With roughly 960,000 restaurants in the U.S., finding one that serves just health food can be a daunting task. Fortunately, you don't have to find a healthy restaurant; you just need to make smart choices. Many restaurants offer menu selections that are low in trans fat, saturated fat and cholesterol; others will strive to meet your special requests.
Make a Balanced Selection
Look for selections that include equal portions of proteins, vegetables and complex carbohydrates. Select fish or chicken accompanied by steamed or raw vegetables and brown or wild rice. Pay particular attention to the words used to describe how the meal is prepared, avoiding dishes that are pan-fried, breaded, creamy, crispy or that contain cream sauce; most are high in fat, salt or calories.
Be Aware of Portion Size
Without paying special attention to how much we eat when out, it is easy to consume more than intended. In fact, when you look at actual recommended portion sizes, many restaurant meals contain two, three and even four times more than recommended. Equating portions to familiar objects helps you be aware of how much to eat. A 4-oz. portion of meat is roughly the size of a deck of playing cards, a serving of fish is about the size of a checkbook, and a serving of cheese is close to six dice.
Avoid Add-Ons
Steamed fish with a side of rice and a salad seems like a healthy dinner selection. However, if the fish includes a heavy sauce, the rice is topped with butter and the salad is covered in blue cheese dressing, the dinner may have more fat and calories than a burger and fries. When eating out, request your selection without sauce or butter, or request sauces or salad dressings on the side. Select healthy add-ons such as avocado, lettuce and tomato rather than bacon, cheese or mayonnaise.
Watch for Hidden Traps
Restaurants often offer large quantities of food and drink at low costs. Fast food dinners consisting of a sandwich, french fries and a soda commonly contain over 1,000 calories. When eating out, instead of large or "super-size" meals, opt for smaller sandwiches, side salads and water or a diet cola. To avoid consuming extra fat and calories when dining out, replace mayonnaise with mustard, order baked, broiled or grilled meats, and substitute skim or low-fat milk for whole milk and cream.
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