Restaurants RnY friendly

I am 3 weeks out.. dental soft diet.. we are going on vacation next week and I need food place ideas ... week 4-6 is mechanical ground texture.. what did you all eat in these phases?

Going to be honest here trying new foods outside of ones home can end up being a disaster. I myself did it once and only once. Not fun when your in the bathroom yacking because what you tried to eat did not agree with you.

I am going to ask what type of food places will be around you? That is going to make the difference as to what you can and cannot have. At that stage for me scrambled eggs, Wendy's Chili, cottage cheese were my go too's.

Hate to tell you it's going to be hard to find restaurant food in that stage. The hardest part is that each person's pouch adjusts to different foods in different ways. What worked for me may not agree with you. I think the best plan is to pack some foods to take along, maybe some cottage cheese, yogurt, protein shakes (RTD or powder with a blender bottle), LF refried beans, packets or cans of MOIST cooked chicken that can be cut up very fine and chewed to death. (Remember some or all of these may or may not work for you!) Anything you get in a restaurant will probably be higher in fat (which may not agree with you), spicy or dry. It might be possible to get some brothy soup but be very careful of what's in it...like no beef.

Also remember that it is even more important to stay hydrated. Carry water or other calorie-free fluids with you everywhere and sip constantly! Dehydration will make you nauseated, tired, and otherwise sick. Focus on fluids and eat carefully.

It may be difficult, but it is possible with some pre-planning.

I did have to travel that early and I second the "be cautious"; I relied heavily on RTD shakes (even checked my suitcase so I could ship the ones I wanted to have on hand); yogurt and when I had to be out, a few bites of restaurant chili (Wendy's, Longhorn, Panera) or the broth from a cup of soup.

The good news is that so early on, a few very well chewed bites was all it took. This is a good time to realize that the aspect of socializing at the meal is more important than the meal -- so I enjoyed a bite or 2-3 and then focused on the conversation! The hardest part for me was that was still the point of not drinking 30 minutes before or after eating so timing the before was hard (after has never been an issue for me for some reason).

To have something on a long flight, I would get a steamed skim milk at the airport coffee shop; let it cool a bit and then add it an a protein powder to my insulated mug. Had to let it cool so the protein powder didn't clump but that gave me something to keep in the cabin in case I needed it..and helped hydration wise also.

I really like these suggestions. I'd delay the progression to the next phase other than the chili and soup suggestions. I'd stay heavily reliant on your protein shakes vs. risk unknown foods out in the blind of how you'd react. Interesting how programs are different. At day 28 I was cleared for solid food. I ate my first solid meal the day before Thanksgiving, so I just had a few bites and went cautiously into the meal. If you really want to go out and enjoy - why not get a moist fish dinner and chew it up real good. I'd think that would work at most any restaurant. But I remember driving early in my progression and my wife got sick and tired of stopping at Wendy's ;)

Let me chime in again to say that dairy foods may be a good go to at this point BUT some people do become lactose intolerant after surgery even if it wasn't a problem before. Take some lactaid pills along and if you can try out some dairy before you go, just to see how you do. The good news is that there are lactose-free dairy options available (milk, cottage cheese, yogurt) if regular dairy doesn't work.

I'm good with milk.. I drink 16 ounces a day.. I was lactose intolerant before surgery but it don't seem to be an issue now. I'm not sure what's around where we are going. I do know they have penora bread.. taco johns, etc. I'm supposed to do scrambled eggs and I tryed egg whites at Denny's and it didn't go well at all..

Denny's adds pancake mix to most eggs scrambles...

Have you tried Fairlife milk? Less sugar/carbs than regular and it also has more protein.

Yes, I use that or lactaid.