Your entire way of eating needs to change after weight loss surgery. Your diet is high-protein, low-calorie, and carefully measured. There may be a lot of foods that you can no longer eat, such as bread, pizza, and French fries. Following your weight loss surgery diet can be hard enough at home, and eating out can be even tougher. How do you feel about eating out after weight loss surgery? If you haven’t had surgery yet, how do you approach restaurants?

• I won’t go near a restaurant under any circumstances because I can’t or won’t stick to my diet.
• It depends on the restaurant. I check the menu to see if there is some sort of lean protein that I can order.
• I don’t like to go, but I will if everyone else goes. I just do my best to pick out the parts I can eat and to eat only a few bites.
• I will go, but I bring my own food while everyone else orders from the menu.
• I go and try not to worry about it. As long as I don’t get sick afterward, it can’t be that bad for me.
• Other (tell us below!).

Mark your answer and explain it below in the conversation. You can also tell us if your attitude towards restaurants has changed since getting weight loss surgery!

My family eats out often - probably way too much. I am 2 months post. We went out of town this past weekend. I learned that I should either eat off my husbands plate or just get an app. I like different foods than him so it was a little frustrating. I do enjoy going out with a group of friends for drinks and apps. I can only eat a few bites, drink half a drink, but it's nice to socialize and not be focused on the NEED to eat. My brain is retraining. My eyes are still bigger than my sleeve but I'm getting there. I go for protein only when ordering (except the 1/2 margarita I had Monday).

I eat out a lot with work, I have learned to order carefully and I tend to just pick-My stomach tells me immediately if it is not happy with what I have chosen.

I will order steak and just eat until I am full so about 4 oz-I do eat with small amount of potato or veg

I chose other because the other choices didn't quite fit. I go to whatever restaurant I want, order whatever looks good, eat till satisfied and take home the leftovers. Sometimes I split a meal with someone who wants to same thing. No different than preop, just much smaller portions (and a lot cheaper!)

I am a vegetarian and have food allergies. Not all my friends are vegetarians. I almost always check menus before I go. it's just part of what I need to do in order not to get sick. I'm pretty good at it so I have a handful of restaurants I frequent that I know are safe, and I'm pretty good at talking to wait staff to make sure I get something safe to eat. For the most part it doesn't really complicate my life.

I chose "other" because, like cowgirljane & justwatchme, I needed a positive answer-choice.

Never blinked an eye over going to restaurants with WLS. At post-op, didn't necessarily want to as I was laid up from a fall just before surgery anyway. Plus, with time off work (~6-8wks) couldn't afford it.

Almost never go to fast food places. BUT, McD's grilled chicken snack wrap is perfect or I'll order the 'premium' sized one, and eat 1/3-1/2 & take home the rest. Their Soups aren't too bad either.

My other fast food place is KFC. I get the grilled 2pc dark meat with green Beans and sometimes also get the mac n cheese for a treat, if I'm tanking and need carb-energy. Usually don't eat it all. Never the biscuit- which usually gets put on the counter for anyone to take, then tossed when it's rock-hard

Don't go to restaurants nearly as much as I used to. I realized my own cooking is way yummier than a lot of restaurants and healthier too.

I avoid chain restaurants, mainly because I prefer to support local businesses.

I LUV ethnic foods and trying new things. Thai food is a fav. Indian too. Vietnamese. Ethopian SO good!

One of the things I do that hasn't been mentioned here are multi-course dinners that take two or more hrs, eating, relaxing, talking, laughing, enjoying...

(Multi-course meals; probably best for the vets. Sorry newbies...)

Had one a few months ago at a Thai restaurant.

I ordered:

course 1) App: Mussels.

Not very filling-chewed to mush. All protein- ok well, butter sauce, but I don't drink that like Soup anymore. lol. took a tiny bite of bread dipped in the sauce only to remind myself I don't do bread well. It was split between two & I didn't spend any time watching to make sure I got my 1/2 before they were gobbled up like I used to. let the other person do most of the gobbling

course 2) soup: Tom Kah (whatever the word is for 'with chicken').

It's a coconut milk based soup with lemon grass, veggies & chicken. Took my time eating it. Ate all of the chicken, the soup & a lot of the veggies.

course 3) salad. seaweed salad with julienne carrots on top.

One of the most nutrient-dense greens out there! Watch out! There's sugar in it so eat this once in awhile. I ate about 1/3-1/2 wrapped the other half to go.

course 4) Entree' Seafood red curry.

Again, coconut milk-based, spicy curry dish with lots of veggies and mixed seafood. I ask for the brown rice with it & ate a tbsp or so of rice with lots of curry & Protein on it. Left most of the veggies, curry sauce & rice for take-home.

course 5) Green Tea ice cream.

I just ate a couple tsps of someone else's to try it.

Big bag of take-home and meals for 3-4 days!

Yay take-home!

Double Yay! that multi-course meals are doable with WLS.

Just have to be smart ordering and eat just a bit of each course & take home the rest.

Share buddies are great for multi-course meals. Even better, order family-style & serve yourself just a bit of each thing.

Don't really do Italian much. Not my thing. Would make due if with a group by ordering an app, salad or mostly protein dish.

Vietnamese food is amazing. Everything in a big bowl of broth. YUM!

Indian foods, I get the big variety platter and eat a little of everything- just a bite or two of Yam bread (sp?) take home the rest

Creaole: I get the gumbo!

Chinese: once in a blue moon. not my fav. too many additives & MSG. Garlic chicken combo plate. Give egg roll away

Mexican: Only If it's the real deal- a general mix of different things; depends on the restaurant & which regions of Mexico they have on their menus. Luv real Mexican.

Tex-Mex: can't do most of it. Too high in fat for my lil pouch. When I 'went there', I had bad tummy acid afterwards

Luv Meditterannean dishes too. SO fresh & yummy. So nutritious too.

German: Not a big fan. Kilbassa of course

I'm not good at eating 'as WLS-directed':

protein, then veg, then carbs -on a plate -all separate.

Nope. can't & don't want to do it that way, every meal, everyday.

Wouldn't survive WLS if I had to.

Boooorrriiiinnng! (imho)

I AM, however, WLS-compliant.

I prefer to and usually do eat super flavorful, protein & nutrient-dense dishes all mixed together- especially in fall/winter.

Sometimes I'll order an extra side of protein to make my quota if there's not 3-4oz in the dish.

When I eat the mixed-dishes, I focus on my 3-4oz protein, 1/2c or so of the vegs, and a nibble or two of carbs, but I don't do it in any certain order & mix them together, often. I found putting a little veg on with the chicken- helps it go down better.

In restaurants I enjoy every single bite! No guilt!

I'm pretty good at eye-balling measurements and amounts, so no prob for me to do it that way.

I'm still gonna LUV & enjoy delicious foods-WLS or not! I Just make mindful, healthier choices now.

Really a waste of money!!!!!

i am new at this,my surgery was nov 17 2014. I find it difficult to make the choices off the menu but with time i will gain more confidence with this too. We went out to Breakfast and i ended up ordering ham. Everyone was understanding and it was more than i could eat.

i am new at this,my surgery was nov 17 2014. I find it difficult to make the choices off the menu but with time i will gain more confidence with this too. We went out to breakfast and i ended up ordering ham. Everyone was understanding and it was more than i could eat.

Welcome. I eat out almost every day but never breakfast because I hate breakfast foods. I have a shake every morning. If I go out with people for breakfast I have a hot tea and that's it. When having lunch or dinner I usually have soft foods so I don't get stuck but then I almost always eat at the same restaurants because I know what to order. Yesterday was Japanese hibachi for lunch and for dinner, salmon and shrimp casserole without butter. I eat out a real lot. For meats I only eat burgers or filet mignon. I have salmon mostly.

I'm happy to eat out, so long as it's not a "set price" buffet, as I feel I don't get good value because I can't eat much and they won't allow me just to share my husband's plate or take a doggy-bag.

If I know I'm going to a restaurant, I will take a tupperware container with me. No matter what I order from the menu, I will always place at least half of it in my container and take it home. I take my own container because some restaurants don't supply doggy-bags or they don't encourage you to take food away.

I can eat just about any foods on the menu, but of course in much smaller portions. Or I may just use my bread & butter plate and pinch some of my husband's meal.

The main thing I'm finding a little difficult to adjust to is not being able to drink with my meal, as I usually always like to wash down my food. I only ever drink Water, so now I just take baby sips with my food if I have to. If I drink too much, it makes my stomach gurgle, which can be a little uncomfortable.

I'm still battling with "head hunger" and think that I can eat more than I can, but my sleeve soon tells me otherwise.

At restaurants, the entrée sizes are good, but they're not always the most economical, as an entrée can sometimes be almost as expensive as a main meal. So I order a main meal and then just take most of it home, which makes the value much better.

I had my first experience with going out to eat with my family a week after my surgery. We went to a Mexican restaurant... My favorite and I took amen of beef broth with me and ordered hot tea. I enjoyed the social aspect and the only thing on the table that really called out to me were the chips.I really miss crunchy food. But I didn't feel deprived at all.