This is my first weekend away and eating all my meals out with family. I have traveled on business too since surgery; but stuck with Protein shakes/wendy's chili, etc.

I have good restriction on a day to day basis but wondering how others handle the whole restaurant thing. For instance, last night I ordered:

appetizer: lump crabmeat cocktail (ate half)

salad: garden salad with blue cheese dressing (split with hubbie and then at half of my portion)

dinner: steamed groupers with sauteed veggies (ate half the grouper and few bites of veggies)

dessert: bailey's ice cream cake (we shared, I literally had 3 bites)

Now, pre op; I would have devoured it ALL, no sharing! Post op- it's a whole new me- and I am pleased with my decisions and self control- wondering though what others do- do you stick with appetizer or just order dinner? The previous night I only had an appetizer, salad, no dessert.

Thanks for feedback!

Admittedly, I haven't really dined out since being banded (2/5/09), but I have had to eat at a couple of fast food places. At subway, I order a roast beef mini sub with no cheese or mayo, but with all the veggies and honey mustard. Just the other day, I went to culver's with my mom and I had a grilled chicken sandwich (no butter or mayo) with extra lettuce, pickles, and tomatoes. With either sandwich I am completely stuffed.

I eat dinner out at least once a week. Red Lobster, ordered lobster with grilled shrimp and a salad; ate the salad and lobster and took the shrimp home for lunch the next day. Chinese restaurant -- got egg drop soup which, at my favorite place, has shrimp, mushrooms, "egg drop" stuff, and bits of green onion, etc. and the "2 person" bowl is a meal. Longhorns, ordered a filet with a baked potato and salad; ate some salad, half the potato and half the steak and had the remaining potato and steak for dinner the next night. I never eat the bread that shows up on the table even though those cheesy biscuits at Red Lobster were really tempting. Couldn't eat dessert even if I wanted one because I am full well before a waiter asks if I want one (and I don't miss dessert anyway since I've always tried to avoid them). Other faves include broiled fish, steamed vegetables, that sort of thing. I even went to one of those burrito places and ordered a "naked burrito".....lettuce with the meat, black beans, salsa, cheese and jalapenos I would normally have ordered in a burrito. I've lost 46 pounds so far so I'm feeling good about my choices. Good choices are out there, almost everywhere. You are not consigned to eating a bowl of soup and a salad. You'll have to judge the portions and ask for a go box if you have no one to share with at the meal, but that just makes the meal cheaper since you get a second one out of it.

My hubby and I ate out last night. We ordered together a 9 inch pizza, cheeseburger and fries. I ate 1 piece of the tiny pizza, 1/3 of the cheeseburger and about 6 fries. Pre-banding I would've eaten half of the pizza, half the burger and close to all of the fries.