By Caitlin Leff
There is nothing more appealing on a warm summer evening than finding a restaurant with outdoor seating where you can share delicious food and wine with friends. Unfortunately eating out does not always equal healthy food choices. But does this mean you can never go out to eat? Absolutely not.
With these smart tips you can ALWAYS find a delicious, healthy option on any menu. Don’t be shy about asking questions about the menu, or making special requests. As long as you are polite and appreciative a server will be happy to accommodate your needs.
- If you choose meat, poultry, or seafood for an entrée, always look for the words “baked”, “steamed”, “grilled” or “roasted” in the description of the meal as these are healthier options. Avoid “fried”, “sautéed”, “stuffed”, or “breaded”, “batter dipped” or “tempura” which are synonymous words for high fat and high calorie choices.
- Salads can be a healthy choice for an appetizer or an entree, but can also hide hidden saturated fat and calories. For example, if a salad is listed as a “crispy chicken” salad you are essentially ordering fried chicken over lettuce. Pay attention to the description of the salad and watch out for salads that include cheese, bacon, eggs, sour cream, avocados, croutons which are all ingredients that add to the calories of the meal. Choose grilled meats or beans over your salad for healthy protein. If you just have to have cheese on the salad (who doesn’t love feta or goat cheese on a salad) then ask for half the amount, and avoid the other extras listed above.
- Dressings are also sneaky ways of adding fat and calories to your meal. Avoid cream based dressings such as bleu cheese or ranch, and look for oil and vinegar based vinaigrettes. Even if your salad comes with a different dressing on the menu you can always substitute. Ask for your dressing on the side so you can control the amount that goes on your salad.
- There really is nothing better than warm crusty french bread dipped in olive oil and balsamic vinegar. But warm crusty french bread adds a significant amount of calories to your meal (about 100 calories a slice). If you could care less about bread before your meal just avoid it and save your calories for other treats such as an appetizer or a dessert. However, if bread makes the meal for you then go for it, just limit your intake to 1 or 2 pieces and make it replace an appetizer, dessert, or beverage. You have to pick your battles and decide what is more important to you.
- Order your vegetables dry. There is nothing worse than thinking you are getting a healthy side of veggies with your entrée only to discover they have been completely doused in butter or oil. Most restaurants are happy to deliver them to you sans oil.
- Replace sides such as french fries or mashed potatoes with salad or vegetables.
- More often than not the portion sizes at most restaurants are much larger than necessary. Appreciate each bite, take your time eating and
listen to your appetite. Stop eating before you get that “oh no I ate too much please roll me out the door” feeling, and instead bring part of your meal home. - Finally, be careful about your beverage choices. Splitting a bottle of wine can significantly add calories to your meal (approximately 100 calories per glass of wine, 150-200 in beer) as well as decrease inhibitions when ordering the rest of your meal.
Eating out should be a pleasurable experience and these tips will help you enjoy your food and feeling healthier after you leave. Remember it is all about balance and making smart choices. If you have any more questions about making healthy choices while eating out feel free to contact me at Caitlin@clubtwentyfour.com
