Quick Summary: Eating low carb at restaurants is easier than you think once you know what to order. The basic strategy is the same everywhere: swap the starch for extra vegetables or beans, choose grilled proteins over breaded, and skip the bread basket. Here are cuisine-specific tips, fast food options, social strategies, and what to pack when you’re traveling.
Jump to: Restaurant Strategies | Fast Food | Socializing | Travel | FAQ
Traveling and socializing can be a difficult challenge on a low-carb lifestyle. Â It is fortunately getting easier to find tasty food options in restaurants, although it is sometimes embarrassing (or just a hassle) to have conversations with your server about substitutions, etc.
Then of course there is the inconvenience of airport foods and the myriad of temptations on the table when eating out with friends who are not living a low-carb lifestyle. Â Here are a few tips on what to order when eating out and how to navigate some of the restaurant or socializing issues.
Restaurant Strategies by Cuisine
Indian Food:
This cuisine usually includes a lot of protein and legumes. Avoid the rice, ditch the Naan, and go easy on light-colored things like korma and cream sauces since they tend towards heavy butter and cream (some butter and cream are allowed but you need to not overdo it). Vindaloo without potatoes, Dal, and Gobi dishes, again without potatoes, make excellent choices. Tandoori chicken is usually safe. Lentils are great and will help fill you up instead of rice. Avoid the deserts, as they are usually loaded with sugar and not compliant with a low-carb lifestyle.
Thai Food:
Thai curries in a bowl without rice are one of my favorite restaurant meals. My go-to at the Thai restaurants I visit with my daughter in Denver is a peanut curry with chicken and mussels on top. Ferriss recommends Thai food frequently in “The 4-Hour Body” and for good reason. My favorite Thai restaurant in Denver, makes a peanut curry dish with chicken or pork and I ask them to add mussels on top. It is wonderful. Thai restaurants also offer good salads with fish sauce dressings. Just skip the rice, even though the servers will think you’re a little odd when you tell them that.
Mexican Food:
Most Mexican restaurants offer a range of lean proteins and beans. Again, skip the rice, the burrito shells, and the corn salsas and you will be fine. Mexican food often offers tomatoes, peppers, guacamole, and lots of spice, which are all great. Skip the corn and the tamales.
Steakhouses and other restaurants:
The default strategy is to replace carbs with vegetables and beans. Â This is probably the easiest restaurant option for a low-carb lifestyle.
Pancake houses:
Many of the pancake houses offer egg dishes 24-7. Omelets, eggs and bacon, etc. are all great for dinner also. Make sure and skip the toast, hash browns, pancakes, and cheese though!
Mediterranean and Greek restaurants.
These are some of the easiest cuisines for low-carb eating (grilled meats, vegetables, hummus, salads).
Japanese/sushi restaurants.
Sashimi is zero carb, edamame is a legume (slow carb compliant), miso soup is low carb.
Tip #1: It is helpful to use any of the myriad of restaurant apps to check nutrition info and menus before you to. Have this list of allowed food on the slow carb diet handy to help with quick decision-making.
Tip #2: Before any higher-carb meals or before “imbibing” get some citrus in you. A grapefruit or grapefruit juice is the best, but lemon juice from a couple of wedges of lemon in your water works second best.
Socializing Without the Diet Conversation
- Have some tried and true standby places in mind. When friends suggest going out, you can offer these up as suggestions so you aren’t just saying “no” to all of their suggestions.
- Don’t talk to friends about being on a diet (unless they are also). Just tell them you’re doing a “healthy eating challenge” or that your doctor said you have to decrease your insulin spikes. It goes over a lot better and they’re less likely to be annoyed or talk you out of it.
- Find meals you like and repeat them. Alternate days if it’s too boring.
- Stick with wine instead of high-calorie cocktails or beer. A lot of non-alcoholic options are now available in most high-end restaurants.
- If you are in a business situation and don’t want to talk about your substitutions at the table, excuse yourself at a convenient time and talk to the server privately about making substitutions.
- Look at the menu online ahead of time and make your plan.
Tip: Eat a small snack before you go out to eat so you are not starving. Bad decisions (like the bread basket) are much easier to fall into when you are starving.
Fast Food Options
- Jimmy Johns has very good lettuce wraps.
- Chipotle’s burrito bowl with meat, veggies, pico, beans, and guac is really good and fast.
- Most burger chains will serve any burger as a lettuce wrap or without the bun. Ask for extra vegetables instead of fries.
- If you are at Starbucks and ask for real cream for your coffee they bring out a gallon jug and pour off a cup for you!
- When you’re in a hurry for breakfast and not home, McDonald’s has scrambled eggs and bacon.
- Red Robin offers all of their burger options as a lettuce wrap with veggies instead of the fries
- Most fast-food places have some sort of salad. Just get the dressing on the side. Ask if they have hard-boiled eggs to add.
Traveling and Airports
Airport food is mostly carbs. Plan ahead.
If you are flying, it’s important to pack your own snacks. You can absolutely forget about getting compliant food on planes these days. On most US flights the only food available once you’re boarded is primarily carbs.
If the trip is short, you can just eat before you go, but most of the time you will need to take something with you. It’s safest to bring it from home, but most airports now have meal salads and other selections to take on the plane with you.
Pack a soft-sided cooler in your carry-on with nonperishable low-carb foods:
- Protein bars (but watch for suspicious ingredients such as maltitol, and watch the carb count on the bars)
- Nuts or nut butters
- Jerky
- Snack sausages
- Protein powder and blender bottle
- Tuna or smoked oysters in small tins (but beware, your seatmate may not appreciate it!)
- Small packets of peanut butter
- Sturdy vegetables like celery will be fine without refrigeration for a day or so
- Olives, pickles, kimchi
- Pork cracklings
Tip: Here are a few other portable low carb snack ideas to pack in your carry-on or suitcase.
FAQ
Keep it simple. “I’m cutting back on carbs” or “my doctor suggested it” usually ends the conversation. Avoid the word “diet” if you can.
Most restaurants can make substitutions. Ask for vegetables instead of rice or potatoes, protein without breading, or salad instead of fries. Servers are used to dietary requests.
Order simply (steak and vegetables, grilled fish, salad with protein), avoid drawing attention to substitutions, and if needed, speak to the server privately.
Dry wine or clear spirits with non-sugary mixers. Avoid beer and sweet cocktails.
Prioritize protein at breakfast, pack snacks, and don’t stress about occasional exceptions. One off-plan meal won’t undo your progress.
Mostly yes. Both approaches focus on protein, vegetables, and avoiding sugar, bread, rice, and potatoes when dining out. The main difference is that slow carb specifically includes legumes (beans, lentils) and has a weekly cheat day. The restaurant strategies here work for both.
Steakhouses and Mexican restaurants tend to be the easiest since protein and vegetables are central to the menu. Thai, Indian, and Mediterranean are also good with minor substitutions. Avoid pasta-heavy Italian restaurants unless they have strong grilled protein options.
Nice ideas here, love your blog and recipes!
Thank you Cindy!!
Good article, Dorothy. I struggle with the eating out with friends problem a lot. Also, I got that smoked tomato beverage/bush bottle. That stuff tastes so good it ought to be illegal!
Thank you Beth! What did you use it in?
can you recommend a specific protein bar?
There really aren’t any protein bars that are recommended for the slow carb diet. The best of any of them is the Quest bar. Better to snack on pepperoni slices, nuts, or chicharrones.