Eating at Restaurants Can Have Some Advantages and Challenges!
Here are some reasons why eating at restaurants can be good.
- It’s easy. You don’t have to shop, cook, or clean your home or the dishes.
- It’s an event. Socialize, have a work function, or relax alone.
- It’s ready. You can choose where to eat and what to have last-minute without worrying.
- It’s flexible. Enjoy old favorites or try new foods or dishes.
But many menu items are high in calories, sugar, sodium, and fat
Examples include chicken nuggets, pasta alfredo, burger and fries, cold cuts sandwich, pancakes with syrup and bacon, and fried rice.
Desserts and beverages can add calories without many nutrients. Examples are milkshakes, cookies, cheesecake, cake, ice cream, smoothies, and iced coffee
Steps for Building Your Restaurant Meal
It’s a lot like building a meal at home!
- Look for non-starchy vegetables like a side salad or entree salad, a side of roasted, steamed, or grilled vegetables, or vegetables in a dish like stir fry with vegetables, broccoli chicken, a spinach omelet, or shrimp fajitas
- Find a lean protein like skinless grilled or baked chicken, fish, or shrimp, beans, a turkey burger or veggie burger, yogurt or cottage cheese, peanut butter, tofu, or eggs or egg white
- Fill in gaps with healthy items like light dressing or olive oil and vinegar, a whole-grain like a whole-wheat roll or brown rice, or corn on the cob without butter
You’re the Customer - You’re in Control!
If you don’t see a menu option that seems healthy:
- Ask your server or the cashier. “What’s in it?” “What does it come with?” “What is this item?”
- Make a special request or modify your order. “Can I please order it without the sauce?” “Can you please bring it without bread?”
Consider these strategies for modifying your order to make it healthier.
Ask for healthier sides like vegetables, fruit, side salad instead of a default high-calorie side like fries or mac and cheese
Swap the dressing for light, low-fat, or fat-free dressing, vinaigrette, olive oil and vinegar, a lemon wedge and black pepper, salsa, mustard, or marinara sauce
Ask for it plain instead of breaded, battered, fried, or with sauce. Try grilled, roasted, baked, stewed, or broiled with sauce on the side
Leave items out or have them on the side, such as dressing, croutons, and bacon bits on the side, no mayo in a sandwich, or an order of vegetables and dip without the dip
Order a la carte instead of having a large plate or platter, such as having a chicken taco and a bean taco instead of a three-taco plate with rice and beans, or having a short stack of pancakes and an egg instead of a pancake platter with pancakes, bacon, eggs, and toast.
Smarter Options at Restaurants
Course by course, here are some swaps for smarter meals.
Lower-calorie starters
- Skip bread, rolls, breadsticks (and butter), chips and dip, fried shrimp, cheesesticks, puff pastry, egg rolls, potato skins, creamy and cheesy soups
- Look for raw vegetables with salsa or hummus, green salad with vinaigrette on the side, shrimp cocktail, broth-based or chunky soups (minestrone, chicken noodle, vegetable)
Focus on lean proteins and vegetables
- Skip fried chicken, fried shrimp or fish, fish sticks, popcorn shrimp, fatty burgers, fatty 12-oz steaks, processed meats like sausage or salami
- Look for chicken, fish, shrimp, veggie/bean burger, beans, cottage cheese, egg, egg whites, sirloin
Plain options
- Skip creamy dressing, special sauce, mayonnaise, butter, cheese, and cream sauce, sweet and sour sauce, fried, battered
- Look for low-calorie vinaigrette on the side, sauce on the side, grilled, roasted, baked, broiled, stewed
High-fiber sides
- Skip pasta, rice, chow mein noodles, fried rice, pilaf, French fries, creamy potatoes, loaded potatoes, coleslaw and other creamy salads
- Look for green salad or chopped salad, steamed or roasted vegetables, fresh fruit, baked butternut squash, corn without butter
Healthy breakfast
- Skip bacon, sausage, and ham, croissants, biscuits, white bagels, muffins, breakfast burritos, butter, jam, syrup, platters
- Look for cottage cheese, light or non-fat yogurt, egg whites or eggs (plain or made with vegetables), whole-grain toast, English muffin, cereal, or unsweetened oatmeal, fresh fruit - whole, berries, or cut
Smart drinks
- Skip soda, fruit drinks, sweet tea, flavored coffee, latte, alcoholic beverages
- Look for water, ice water, sparkling water, hot water (with lemon), black coffee or coffee with milk, unsweetened hot or iced tea
Better desserts
- Skip sundaes and milkshakes, pie, cake, brownies “a la mode,”cheesecake
- Look for fresh fruit, coffee/tea, split with friend
Making Portions Smaller at Restaurants
Is the purpose of the meal to get as much food as you can for your money, or to get the most pleasure and best nutrition from the meal?
Here are some ways to get smaller portions at restaurants.
- Look for a half or lunch portion
- Order a kids’ or senior portion instead of the regular portion
- Order a “small” instead of a “medium” or “large”
- Order a “single” instead of a “double” or “triple”
- Split a meal with a friend or family member
- Pack up half to eat later - ask for a box or doggie bag at the beginning of the meal
- Order sides or apps if they seem healthy
