Yikes- Olive Garden menu for RN-Yer's

Hi  - I need your help.!  have to go to a dinner Aug 6th at the Olive Garden. I'm almost 8 weeks out from my surgery but still having a problem with dense proteins!  I'm not seeing anything on the menu that looks like I could tolerate very well. Any suggestions?     Thanks -Jenny

i like the chicken marsala...it is very moist.  you could also stick with the soup (vegetable).  It's been awhile since I've been there so I'm not sure what else they have.

I love Olive Garden.  It'd definitely a bit tough to find something WLS friendly, but it's possible.  I think last time I was there I just did the soup and salad and it was great.  (I ordered a lot of soup when I was early out and had to dine out with friends.)  You could also order something off the appetizer menu -- I think they have grilled shrimp or mussels.  Or they have a grilled salmon with a side of veggies, if I remember correctly.

They might not have anything on the menu that's exactly what you can have... but you can always indicate you have special diet restrictions and ask them to hold the pasta or sautee in a tiny bit of olive oil instead of fry something or have the sauce put on the side.  Always ask if there's sugar in stuff (you'd be surprised what's got sugar).  Don't be afraid to ask them to accomodate your needs, most places are happy to help.

Good luck and have fun!
Pam

My friend and I, both wls'ers, went to OG not too long ago.  I forget exactly which dish she ordered, but it was a chicken dish with pasta and veggies.  She asked them to hold the pasta and they gave her extra grilled veggies (part of the dish) instead.  I've had the chicken marsala there, as well.  Pasta is difficult for me to eat, so I have to be choosy when I go there.  Sometimes, I do the mushroom appetizer as my meal.   Just depends on what you can tolerate and how far out you are, etc. etc.  There should be something you can order from the menu and still feel "normal" if that's a concern for you.  You'll definitely be taking home leftovers.  Since only being 8 weeks out, tho', maybe sticking to the soup would be best.  

wait, is this a secret that we went to olive garden??? lol, i ratted us out!!!

Nope, not a secret.  I just didn't want to be a "name-dropper".  LOL!

3 words - chicken scampi!!!

ask them to replace the noodles with summer squash and zuccini.  Tina and I went there a couple of weeks ago, it was awesome!!!!!

Um....that's only 2 words.

Hey there Jenny,
I would watch out for the salad....I'm not sure if you're tolerating lettuce or not, but a lot of the vinegarette-type dressings have sugar in them.  OG doesn't have nutrition info. on the website, which makes it difficult.

I would get a bowl of soup and ask them to puree it.  I've had them do it for my son who can't chew well and they did it.  Get a big glass of water with a lemon in it and tell the people you are with to quit paying so much attention to what you're eating LOL

Yeah, it's a tough call at 8 weeks out.  Everyone is so different at that stage.  I don't think I could do salad at 8 weeks, so I probably would've ordered something with mashed potatoes!  I actually could eat lasagna about 2 or 3 months after surgery.  It was mushy and went down easily, but you don't know what's in the sauce.  So...have to tread lightly!