[lark 27]

Originally Posted by SteveFromIowa

So lets hear from you! What successes did you have while dining out recently?

I've enjoyed reading this thread. Eating out is a problematic area for me, so it's encouraging to read of other's successes. Here's a recent one for me.

Flat Top Grill is a small chain with one in Wauwatosa, WI west of Milwaukee. It's a place where you get to pick all your ingredients and then take them to the chef to cook. I've only eaten breakfast there, but look forward to a lunch or dinner sometime because you can do stir fry type things similar to Hu Hot's that you mention. Breakfast is great because you can load up an omelet with all sorts of veggies and meats and have a completely satisfying meal without all the carbs and the great thing is they won't even bring you potatoes and toast unless you ask for it. This for me is easier than going to other restaurants where you have to tell them not to bring the carbs or even worse have to have willpower to not eat them when they come on the plate! The place is cool too because they have the nutritional info of the sauces they use for the lunch/dinner sauces up on the walls in plain site.

[jer.lawrence]

This is a fantastic thread idea as well.

My wife and I went to O'Charley's the other night. It's always been one of my favorites, however I put this out there with a warning. They bring bread before the meal, and their bread is SOOOOO good, it's very hard to resist. I had one roll, while my wife ate the other three.

Anyway, we didn't check out any of the nutrition information before going, which is rare for me. One of the dishes they offered, though, was a Cedar Plank Salmon -- a decently sized serving of Salmon (can also do Tilapia if you prefer) cooked and served on a Cedar Plank with a side of steamed Broccoli. I tested 106 before, and around 134 afterwards... I know that was because of the Bread, though.

They have several good, low-carb choices. The food is always delicious.

[ShottleBop]

Flat Top Grill does sound like it makes it easier! Makes me want to visit Wisconsin! (I guess I have relatives in Illinois, too, but I was born in WI, and Mrs. ShottleBop, whose parents are from there, has 150-some first cousins spread around the state.)

[HealthierMe]

not technically dining out... but had good results with delivery pizza. We got a thin crust pizza from Papa Johns. I had tomatoes, onions, and chicken. 107 before, 129 at one hour after, 112 at two hours. I even ate the cheese this time. When we make pizza at home I usually make a section of no cheese for me. And of course piles of veggies. Papa Johns needs to add artichoke hearts to the menu of toppings.

[Granny Shanny]

Originally Posted by HealthierMe

Papa Johns needs to add artichoke hearts to the menu of toppings.

OMG - if they did that, I'd be there every day! I'd just have to slide the crust out from under & eat the toppings alone.

[freebie]

We have in-n-out burgers here California that is really good. I get a protein style burger no sauce which means it uses lettuce as a bun.

[Moonpie]

Olive Garden has a dish called Venetian Chicken, its chicken in an apricot sauce & i s served with veg only ( no pasta or pots) according to Calorie King it is only 20 carbs lunch & 30 carbs dinner. I had it for dinner a few weeks ago & it came with 2 pieces of breast chicken, so I ate one & brought one home for lunch the next day.
I am also considering hitting Boston Market for a take out, & get a meat plus two veggies for sides.

[SteveFromIowa]

Originally Posted by Moonpie

Olive Garden has a dish called Venetian Chicken, its chicken in an apricot sauce & i s served with veg only ( no pasta or pots) according to Calorie King it is only 20 carbs lunch & 30 carbs dinner.

YEAH!! Good to know! I've avoided Olive Garden assuming pasta and bread would be the only choices. Thanks Moonpie!

[Larry H.]

Around here the Applebees has a good grilled salmon that I ask for without the garlic butter and get a side of bar b que sauce. It comes with vegetables over rice, which I mostly avoid, or you can ask to have no rice and extra veggies. Doesn't budge my numbers at all.

[ShottleBop]

I'm in New York for a meeting, right now. This morning I walked over to my son's office to have lunch with him. Pre-lunch BG was 88. We went to a nearby Greek restaurant (Uncle Nick's Greek Cuisine). I had grilled sardines, which came with stewed veggies. They turned out to be tomatoes, potatoes, and zucchini; I picked out the zucchini, and left the tomatoes and potatoes. Two hours after lunch, BG was 98.

Mid-afternoon, I had some pork rinds. Late in the afternoon, I walked over to my dinner. I took about an hour and a half to get there, just to be out walking. Pre-dinner BG was 81. During the cocktail reception, I had a gin on the rocks, turning down the crabcakes and eggrolls several times. At dinner, I asked for a dry salad, to avoid the dressing. I had the filet mignon without sauce, asked them not to serve me the polenta, and picked the green beans out of the veggies they served. Had them hold the dessert (apple crumb tort), as well, and had pulled some walnuts and almonds out of my bag, instead.

Two-hour PP was 85. I was still a little hungry, so popped into the diner next door to my hotel and bought a small salad made of feta, olives, grape tomatoes, herbs, artichoke hearts, and pasta shells. I picked out the pasta shells and ate the rest. Now, an hour later, BG is 98, and I'm relaxing, watching the Charger game.

[Granny Shanny]

That "diner" salad sounds delicious!

Dare I ask how the Chargers are doing? They were leading last time I checked . . .

[ShottleBop]

Four points behind, now. Broncos have been dominating the second half.

[ShottleBop]

This trip to New York has worked out pretty well. I averaged 89 for Monday, and my 7-day average is 94. It would be a little lower, except for a couple of experiments:

• lunch at the airport on Sunday was a grilled chicken salad with pecans and dried cranberries, and I chanced eating about a dozen of the cranberries. I went from 106 to 122 at 1 hour (back to 106 after 2 hours). Ruined what otherwise would have been an average for the day of 96 or so.

• lunch at the conference I went to is always box lunches (sandwich, apple or pear, potato chips, cookies); typically, I bring along an extra protein shake and some nuts, take a turkey or roast beef lunch box, eat the meat out of the sandwich, and give the rest away. Yesterday, I tried the veggie wrap. Dutifully left the wrap alone, but the veggies included roasted peppers. (I can do fresh bell peppers, but the roasted ones do a number on me.) Up from 95 to 114 within an hour, and was still there after two hours.*

_____________________________
* Dinner, on the other hand, was fine: I walked from my hotel to my son's office, then we walked down 7th Avenue to Madison Square Garden (his employer has season tickets to the Knicks games (Knicks and Celtics, pre-season), and, after we set our dinner plans, he won a pair of seats, in the fourth row at one end of the court. It was my first-ever professional basketball game). We stopped along the way to eat; I had a salad of mixed greens with wild salmon and basil pesto dressing. Pre-meal BG, after the walk, was 83; two-hour PP was 95. Kept my average for the day below 100, at 98.

[brucekc]

Do they have Wheat rolls, I'm trying to stay away from White rolls.

[jer.lawrence]

My wife and I went to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner last night. I tried a new meal that I hadn't tried (since I knew I was diabetic, anyway), and had the Spicy Cashew chicken with broccoli. Usually it's served on Rice, I subbed the broccoli in for the rice. As it's a spicy mandarin sauce (and loads of it), I figured I'd be experiencing quite the spike afterwards.

The meal was delicious! Very spicy and very much like I remember it from before, just without the rice. I also had a very small piece of their bread before the meal, and three of my wife's french fries as well.

I was SURE it was going to spike me, so I tested a lot afterwards. I didn't test pre-meal, but my pre-dinner numbers are typically in the 90-110 range.

0:45 - 111
1:30 - 131
2:15 - 132
2:45 - 106

Very decent, stable ranges after the meal. I'll probably be getting that again, even though I do prefer to stay BELOW 130 after meals.. that isn't nearly as bad as I would have thought it would be. So, a very pleasant evening, all in all. I even woke up this morning at 87, so a good number in the morning too.