Tips for dining out & traveling

For any plan to work it must be practical, and it must fit within the boundaries of everyday living. This includes traveling, eating out, and socializing. Here are a few tips to help you successfully navigate these normal everyday events.

Be prepared

If you know that you’ll be traveling, pack some healthy snacks to take along with you. This will keep you from making a desperate choice during an inopportune moment of hunger. On a number of occasions, I have found myself on an unexpected road trip. I always grab a big bag of mixed nuts and some bottled water to take with me. I also keep tea bags in a plastic baggie, in my purse. Some other snacks ideas to take along when traveling would be: hard boiled eggs, apples, avocado, fresh vegetable strips, small containers of humus or nut butter, and dark chocolate. If you’ll be on a long day trip, you can even pack breakfast and lunch to take with you, or you can plan ahead for what you will eat at rest stops.

Fast Food & Diners

I’ve found that you can even make decent choices at fast food restaurants if you have to. For breakfast, there is nothing wrong with ordering a bacon and egg sandwich, or a sausage and egg sandwich, with a cup of coffee or tea. View the bun, roll, or flat bread, as nothing more than a holder for the filling. Eat the food between the bread, and toss the bread into the trash when you are done. Use heavy cream in your coffee or tea, or simply drink it black. For lunches, you can almost always order a salad with grilled chicken. If you can get to a diner, your options for meal choices on the road will broaden significantly. At a diner, you can order veggie omelets, large salads, beef, chicken, fish, and vegetables. Look for grilled, steamed, and baked, meats and vegetables. Avoid heavy sauces and tomato sauces which may contain flour, or added hidden sugars. Use olive oil and vinegar, or olive oil and fresh lemon juice for salad dressings. Try to pick foods which are prepared in a way that is similar, to how you would make them at home.

Restaurants

If you can, go online and check the menu of the restaurant you’re planning to visit ahead of time. This way you can make sure they have things on their menu that you want to eat, and you can even plan your meal before you get to the restaurant. There are lots of great meals to be had in almost any kind of restaurant without going off plan, and many restaurants are happy to make substitutions upon request. Lamb, shell fish, fish fillets, or a nice steak, are all good choices for an entrée. Fresh salads, guacamole, and vegetables that are sautéed, steamed, or served fresh, make nice sides. Enjoy a nice glass of red wine with your meal and have a cup of coffee, or a cappuccino with no whipped cream for dessert. Here’s some different examples of the kinds of meals you might order in different types of restaurants.

In a Greek restaurant:

» Appetizers: Eggplant dip served with fresh veggies instead of pita’s, or an olive tray with cubes of cheese.

» Entrees: Roasted lamb shank, kebabs, or a gyro platter with no pitas.

» Sides: Greek salad. Grilled or sautéed vegetables.

 

In a steak house:

» Appetizers: Shrimp cocktail, or Lobster & avocado salad.

» Entrees: Surf and turf, or Pork chops.

» Sides: Sautéed mushroom caps. Sautéed fresh baby spinach.

 

In a Mexican Restaurant:

» Appetizers: Guacamole and fresh vegetables.

» Entrees: Fajitas, or a steak, shrimp, or chicken dish.

» Sides: Refried beans. Salad.

 

In an Italian restaurant:

» Appetizers: Cold antipasto, or mussels Fra diablo.

» Entrées: Chicken cooked with asparagus in white wine, butter and lemon juice, or chicken with spinach, mushrooms, and tomato chunks, cooked in wine and butter.

» Sides: Zucchini rounds with parmesan cheese. A salad.

Family Gatherings or Dinner in a Friend’s Home.

Eating at someone else’s home can be challenging especially if they don’t eat the same way that you do. Whenever I visit my parents for example, I always bring lunch or dinner with me. It makes an easier day for them, and I don’t have to worry about what I will eat.

Another idea when eating in someone else’s home, is to ask if you can bring a dish to share. Bringing a dish from home will ensure that there’s something available for you to eat.

If you’re close to the host/hostess, you could also just ask them what they will be serving, and talk to them about what kinds of food are compliant with the plan. Don’t expect them to change the whole menu, but if it’s someone that you’re close with they’ll usually try to be accommodating in some way.

If you don’t know your host that well, eat a small meal before going to the party or pack a snack for the ride home, just in case. At the party, select foods that are as compatible as possible with the plan.