Going out do eat *What do you have*

At this point, I still can't eat alot at one sitting, so if I go out by myself or nobody wants to share, I look at the appetizer menu (sliders with bacon and cheese, no bun!) or the kids' menu if the place will let me order from it.  Not all places do, I'm told, but so far no one's turned me down.

 

The Italian place I go to will let me order a chicken breast with alfredo sauce.  I usually get carnitas and refried beans, no rice at the Mexican place.  When my friend and I go to our favorite bar/restaurant, we split a mac and cheese with grilled chicken.  I get the chicken and maybe a couple of noodles.  He gets the rest. 

 

I find alot of places are more accommodating than you would think.  Never hurts to ask for what you want.

For Mexican try either chorizo and eggs or chilaquiles or fajitas just avoid or revduce the tortilla intake.

Tortillas don't sit well, so I avoid them.  Same with bread/breaded stuff and sweet stuff, as best I can anyway.

I'm 9 years out, and when I go to a steak place I can eat a small salad, an 8-ounce ribeye, a few bites of baked potato, and a yeast roll. Sometimes I have dessert, too, and I bring my baked potato home and eat it later---often covered in cheese and chili!

We try to mix it up with eateries - variety is the spice of life.  Wherever we go the menu is searched for whatever protein sounds good at the time in order to follow the rule, protein first - not ONLY protein, but protein FIRST.  GF avoids fats but fats are great for me, so we often will split a big entree in the fashion of Jack Sprat who could eat no fat and his wife who could eat no lean. When eating someplace known for desserts, we've been known to start our meal with a high fat dessert.  When ordering separate entrees, we often exchange items back and forth (give you my rice for your beans, or do you want my dinner roll and will you give me your buttered mushrooms?)

Since we can eat any kind of protein, eating out has not been a problem for me. I like Chinese buffets - lots of great protein choices, shrimp, all sorts of chicken, maybe some egg drop soup, string beans, but little or no rice.

    Unlike one of the other posters, I have no problem with Red Lobster. I usually order some kind of shrimp, and eat part of the Caesar salad. They do also have regular green salad for those who don't tolerate the Caesar for whatever reason, but really, who goes there for the salad anyway? Their scallops are also good, and, of course, the lobster.

    At non-buffet Chinese restaurants, I can always find some kind of protein heavy dish, with chicken, or beef, or shrimp. Egg foo young is also good. At steak places, just order a steak, or prime rib. Breakfast at Denny's if you're on the road - you can order off the "senior" menu even if you're not a senior, and get stuff like bacon and eggs or sausage or whatever.

    The beauty of the DS is that it allows for much more eating choices than gastric bypass, because we don't have to worry about lean protein vs non-lean protein, or added fat. I would say that sandwiches can be problematic because of all that bread, which can cause bloating/gas/discomfort. Luckily I was never a big fan of sandwiches, but if you are, it helps to remove the top piece of bread or bun, and maybe don't finish the bottom piece, and go for the protein.

Larra

My 1st choice is usually from the appetizer selection.  If nothing appeals to me then my next scan through hits the meats with an eye on what would do well re-heated the next day or easily re-purposed into a 2nd (3rd) meal.  My most favorite restaurant is one that offers an ala carte menu with ... yep, you guessed it... steak!

sashimi!

ribs!

steak

chicken

shrimp

so many choices

while I love Italian, I keep my visits to these restaurants to a minimum as I always end up ordering a pasta dish as it calls out to me.  Many restaurants will let you add shrimp or chicken breast to a pasta order, which helps some.

I am 3.5 years out and I eat pretty much anything I want when I go out.  Since you are pre-op I am assuming you want to know what to eat early out?

Taco Bell Burritos minus rice, eat insides and not the tortilla

refried beans form taco bell

kfc mashed potatoes on mushies. no nutritional value, but it went down and it was good

wendys chili

a double cheeseburger of the dollar menu and eat around the bun. for some reason mcdonalds went down easier. I would usually eat one bite with the bun just for the taste, and scrap  the rest of the bread.

for breakfast a burrito without the potatoes, and eat just the insides  or a biscuit or sandwich without the bread.

A couple bites of bread, tortilla, etc won't kill you, but it is so hard to get anything down early out that you just need to save room for the protein.

Broccoli and Cheese soup at Applebees, Chilis, etc

Baked fish or salmon

scoop of tuna from Subway

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Now, I love buffets!  Golden Corral and Chinese. I can fill my plate with meats and veggies and a little rice or potato. If something does not go down right, I have tons of other choices to go to.   This was not a good value early out with the tiny tummy, but it will stretch out big enough for a normal meal within the first year. 

 

If I am ordering a meal off a menu, I normally pick an entree and sub the rice or potato for extra veggies or a salad.   I then sneak a few bites of my boyfriends rice or potato as he scowls at me :-)  I dont count the carbs and dont have bad gas issues, the rice and potatoes just fill me up and I dont have room for the meat and veggies. 

 

I tend to not order pasta dishes because they never give you enough meat. But, I was never a pasta fan pre wls.

 

Even this far out chicken breast is a gamble. If it is dry, it just does not go down well.  I love wings, ribs, and steak!

 

I dont feel deprived of anything with my DS!!!!!