You are hungry, yet you don’t have enough time or energy to get up and prepare a dish for yourself. In this situation, the restaurant seems like your way to go option right? Well yes, going to a restaurant can be a fast and convenient way to get your breakfast/lunch done but in some cases, it can get pretty tricky. Imagine you are trying to lose weight and have decided to go for the now popular keto diet. Suddenly your options have shrunk and restaurant meal planning seems harder than ever.
It is a fact that most of the restaurants don’t really care about providing healthy and high-quality meals. Their main goal is to feed as many people at the least expense. Still, they try to make their food tasty and attractive and a cheap way of doing so is adding sugar to almost anything. Just when you think your meat is keto-friendly you might want to ask yourself that twice because numerous restaurants are adding sugar to meat sauces or glazing steaks with sugar before glazing. And without even knowing if you are out of your ketosis. On the other hand, most of the side dishes aren’t keto friendly and are either consisted of oiled breadsticks, French fries or coleslaws that have carb-heavy sauces.
With all this in mind, it seems almost impossible to get a high-quality meal at a restaurant while staying in ketosis. But not everything is lost and with just some extra planning and preparation you will be able to do it. And on the up side, there are many low carb restaurants where you can find the desired food. As suggested by marketing experts, with good bar and restaurant promotion ideas, these venues managed to put themselves on the map.
Let’s go ahead and take a look at the few tips on low-carb restaurant dining!
Plan Out Your Low-Carb Restaurant Meals
1. The main thing is to come to a restaurant prepared and with an idea of what you can order. Check out their menu online and see if there are any dishes that could be alternated to become keto-friendly. Kick out the meat sauce, and other a pure steak with some fresh lettuce as a side. On the other hand, the breakfast dishes in almost any restaurant are mostly friendly so if you can order that it would be great. Breakfast dishes are mostly eggs and bacon, and that is basically the perfect keto meal.
2. On the other hand, there is one simple rule that is hard to follow and that will save you from being kicked out of ketosis. Skip on side dishes. Whether it is a bun, French fries, breadsticks or even a heavy coleslaw put it aside or don’t even order it in the first place. Good meat or an egg dish will be good enough to satisfy your hunger and you aren’t risking to throw your effort away.
3. Know that vegetables are your friends. Order some vegetable dish as an appetizer and count on it as your side dish as well. Of course, don’t add any sauces or gravies – but olive oil is an absolute must (it is a healthy fat and will fill you up!).
4. Last but not least when in one of the low carb restaurants think about what do you drink. Your bets are the best coffee maker, tea, and sparkling water as for everything else you can’t really be sure on the carb content. A glass of a spirit drink is fine if you really need it, as that amount shouldn’t kick or interfere with your ketosis.
Summary
Keto diet is an effective way to lose more than a few pounds in just a few weeks. And it is quite healthy as well as healthy fats are an essential nutrient for your overall health. On the other hand, you will need to skip on heavier restaurant meals and plan out everything in time. Still, with the right preparation and will to succeed low carb dining at a restaurant can even be enjoyable!
