Eating out can be an adventure or a waste of money and unwanted calories. Here are some tips to make your restaurant experience worthwhile.
Summer vacation is driving around time, and eating out. Personally, I love eating out, it gives me a break from cooking, and I get to taste new dishes. Still there are pratfalls to eating out too often. Most restaurant food is more fattening than home cooking. And more expensive. Restaurants tend to use butter a lot. They tend to put way too much dressing on the salad. The temptation when traveling around especially with a family is to eat at the fast food joints which just pile on the fat, carbs and calories. Food inspectors can't be in every eatery all the time. So safety is still an issue.
Here are some tips for eating out:
- Plan ahead. Figure out where you are going and find the reasonably priced but healthy but good places. The Internet makes this so much easier. Read travel blogs. Many towns have a list of best restaurants compiled by the locals.
- Not all fast foods are alike. Most fast food restaurants have information on the net. Find out what food have the least calories, fat, and sodium.
- Beware of salad. They look innocent enough but they're not all alike. Many salads have so many unhealthy and even fattening extras.
- When possible ask for salad dressing on the side.
- Find restaurants that use olive oil rather than butter or lard in their cooking.
- Phone up a restaurant and ask what they fry their food in. This is a real eye opener to any vegetarians.
- If a restaurant always has a 'help wanted sign' avoid it. Chances are they don't treat their staff well and that could be reflected in the quality of their food and in their sanitation.
- Don't order fish on a Sunday or Monday chances are it won't be fresh.
- Look at the back of a restaurant to see how clean it is and if the staff are smoking.
- Make sure a restaurant is well staffed. This is especially true of counter or sandwich places. You don't want the same person who is making your sandwich to use the cash register.
- Always get what the restaurant is known for. Order their specialty. Don't order a steak at a Chinese restaurant.
- Talk to the waiter, ask them what's good and fresh.
- Be nice to the wait staff and they'll be nice to you. You will get better service.
- Avoid restaurants that sell too many different types of food, chances are they don't do any of them well.
- A busy place is a good sign. If few people go into a restaurant, chances are there's a good reason for it.
- Less is more. Beware of small restaurants with huge menus.
- Be aware of buffets. It's tempting for buffets to save the left over for the next day. If a buffet seems too good to be true, it probably is.
- Go to the local green grocers and stock up on ready to eat vegetables and fruit you can eat in the car. This will save you money and you can avoid unhealthy food.
- Find a good deli or/& bakery and have a picnic.
- Eat your big meal at lunch. Many restaurants serve the same fare at lunch as they do at dinner but at lower prices.
- Get appetizers and side dishes to share, it will work out cheaper than main courses and it will add variety.
- Yes, its all right to eat junk once in a while. I do it. Who can resist cotton candy at the fair? But think of them as treats not every day food.
- Be active, go for walking and bike tours. Get a pass to the local gym. Go to the beach or to the pools and swim. Walk to the restaurant!
- Enjoy, yourself, discover new eating experiences.
If you have any more eating out tips, please post them in discussions.
Visiting or live in NY? Here's a list of the best brunches
Visiting Toronto check out June Chua's review of New Sky
Also from June Chua is Eating Asian Food Abroad her adventures eating Asian food in Europe including a restaurant in Norway.
And while you're there check out Mary Luz's Food and Culture Tour of Toronto
Sushi is a healthy and often cheaper eating out experience.
Here's an interview with a Miami Hotel Chef Micheal Bloise
Both the above links are from Jennifer Minor of Luxury and Resort Travel.
Please take my poll at Seasonal Cooking
