If you’re trying to eat healthily then eating out can often be a minefield. It’s sometimes really difficult to know what to pick as many of the options on the menu come in a creamy and calorific sauce or with added cheese or toppings.

Jennifer Irvine’s Top Three Eating Out Tips

There’s more to healthy eating at restaurants than simply avoiding dessert. Here are my three top tips...

Plan Ahead

 Suggest a restaurant that has health-conscious options on the menu – Try sushi or grill
 Use us! We can call up the restaurants you are going to in advance and let you know what dishes you should be ordering.
 Don’t skip meals just because you are going out for one. You will end up overeating at the restaurant.
 Wear tight fitting trousers! Don’t give yourself the option to expand into your fat pants!
 Eat a balanced snack before you go to the restaurant so that your blood sugar levels are stable – fruit with raw nuts/seeds or some hummus & crudities.

The Meal

 Avoid the bread basket, if you feel the urge to nibble go for olives instead.
 Avoid saucey, dressed dishes and fried foods…. Pick grilled food if possible, and ask for the dressings on the side
 If you have to have two courses, opt for a starter and a main and keep the starter light, alternatively have a starter and side dish for your main and pick a fresh fruit dessert.

The Drinks

 Try to stick to still or sparkling water to make sure you are hydrated and aren’t filling up on toxic, hidden calorie drinks (these drinks will not help with your good intentions!). If you must have alcohol, go for low calorie options such as champagne or a vodka and tonic.
 End your meal with a digestive herbal tea – Peppermint, Chamomile or Fennel all aid digestion

Make Friends with Your Waiter

When you are eating out, your waiter is an invaluable friend in helping you to make the right choice… A restaurant which is particularly good at this is The Ivy - one of my favourite restaurants in the West End. Every time I go there, I like to try something different, but it’s not always easy to see what the healthiest option on the menu is, which is where the waiter comes in…

Another one of my other favourites is Halibut on the Bone. The fact that it is served steamed means that all the delicious flavour, nutrients & moisture are retained, without the need to add oil or butter.

The Mixed Beetroot and Goat’s Cheese Salad with Persimmons and Rapeseed Mimosa is also a winner, particularly for vegetarians, as they use a variety of different beetroots which adds to the flavour.

Français Fare

On a recent trip to Paris, I found it interesting to observe the huge difference in eating habits between ourselves and the French. I think it comes down to the fact that the French see food as sacred and take their time over it which allows the food to digest. This goes against the typically British attitude to food which involves eating hurriedly, to get to wherever you next need to be.

Typically the portion sizes in French restaurants are much smaller, with diners taking their time over each bite, feeling full after eating far less. I think this outlook – eating little and often of the right foods – is why the obesity rate in France is one of the lowest in the world.

Eat In, In Style

If after all this, you’d still prefer to know that what you’re eating is the healthiest it can be, then embrace the trend for eating in and let The Pure Package do the work for you. As part of a tailor-made programme, The Pure Package can deliver a delicious and nutritionally balanced meal to your door, leaving you to focus on the fantastic taste of the food, rather than worrying about what’s in it!

This feature is sponsored by The Pure Package
(www.purepackage.com)
0845 612 3888