Going to a restaurant for the first time tonight

I've been avoiding restaurants since surgery because I wanted to learn how to eat at home first. It hasn't been hard to avoid them because we didn't go out to eat that much anyway. But a friend of mine who lives overseas is here for the week and we're going out to eat tonight. He suggested two places and I made sure to ask to go to the Asian place instead of the pizza one since there weren't any options there that I could find on the menu!

But I'm nervous, I don't want to make any huge mistakes. I've been trying to see what my portions look like weighed out so I could remember them for tonight. I looked at the menu ahead of time and already plan on getting the scallops. 2 out of the 3 people I'm going with know I had RNY and I'm not embarrassed to talk about it so I'm not really worried about that.

Does anyone have any tips for eating at a restaurant for me?

I was in restaurants early on because I travel a lot.  First, I always ask for unsweetened iced tea or water in a to go cup, so I can sip it before I eat and then have it later :)  Early on I ordered soups, stews or fish, and later on steak.  I don't eat a lot of chicken it can be too dry for me.  I love my veggies so if it's a place where I can get a side salad, I ask for it to be brought with my meal.  This way I can eat my protein first and have some salad too.  ...and of course stay away from the bread/rolls.  Good luck.  You've got this!  xoxo

You seem to have a pretty good handle on the situation. If it's a hibachi place, you can tell them ahead of time you don't want rice with your meal. I find that makes it easier than the hibachi chef looking at me as though I have 3 eyes or something. "You don't want rice? What's wrong with you???" a chef asked me one time. LOL. 

As far as portions go, if you are very unsure of how to visualize them...ask for a to-go container for dressing or sauces to help portion it out. I think to-go cups for condiments is 2 oz, but I'm not 100% on that. It might be worth doing some research on that, maybe. 

Have fun and enjoy your night! 

You just reminded me! I - LITERALLY - carried a 1/2 cup measuring cup in my purse for about 4 months after surgery. 

No, I never hauled it out in a restaurant. But it definitely helped me "eyeball" a meal and know what I could eat. I got pretty good at just moving food around on the plate, I must say!

 

OK. Depending on what kind of Asian....

Generic Asian or fusion like PF Changs - lettuce wraps are the only thing I'll order. Plenty of food. 

I have avoided Chinese for 6 years because I just don't know what's in it. Sauces are everywhere and sodium is high. But you can get steamed veggies, soup (eat just the broth), and sometimes fairly plain shrimp. Read the menu carefully and see if they can do something for you. 

Japanese - a little easier because you can watch them cook it. Just plan to flush your body for about a week with tons of water because of the sodium in all that soy sauce!  Stick with soup, a little shrimp, and a few veggies. 

Korean - maybe the easiest. Ask for no sauces used during cooking and just add a touch of the hot sauce at the table if you want to jazz it up a little. I love the way Korean food uses so many veggies, choices of protein, etc. 

Thai - You can manage here, but again watch the sauces. They are more likely than Chinese to be able to put sauce on the side. Again, leave the rice on your plate, and pick through to eat what is ok for you.

You're wise to skip the pizza - but there are many easier restaurants for us post WLS. A few to think about for next time....

Seafood - plain grilled or broiled fish obviously! White fish goes down easily - no complications to mess up the rest of your visit! You can do a good job at Red Lobster or a fancy pants seafood place, whatever!

Basic American fare - burger "protein style" (ground beef can be easier to eat, just skip the bun and watch what condiments you use), grilled chicken, veggies. This can be easier after you're comfortable eating salad as the side, too. 

Steak house - usually has seafood options too, or eat a small bit of meat and vegetables. (I've gotten hooked on the veggies at Outback.)

Fast food - not sure you are far enough out for salads, but Subway chopped salad is my "go to." Wendy's chili works well too.

Italian is another one I've bypassed - odd, because I love to make my own sauce at home but I can use it in different ways than the typical Italian fare. 

Many places now give us a great starting point with "under 500 calorie" meals labelled on the menu. If you land in a place like that, start with these, but still plan to take home a box - and even on that lower cal meal, be a little watchful. (It occurs to me that I'm a little hyper about sodium/salt content but with good reason!)

Hope this gives you a start point!

 

 

Wherever you go - skip the rice. For some reason it can take a long time for rice to sit well - lots of people experience this. 

It has Chinese and Thai here. But I've been here before and it has a lot of spicy food and I can't handle spicy food lol so I have to stay away from a lot of it anyways. The Thai I love but has a lot of noodles and I'm not eating noodles or rice so I'm not going with that.

Looking at the menu the only thing I feel safe with is the scallops so I'm going to order that. It's an appetizer so it should be smaller anyway. I don't think they have lettuce wraps - but I will look more carefully at the menu when I'm there. If they do that's what I would order because I do really like those!

I haven't eaten salads at all yet and it makes me nervous to try something new like that when I'm out with people. If I were with my husband I'd feel more comfortable with it because if I got sick he'd just deal with it.

Try to focus on eating slowly and putting your fork down between each bites.  Restaurants can be harder since there are so many distractions and you can start eating too fast before you know it.  

I also recommend moving your glass away from yourself once your food comes, so that you won't be so tempted to drink during your meal.  And make sure to look at your time once you finish eating so you know when you can drink again :)

I've found that going out to eat post op has been much easier than I anticipated. I go out often as I travel for work. Almost all restaurants have wls friendly meals and will customize (and often charge you less as needed). 

Sounds to me like you already have a solid plan. My advice would be check the menu/nutrition online before you go, which you did! Just make sure your mindful on the amount your eating as too much sneaks up on us fast when we are socializing. Be mindful of any sauces as well, I always ask for them on the side so I can control my portions. Good luck! 

My pitiful, limited experience:  1.  ordering no beverage hasn't worked, so I order water, drink a bit right away and leave the rest  2.  I request a take-home container to accompany the meal in order to resist eating more off the plate than planned  3.  the pizza place near me has tennis-ball sized, homemade meatballs with sauce and parmesan for $2/piece which my family prefers over pizza now, too.  4.  there has never been a need to mention WLS to waitstaff nor found WLS to be an appetizing discussion at a dinner table  5. one time, I found the menu choices challenging, so I said I was more thirsty than hungry, ordered lemon water and coffee with milk; no one cared nor hardly noticed.  6. I happily drive right on by those all-you-can-eat buffets without glancing back.

When I had my lap band first put in I carried around a small cookie cutter that was round and would fit the 2 to 4 ounces of food I could have.   It was super discreet.   The rest I would put in the to go tin and take home.   

Can you do sushi?   Do they have it?   If so, ask for just slices of tuna and salmon, no rice, plain.   Use low sodium soy.  Youcan fill up on 2 ounces of raw fish and it couldn't possibly be healthier.   If not, see if they have a tuna app where they seat the tuna lightly, leave it rare to medium rare, and serve it on greens.  Get the sauce on the side.   Only eat a few pieces and take the rest home.