Dining Out by Design

There’s a restaurant chain here in Atlanta called Seasons 52. Its concept is genius: Every entrée is under 475 calories. Self-described as “seasonally inspired healthier dining,” there’s a focus on seasonal cuisine and healthy ingredient choices and cooking methods like grilling.

The best of all are the desserts: After your dinner plates have been cleared away, the server brings a tray bearing a bunch of shot glasses lined up like soldiers. Layered in each glass is a different parfait-like dessert, like pecan pie, red velvet cake, and key lime pie. You’d think a 1-ounce shot glass of these luscious desserts wouldn’t be enough to be satisfying, but the miniature size encourages you to slowly savor the treat, taking tiny spoonfuls and truly enjoying every bite. And at the end, you realize you are indeed satisfied with the tiny portion, and the smaller, healthier meal on the whole.

Not everyone is lucky enough to have a Seasons 52 nearby (although the company is expanding; a Cherry Hill, N.J. location is slated to open later this year), but that doesn’t mean that you can’t eat healthy when dining out.

Try these tips to make the best choices next time you’re having lunch or dinner out.

Skip the Bread

When you sit down at the dinner table and you’re ravenous, it’s tempting to reach for the breadbasket and to start wolfing down butter-slathered slices. Tell your server you don’t need any bread, or if you really are impossibly hungry, take one piece and send the rest away. Speaking of butter, skip it. Or ask instead for a dish of heart-healthier olive oil for dipping.

Start with Soup or Salad

Instead of a rich and fattening appetizer, take a look at the soup and salad options. A clear soup or a pureed vegetable soup (as long as it doesn’t contain cream) is a satisfying option and will also help keep you from overeating.

Salads are another healthy choice, and could even stand in for an entrée. Look for one that’s packed with veggies and has baby spinach or arugula (more nutritious than iceberg lettuce). Nuts like almonds or walnuts are a healthy addition, as is a small amount of cheese. A salad that is topped with grilled chicken or salmon can make for a good entrée choice. Just stay away from creamy or oil-heavy dressing. Ask for dressing on the side, and dip your fork in the dressing before you spear a piece.

Order (and Eat) with Restraint

If there’s fish on the menu, go for it — it’s a healthier option than beef or even chicken. Unless, of course, it’s fried or drenched in a cream or butter sauce. Other healthier buzzwords to look for are grilled, poached or steamed. Be sure to take a look at the accompaniments; you don’t want to order a healthy grilled salmon fillet if it comes with French fries. When in doubt, ask your server for a recommendation or see if the chef might be able to alter one of the dishes on the menu to make it a little healthier.

My mother-in-law also swears by a restaurant trick to stay slim: When she gets her food, she immediately divides it in half, eats one part and takes the rest home. If you don’t think you have the willpower to eat only half, ask for a to-go container right away and pack up half of it immediately, so it’ll be off your plate and away from temptation.

Finish Strong

I’d suggest skipping dessert, which is probably the most effective course of action in eating out healthfully. But if you have even a fraction of the sweet tooth I have, doing without dessert is not an option. Instead, I try to minimize the damage by picking something that looks like it’s lower in fat or at least has some redeeming qualities, like fresh fruit. A berry cobbler or sorbet is a good option, and I love it when pavlova or meringue is on the menu, because these are super-sweet but low in fat.

I nearly always share dessert with my dining companion, too. If I’m sharing a small but elegant dessert among a group of four, and only get a few delicious mouthfuls, I’m often surprised to find that it’s still satisfying … a fact that Seasons 52 beautifully exploits with its shot-glass sweets.

^{Dining Out by Design courtesy of Lime.com. Image courtesy Seasons 52.}

Related Links

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