For working in a restaurant I can tell that I have seen a lot of food, from every food family. And that is when I started questioning myself to know if the restaurant portions were nutritionally and dietetically respected? I am more interested in the protein, fiber, and veggie intake rather than the calorie intake (sorry diet lovers..health goes first).
In fact, calories are just a number to calculate the energy value in food. Whenever you go to a restaurant, it’s for sure that the calorie intakewill overlapse the daily recommendations. Don’t feel ashamed. The chef is just trying to make the tastiest food by giving it an extra shot of olive oil, butter or salsa to the recipe. Plus, this second bottle of wine standing proudly on your table is also adding some extra-calories to your dinner.
Anyway, what my concern is really about, is to know if the essential nutrients are really on your plate, in quantity and quality when dining out. It’s since I moved to this city, filled with restaurant that I’ve been starting to focus on this topic (I could have tried a new one for every single meal..but only if I had a well-stuffed wallet to follow me). For the ones I have checked in, I can tell that the nutritional values are not always on point.
Take a salad bar..the humongous amount of salad takes all the space in the box. Try adding some veggies to it, but the waiter will make sure not to put too many, sizes are sizes and prepare yourself to pay for an additional spoon of these tomatoes. Then it comes to protein. You wand tofu? You’ll get 3 cubes of it. If you’d rather have fish (tuna or whatever) you’ll get one « cup » of it. If you’re an avocado lover like me, please stay away from it because the disappointment is way too big. Not even half of 1/2 avocado will be added to your salad. And paying 10$ for baby greens should seem reasonable? First it’s freacking expensive, and second, where is the nutritional value in eating just greens topped with some other ingredients.
What about restaurants? If you order fish, you might get a fillet which is usually a normal serving size. However, I won’t even mention the price of this farm-raised antibiotic fish that comes with a salad that could literally swim in the dressing. Yummy. I will close my eyes on this steak frites, which is literally way too much meat compared to the amount of supposedly vegetables. As fried as these potatoes are, there is no more potato inside the fried shell. And how lucky you might be if you get one cup of salad on the side. But once again, let these green leaves swim in their fatty dressing.
This being said, it appears that eating out will not be respecting the nutritional values, such as enough protein and greens on a plate with less fat and sugar. But so what? We all need cheat-meals or just some comfort food. As long as it is from time to time it’s fine. However, eating out every single day, even in the healthiest salad bars/restaurants will not get you to your best health or body. Try cooking your own plates at home if health and body shaping are your main concerns.
Jotellsstories 