Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Eating Out: No Meat/Wheat/Dairy

So now that you are a wheat-free vegan, where do you eat out? What do you order in a restaurant? Try these:

Whole Foods
  • Salad Bar - The salad bar at Whole Foods has a fabulous (albeit expensive) selection of raw veggies. This is a great place to experiment with new foods: beets, kale, edamame, kidney beans and raw cabbage slaw.
  • Be sure to avoid the salad dressings and mix your own: extra-virgin olive oil, balsamic or apple cider vinegar, sea salt or Bragg's Liquid Aminos.
  • In the prepared foods cold case you can get sushi rolls, guacamole, fresh pico de gallo, hummus and decaffeinated iced tea.
  • Just beware, you can also get a beer, a chicken sandwich and a bag of chips - just because it's Whole Foods doesn't mean everything they serve is a whole food!

Cafe Express

  • As with most restaurants, look at the "side" items first.
  • spinach
  • broccoli
  • cup of black bean soup
  • french green beans
  • sweet potato fries
  • guacamole
  • hummus - ask to exchange the bread for tortilla chips

Pei Wei
  • Go online and study the "wheat-free" menu and combine with vegetarian options.
  • fried rice
  • spring rolls
  • soba noodles
  • edamame

Mexican Food - This is your easiest eat-out option.
  • beans
  • rice
  • salad
  • guacamole
  • hot sauce
  • pico de gallo
  • corn tortillas
  • corn chips

Italian Food - This is your most difficult option.
  • fish - Patrizzios will let you substitute the pasta for a lovely batch of fresh veggies
  • salad
  • side dishes - Penne Pommodoro does big sides like spinach and broccoli

Burger House, McDonalds etc
  • Face it - you have kids and you'll end up at one of these joints.
  • I always try to eat something. It makes my kids more comfortable, me less self-righteous and everyone else clue-less (I'm not trying to be a pain here!)
  • fries
  • onion rings
  • ketchup
  • iced tea
  • salad w/oil and vinegar dressing
  • fillet-o-fish

Seafood Restaurants - Half-Shells, Fish City Grill, Cuba Libra, Houstons
  • Every once in a while you will eat out with friends at a grown-up place.
  • There's nothing wrong with a beautiful piece of grilled fish-with-fins, rice, veggies and a glass of wine (fruit!).
  • Remember to avoid cheese and pasta - you will detox much faster the next day!

Bon Appetit!

No comments:

Post a Comment