Heart Healthy Menu Ideas When Dining Out
Trying to follow a heart-healthy diet? Dining out at restaurants is easier than you might think. In fact, most sit-down restaurants offer menu options that’ll please your cardiovascular system and your tastebuds. Many places will even modify a recipe to suit your diet. Still, less-than-healthy menu options may tempt you. Following are some guidelines to help you successfully stick to your diet and, in the end, feel satisfied.
Make Heart-Healthy Menu Choices––Before You Go Out
If possible, look at the menu in advance. Many restaurants post their menus online, and some even post their nutritional information. Knowing your options and thinking about your choices ahead of time can help you with stick-to-it-iveness.
Be cautious about family-style restaurants and all-you-can-eat buffets, where the foods––and daily menus––are made in advance. These types of restaurants offer no way to modify certain food items, and unlimited portions can entice you to overeat.
A better choice is to seek out restaurants where food is “made to order.” This gives you a chance to control portions and have your meal modified for a heart healthy diet. Also, keep in mind that a restaurant meal may provide more sodium and fat than if you made the meal yourself, so aim for even lower content in your at-home meals and snacks earlier that day.
How to modify your meal without annoying your waiter.
You’ll have to get comfortable asking a few more questions of the waitstaff than you might be used to, but they’re generally happy to accommodate patrons’ requests. No need to explain why you’re asking for recipe changes, but a simple please or thank you always helps––as does a generous tip.
Here are some sample questions:
- “May I have that baked or grilled, rather than fried?”
- “Might your chef prepare that without the butter or sauce?”
- “Could I please have the dressing on the side?”
- “Could I have a baked potato or vegetables in place of the French fries?”
- “Might I have a salad or vegetables, instead of the cream soup?”
Sit-Down Restaurant Menu Choices
Main Course
The type of restaurant will determine many of your menu choices. For instance, a Japanese restaurant will offer very different options than a Mexican restaurant or steakhouse. Here are a few things to consider when selecting your main dish:
Portion size—You may want to split a meal with someone else, or select the 6 oz. filet mignon instead of the 22 oz. porterhouse.
Proteins—Fish, seafood, poultry without the skin, beans and lean meats are better choices than high-fat options, such as highly marbled cuts of meat.
Preparation method—Grilled, baked, roasted, steamed, poached, stewed or braised foods are good choices because they’re prepared with far less fat than fried, deep fried, breaded, battered or crispy.
Say yes to:
- Grilled, broiled or baked fish
- Grilled, skinless chicken breast
- Sushi* (tuna or salmon, without sauces)
- Salad topped with grilled chicken or salmon
- Lightly sautéed chicken and vegetables
- Turkey breast
- Other lean meats
* People who are immunocompromised, such as those who are post-transplant, may need to avoid uncooked or undercooked foods.
Beverages
Avoid sugar-laden soda, sweet tea, margarita mix and other sugary beverages. If it is okay with your medical provider, alcoholic beverages can be consumed, but men should limit their intake to two drinks per day and women to one drink per day.
Say yes to:
- Zero-calorie beverages
- Water
- Plain, iced tea
- Sparkling water
- Black coffee, iced or hot
- Lime or lemon wedge for extra taste
Appetizers
Be especially conscious of your food choices at this initial stage of dining when you’re the hungriest. Many appetizers are fried or come with heavy sauces that you should avoid for heart health. The bread, crackers and chips placed on tables can also rack up the calories, fat and salt.
Say yes to:
- Grilled vegetables
- Hummus plate
- Vegetable soup
- Salad (vinaigrette)
- Seaweed salad
- Edamame
- Seared ahi tuna
- Grilled salmon
- Bean dip
- Guacamole
- Peal-and-eat shrimp
Side Dishes
To stick to your diet, avoid side dishes that provide little nutritional value or add unhealthy elements to your meal. This includes foods such as mac and cheese, fried potatoes, white rice, and cream-based soups. Ask if you can substitute the standard side dish with a healthier one.
Say yes to:
- Fruit cup
- Steamed vegetables
- Grilled vegetables
- Salad (vinaigrette)
- Baked potato
- Brown rice
Desserts
The best heart-health option is to skip the dessert, since most are loaded with sugar and fat. If you’re going to indulge, consider splitting the dessert so you don’t consume the whole portion by yourself. Or, even better, take just one bite and enjoy it thoroughly!
Frequency matters
It may be reasonable to indulge a little if you limit restaurant meals to a few special occasions each year. On the other hand, if you eat at restaurants several times each week, you’ll need to be more cautious about how you eat when you are dining out.
Generally speaking, if you have heart disease, there are a number of foods to avoid or reduce, whether you’re eating out or eating in. Here’s a list of some of the more common culprits.
Say No or “Just a Little” to:
- Fried
- Deep fried
- Breaded, battered or crispy
- Heavy or creamy sauces
- Gravy
- Chips and salsa
- French fries
- Crackers
- Bread
- Butter
- Whole Milk
- Cream
- Non-dairy creamers
- Ribs
- Whipped cream
- Sour cream
- Creamy salad dressings
- Cream-based soups
- Potato chips
- Cheese
- Pizza
- Bacon
- Sausage
- Hot dogs
- Salami
- Steak
- Pork chops
- Hamburgers
- Ketchup
- Soy sauce
- Mayonnaise
- Salt
- Sugar
- Baked goods
- Muffins
- Desserts
- Sugary beverages
- Alcohol