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What do you order at restaurants after weight loss surgery?



What do you order at restaurants after weight loss surgery?  

141 members have voted

  1. 1. What do you order at restaurants after weight loss surgery?

    • I look for any menu item with some sort of lean protein and plan to eat only the protein (for example, I only eat the turkey and leave the bun if I get a turkey burger).
      85
    • I ask the server if I can have some grilled chicken and steamed vegetables.
      17
    • I order whatever looks good and plan to just eat a couple of bites. You might as well take advantage of the restaurant’s good cooking!
      38
    • I bring my own food so I can enjoy spending time with everyone else while they eat the restaurant’s food.
      0
    • I don’t go to restaurants anymore. There’s nothing I can eat with my weight loss surgery.
      1


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This makes me happy and sad. Happy because it shows I can still go out to eat which I absolutely love and miss. I was sleeved 10/8. Sad because everyone is saying they will eat the insides of the tacos and fajitas but not the shell. Also same with burgers-no Buns. I love bread' date=' shells, and Pasta. Are these ever allowed???[/quote']

Yes! I'm 5 1/2 weeks out and last week I told my NUT I'll never eat carbs again. She laughed and asked why was I trying to deprive myself. I did have a bite of a whole wheat Breakfast burrito I made but I still just ate the inside I also bit a stuff shell again I didn't want it! This shocked me prior to sleeve I loved Pasta and bread. Now I take it or leave it. You have to see how you feel. But when the time is write don't deprive yourself but of course don't go crazy either. All the best!

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This makes me happy and sad. Happy because it shows I can still go out to eat which I absolutely love and miss. I was sleeved 10/8. Sad because everyone is saying they will eat the insides of the tacos and fajitas but not the shell. Also same with burgers-no Buns. I love bread' date=' shells, and Pasta. Are these ever allowed???[/quote']

Yes! I'm 5 1/2 weeks out and last week I told my NUT I'll never eat carbs again. She laughed and asked why was I trying to deprive myself. I did have a bite of a whole wheat Breakfast burrito I made but I still just ate the inside I also bit a stuff shell again I didn't want it! This shocked me prior to sleeve I loved Pasta and bread. Now I take it or leave it. You have to see how you feel. But when the time is right don't deprive yourself but of course don't go crazy either. All the best!

Edited by donkey booty

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....

Sad because everyone is saying they will eat the insides of the tacos and fajitas but not the shell. Also same with burgers-no Buns. I love bread, shells, and Pasta. Are these ever allowed???

Most surgeons want you to wait quite a while before eating bread and related products. I think with my surgeon it's something like 6 months. In terms of can you ever eat them then yes, eventually you can. But if you want to be successful in your weight loss efforts then they should be an occasional treat, but not something in your daily eating plan.

Hopefully prior to your surgery you should have asked yourself the question "What is more important to me, being able to eat what I want or being able to weigh what I want?", and hopefully since you chose to have the surgery, then you answered that question by saying that it was more important to you to be able to weigh what you want to instead of being able to eat what you want.

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This makes me happy and sad. Happy because it shows I can still go out to eat which I absolutely love and miss. I was sleeved 10/8. Sad because everyone is saying they will eat the insides of the tacos and fajitas but not the shell. Also same with burgers-no Buns. I love bread' date=' shells, and Pasta. Are these ever allowed???[/quote']

Hi, Once you get your small tummy, breads and pastas, etc will probably sit really heavy in there. I am almost 11 months out and generally avoid bread, Pasta, rice, etc ( the bad carbs). The good thing is I really don't miss them. Once I eat enough Protein to feel satisfied, I'm done.

Sent from my iPhone using VST

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I usually order steamed shrimp, or the peel and eat version. Other than that I stick to Protein, protein, protein! I did visit red robin where I ordered an amazing hamburger, the royal red robin. Instead of a bun I have it served on lettuce wedges. Also at the Mexican restaurant ask your taco to be replace with lettuce!

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Ewe, I hate lettuce!!! My weight and looks are very important to me, but also I do not want to be deprived because then I will plummet, and that's why diets did not work for me. I'm not saying bread and Pasta daily but maybe 2-3x week should satisfy me, and just a couple bites. I have been craving since day 1. If i do not have I feel it will be a downward spiral.

Edited by Astaze75

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Victory at Bahama Breeze tonight! We picked probably some of the most healthy things on the menu just by looking at the descriptions...and they were tasty! If you are ever there, check out the wood grilled chicken breast with citrus butter sauce, broccoli and mashed cinnamon sweet potatoes. Very flavourful, and you can order a smaller portion and still have food to take home. Another yummy option my husband (fiddleman) had was the crab stack- crab, shrimp, avocado and apple mango salsa. High in Protein and delish. He also ordered steamed edamame- polished off the crab stack, the edamame and several bites of my chicken, a few spears of broccoli and bites of sweet potato. I'm four months out- he's 16 months out and does lots of crossfit workouts. :)

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Congrats, Phoenix, that's awesome! Bahama Breeze does have some tasty food - I wish that more of their menu was actually healthy, though :P

One of our local restaurants will do half orders of stuff for me if I don't want a ton of leftovers and don't feel like sharing with my husband for some reason, which is a very nice option. A couple of places will also do special orders for me, knowing I'm going to want the Protein and maybe veggies, but not the starch most of the time. If you can, try to get to know the owners or managers of your local restaurants - you might be surprised how much support you'll get from them! And don't neglect the servers, either - a lot of times they can tell you about items on their "off-menu menu" that aren't advertised but they will do on request, if only you ask.

Bottom line, though - I don't obsess about carbs, I just control them. If I didn't, I wouldn't be able to get my Protein in, honestly! But that doesn't mean I never have a couple bites of a tortilla or a spoonful of brown rice. I just don't fill up on those, because personal experience tells me it's a bad idea. Heck, I share one Godiva truffle with my husband once a week after dinner (yes, we actually split the truffle in half and each have half). It's enough to satisfy me and make me not feel deprived without throwing everything off-course.

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I have not had anything off the kids menu because it is either Pasta, hamburgers or hot dogs. I will usually order a healthy option off the adult menu, eat what I can and take the rest home for 3-4 meals at work. My local Chinese restaurant has a really good Soup I usually get. I am not able to eat beef or fried foods since surgery without pain and nausea. At high end restaurants I will get the appetizer and that is usually just the perfect portion. Everyone tells me I am a cheap date now.

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I'm out to lunch/dinner at least once a week. I order grilled shrimp or chicken, or fish with fresh veggies. For fast food - Taco Bell's pintos and cheese or a chicken taco with no shell.

After I read this post I ate pintos and cheese for 2 days lol. Just the mention of it sparked a massive craving. Im good on the pintos and cheese for a couple of weeks now lol.

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I share with my husband who is also a sleever...we always end up taking something home with us and eat it the next day! We will go to Olive Garden, order manicotti - eat the insides - leave the Pasta shell - it works for us!

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I can find one of my favorites at a little chain restaurant within walking distance of my apartment called "The Fish Place". The "Mexican Shrimp Cocktail" is really delicious, chocked full of Protein, and just the right size for one or two meals (depending on my day). I don't (can't) eat the chips, of course, but really love the combination of shrimp, avocado, and spicy Mexican flavors. I have to admit to sometimes sipping a bit of Water on the side (twice) as this dish is really spicy.

Mexican%20Shrimp%20Cocktail.jpg

Edited by Bea Amaya

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I love eating in a good restaurant, and am finally getting to do so again after a long abstinence with the pre-op liquid phase and then the after surgery mushy sort of diet. Now, I'm getting more and more comfortable eating a meal, but still go for the Soup, as I can have a tasty dish, and not suffer for it. It goes down easy at this point! Tonight, I did have a wee bite of my hubby's chicken, just because I wanted to taste it. solid food is still iffy for me right now, tho. At least there are good chicken Soup choices out there for now!

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I have a lot of work lunches/dinners. I am about 8 weeks post op. I've found that I can find something just about everywhere.I basically order a lean Protein "sandwich" of some kind and just eat off the meat part of it and not the bread. To me the worst part of eating out is not finding things to eat, but is in convincing the waitress that everything was fine with my meal when I only eat a couple bites of it....lol. And trying to ward off questions from my co-workers as to why I'm not eating.

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I dont eat seafood but usually they'll have a seafood/fish dish on the app menu that is sleeve friendly. Lately, I've been into getting the fra diablo muscles but without muscles & chicken instead. Its a smaller portion of chicken & has tomatoes, onion, bell pepper & chorizo in a white wine broth.

Nice & moist , very flavorful.

I ask for no garlic toast as I cant eat it.

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      1. Selina333

        I'm so happy for you! You are about to change your life. I was so glad to get the sleeve done in Dec. I didn't have feelings of regret overall. And I'm down almost 60 lbs. I do feel a little sad at restaurants. I can barely eat half a kid's meal. I get adults meals often because kid ones don't have the same offerings at times. Then I feel obligated to eat on that until it's gone and that can be days. So the restaurant thing isn't great for me. All the rest is fine by me! I love feeling full with very little. I do wish I could drink when eating. And will sip at the end. Just a strong habit to stop. But I'm working on it! You will do fine! Just keep focused on your desire to be different. Not better or worse. But different. I am happy both ways but my low back doesn't like me that heavy. So I listened (also my feet!). LOL! Update us on your journey! I'm not far from you. I'm in Houston. Good luck and I hope it all goes smoothly! Would love to see pics of the town you go to for this. I've never been there. Neat you will be traveling for this! Enjoy the journey. Take it one day at a time. Sometimes a few hours at a time. Follow all recommendations as best you can. 💗

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    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. LeighaTR

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    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. summerseeker

        Life as a big person had limited my life to what I knew I could manage to do each day. That was eat. I hadn't anything else to look forward to. So my eating choices were the best I could dream up. I planned the cooking in managable lots in my head and filled my day with and around it.

        Now I have a whole new big, bigger, biggest, best days ever. I am out there with those skinny people doing stuff i could never have dreamt of. Food is now an after thought. It doesn't consume my day. I still enjoy the good home cooked food but I eat smaller portions. I leave food on my plate when I am full. I can no longer hear my mother's voice saying eat it all up, ther are starving children in Africa who would want that!

        I still cook for family feasts, I love cooking. I still do holidays but I have changed from the All inclusive drinking and eating everything everyday kind to Self catering accommodation. This gives me the choice of cooking or eating out as I choose. I rarely drink anymore as I usually travel alone now and I feel I need to keep aware of my surroundings.

        I don't know at what point my life expanded, was it when I lost 100 pounds? Was it when I left my walking stick at home ? Was it when I said yes to an outing instead of finding an excuse to stay home ? i look back at my last five years and wonder how loosing weight has made such a difference. Be ready to amaze yourself.

        BTW, the liquid diet sucks, one more day and you are over the worst. You can do it.

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