, guacamole. Then I don't eat the shell.
As some of the other posters suggested and have a chicken tostada. There's also a great beef vegetable soup called "cocido". It's beef shortribs cooked until the beef just falls off the bone accompanied by cut up carrots, potatoes and cabbage. It's very delicious. You can have the soup with a side order of spanish rice. Fajitas are good too but it's so hard to eat them without the tortillas. Either way enjoy your lunch and if you happen to eat something you think you shouldn't, get back on plan the next day.
Some mexican restaurants serve an amazing shrimp cocktail type cold dish. It's shrimp in a tomato salsa sort of like a gazpacho soup with onion, peppers, and diced avocado, and saltines on the side. If they have it in several sizes, ask how big they are. I made the mistake of ordering a "large," as I intended it for a meal, rather than an appetizer, and it came out in this huge fishbowl sized brandy snifter. If there's a lot of avocado, I usually eat a bit of it, but then eat around it.
I also make it at home
frozen cooked shrimp, thawed and tails removed
cover with Pace picante sauce
add green onion, cilantro, and jalapeno pepper slices (optional)
a squeeze of lemon or lime juice
and a small amount of avocado diced (also optional, and I usually don't use it unless I'm making a huge batch for a potluck).