Buffet + Diet= ?

I think the answer to that question depends on  you...the day your having and what kind of choices you allow yourself to make.


Jim and I went to Turning Stone last night with some friends for dinner at the Buffet...a lot of bad choices can be had. BUT...I did well. This is what I had:



Sushi
A small piece of Turkey
A small piece of Roasted Chicken
Sm. Salad w/ FF Italian Dressing and crumbly Bleu Cheese
About a cup Lemon Pepper Chinese Chicken
(I got a sm. piece of the baked Tilapia...not so great...didn't eat it...it made me gag)


For anyone that has been to the Buffet...they have a pretty decent dessert spread...which never fails to be my downfall...especially with their choclate fondue fountain. BUT...I definitely overcame it...

I had a Sugar Free Cheese Cake...a mini cup...but didn't eat the crust and a few bites of a sugar free pie.


All in all...definitely a success. That's the one thing I love about Weight Watchers is the flexibility...I can eat whatever I want within reason. I had saved up enough daily points and used some of my weekly points allowance to be able to enjoy dinner...and not over indulge.


We're going to Applebees tonight for my Birthday dinner...Applebees is great because they have their 550 Calorie and under menu (Not so crazy about their Weight Watcher foods anymore...most of them have a funny after taste to me)

So I pulled up the menu and made my way to the Nutritional Facts...and I can't even lie...it made me sick...

I found a website that posts Points Plus Values of popular restaurants with their nutritional information
Weight Watchers Points Plus Restaurant List


Here's a list of some of my favorites...and their fat content...

Spinach and Artichoke Dip...107 grams of fat
Loaded mashed potatoes...29 grams of fat (in a POTATO)
Apple Walnut Chicken Salad...65 grams of fat (In a friggin salad...REALLY??!!)
Bacon Cheddar Burger...60 grams of fat


Their Desserts...are absolutely ABSURD. There's nor eason for them to be that high in fat...

The chocolate mousse shooter (A Shooter...not a full size dessert...literally 2 mouth fulls) 31 grams of fat (that's 15.5 grams of fat per bite for those of you counting at home).


Take a moment and look over the kid's menu...35 grams of fat in a Grilled Cheese Sandwhich...46 Grams of fat in 2 mini cheese burgers.


And we wonder why America has a Childhood Obesity epidemic...


The worst offender I could see on the list (That pertains to my area...a lot of these restaurants we just don't have) Uno's Chicago Bar & Grill


My most favorite thing from there of all time...Their Pizza Skins...when I looked at the nutritional information...I actuallys shuddered and then threw up in my mouth a bit after I thought about the number of times I've actually eaten this.

This little plate that you get is 5 servings...Basically one slice per person...but really...who orders that and has just one piece...I know I didn't...Usually I would order that as dinner with a salad.


The total fat on that plate was 140 grams.


It gets better (Or worse really)...take a look at their entrees...most of them are 2 servings...Look at the Chicken Alfredo...140 grams or so of fat on the plate...The Chicken Spinoccoli...124 grams.

Lobster Mac 'n' Cheese...200 grams of fat served on one plate.


I could go on and on and on...on that menu alone.


Now...I know that I said we can't blame the fast food industry or anyone else as adults for our weight problems...BUT...somewhere along the way down the road...Restaurants like these have to take responsibility somewhere.


NO where on the Unos Menu does it tell you that those dinners are for 2 people. And why...why is it necessary to pack that much added fat, calories, preservatives, etc into food. YOU'RE KILLING PEOPLE. Mostly because people just aren't aware. They look at a menu and think...Bakes Stuffed Chicken. Oh...it's stuffed with tomatoes...spinach...a little Mozarella cheese. That's a great choice...for their menu...it is...because not including sides...it only  has 36 grams of fat in it.


Why is it necessary for a salad to have almost 100 grams of fat in it. It's a salad...it should be healty.


Restaurants...especially some of my local favorites...that don't include nutritional information on their website dissapoint me and I'm less likely to eat  there. I want to plan my meal out before I go, and if I can't...I probably wont eat there. I would much rather put my money into local food instead of chain restaurants.


Red Lobster...has great options...Sea Food is really good for you. I applaud them...because they could have done a lot with their food to make it high in fat and calories...the only things that seem high are pastas and anything with a cream sauce which is to be expected...but it's not outrageous.


I want to touch on Children's menus...but I'll save that for a later posting...that's a whole topic in itself.


To boil it down to a point...we have to be aware of what we're putting into our bodies, whether you're over weight, under weight or at an ideal weight. Know what it is that you're eating. I never did before. I would never have looked up nutritional values before Weight Watchers. I can't believe some of the things that I used to put into my body thinking it was a healthy choice. You think that salad is the best choice you can make...but you're so wrong wrong wrong!!!


I can almost 100% guarantee that I will probably never at at Unos again. I wont ever order a dessert from Applebees again. I'll save points for special occasions or for a meal that is really worth it to me...but I can't see throwing 35 points away on a dessert alone.

I just deep down wish that restaurants would start being more health concious and more informative about what they put in their foods. Being uninformed is what keeps us fat...among many many other things.