Favorite Restaurant Low Calorie Entree

[rameycat 0]

I love eating out, but hate worrying about the calorie, fat and carb content of the menu items. I find it impossible to guess (you know when you think the fish is the best thing on the menu but later find out it has 65 grams of fat and 900 calories). So I thought it would be fun to start a thread of your favorite low cal/low fat/low carb Entrees from your favorite restaurants.

Mine is P.F. Changs Lemon Pepper Shrimp (without rice) - 1/2 order is 227 calories, 10 grams of fat, 16 carbs and a whopping 21 grams of protein!! Yummmmmmm!

[isaviolinist 11]

I love eating out too. I try to look at the menu before we go so I can know what I want (and what modifications I'm going to ask for).

There is a steakhouse that we like locally (I don't eat red meat, so I always get seafood at steakhouses) and I always order the steamed Alaskan King Crab Legs. Instead of the drawn butter that normally comes with them, I ask for the green onion aioli that comes with crab cakes. A pound of king crab legs usually yields about 7 ounces of meat, so the crab legs are around 190 calories, 3g of fat, no carbs of course, and 38 grams of Protein. I use a little less than one tablespoon of aioli which is probably 70 calories, 7.5g of fat, and no carbs or Protein. So altogether its a 260 calorie meal, 7.5g of fat, carb free, and a whopping 38 g of protein. Crab legs are great because you can't scarf them down (as you have to crack the meat out of the shell which can take some time). You really have to take your time (which also makes each bite more enjoyable).

I don't eat red meat, pork, or poultry so I've become an expert at ordering seafood at restaurants (which is generally the healthier option anyways). I always ask how many ounces the fish is (that way if its 8 ounces, I know how much I'm eating if I eat half or 3/4s of the dish) and I always ask for it to be prepared without ANY fat (yep, its totally possible to broil a fish without a stick of butter or a cup of oil). If there is an option to steam or poach the fish, that's generally pretty safe. I stay away from anything pan seared. I also avoid dishes that are "encrusted", "breaded", etc. If the dish comes with some kind of sauce on top (especially a cream or butter-based sauce) I ask for it on the side (or just not at all). I do all of this, even in fancy restaurants (I honestly don't care if offend the chef). Its not that I won't eat foods that are pan-seared or macadamia-nut encrusted, as I don't restrict what I eat (this isn't a diet), I just prefer to make them at home so I can control the portions and the calorie content.

[HeatherinCA 10]

I didn't know they had anything good at PF Changs! All their dishes have so many calories. Good to know.

I like the Elephant Bar Macau Shrimp & Noodle Soup (400 calories), it had tons of shrimp, mushrooms, and other veggies it was really chunky and filling and it was the perfect size bowl, it's not huge, but plenty of food.

Spicy Ahi Tempura Roll at Cheesecake Factory (680 calories), I couldn't eat the whole thing but it was really tasty. It's still a bit high in calories, but some restaurants you can't really do better than that.

Guiltless chicken Platter at Chili's is good too i think it's 580 calories.

They have tons of really low cal meals at Red Lobster! I haven't gone yet since I was banded.

I went to California pizza Kitchen and they really had nothing healthy so that would be a skip if you can. (they have this new law in California that ll the chain restaurants have to print the calories on the menu)