You’ve banished all junk food from the house. The secret milk chocolate stash in your kitchen cupboard is history, the multipacks of fizzy drinks have been replaced with youth-inducing matcha tea and your fridge is stuffed with leafy greens. You have become an expert at healthy eating at home, but what about eating out?
Sticking to a sugar free diet when you are out and about can be tricky. But fear not! This guide will help you navigate restaurants, coffee shops and dinner parties so you can enjoy yourself without the sugar rush.
Be prepared.
Check out the restaurant’s menu online before you set off. This way you can make the right decision about what you want to eat without being distracted by good conversation. Plus, “I’ll have what he’s having” might not be a good option when you have quit sugar.
Call ahead.
If you are not sure which dish is a good sugar free option, just give the restaurant a call and explain what you’re after. Restaurants are as interested in having contented customers as you are in having a good time. Most will be more than happy to cater for your needs.
Have a snack.
A little something before you leave takes the edge off the hunger and prevents you from devouring the entire breadbasket. I love these grain free cheese thyme crackers from my blog, but it could be as straightforward as some crudités and a hunk of cheese.
Drink water.
A jug of table water is everyone’s friend. And it’s always a smarter option than soft drinks or juice, which is packed with sugar. One glass of apple juice contains the equivalent of seven teaspoons of sugar, whether it’s organic or not.
Stick to a flat white.
Milk-based drinks in coffee chains can contain a staggering amount of sugar. The worst offender is the Costa Coffee chai latte massimo with 20 teaspoons. As the Sunday Times reported yesterday, Public Health chiefs have just recommended extending the planned sugar tax to include sweetened coffees and milkshakes. To stay away from a sugar rush, it’s best to choose a flat white or stay black.
Choose your booze.
Obviously, moderation is key. Good low sugar choices are red wines, dry white wines such as Chardonnay and spirits with soda water and lime as a mixer. Stay away from dessert wines, ciders, liqueurs and cocktails, which are most likely sugar bombs. For a more detailed list, check out this article by the Telegraph.
Read between the lines.
Any dish that includes the words glazed, caramelise or indeed sweet may not be the smart option on a sugar free diet.
Beware of dressings and sauces.
Keep it simple! You can never go wrong with a steak, a fish or a generous salad. It’s the sauces and dressings where it can get tricky. Rich tomato sauces, for example, are high in natural sugars. Ask to have your sauces on the side and opt for olive oil and vinegar to dress your salad.
Make smart swaps.
Swap your chips for extra veggies, have a salad instead of the bread basket. White bread, white rice and white pasta are simple carbohydrates that the body converts into glucose. They significantly raise blood sugar levels, so crowd them out with the good stuff – plenty of fibre, healthy fats and protein.
Bring a dessert.
Dessert is the biggie when you’ve quit sugar. In restaurants, it’s best to stick to the cheese platter or a fruit salad. If you are invited to a dinner party, why don’t you offer to bring dessert? I like to make this healthy almond berry cake, it's a real showstopper. Or simply opt for some indulgent dark chocolate (85% or more cocoa solids), which is comparatively low in sugar. Your hosts would be thrilled about the helping hand – and you don’t have to muster the willpower to say thanks but no thanks, which might by now compromised by that lovely Chardonnay.
See the bright side of life.
Instead of focusing on what you can’t have, enjoy all the delicious, satisfying and nourishing dishes that are out there. Remind yourself why you don’t want the junk. By waving sugar good-bye, you are doing your body a huge favour. And if you do cave in and wolf down that triple death-by-chocolate cake before your brain has time to say no, don’t beat yourself up over it. This is real life, after all, and it’s making progress that counts. Just get back on the bandwagon tomorrow.
Angela Jackson
I love your recipes but find it difficult to lose weight as I age. I don't have a difficulty eating low carb or fasting, but the high fat in some of the foods means I have to be very careful what I eat as I can still gain weight. I still feel that too many calories, whether low carb or not, means you gain weight. What's your advice?
Katrin Nürnberger
Of course, that is true. A healthy low carb diet is one that contains the right amount of protein (the body only needs a finite amount, anything above gets converted to glucose = sugar), healthy fats and vegetables. You definitely can't eat as much as you want, especially when you're not exercising a lot (and most people don't, including me!). It's about eating the right amount, and the right thing. Personally, I eat A LOT of vegetables. Desserts are great, and I do have a lot of desserts on my site, but they are a treat and I don't eat one every day. I'm actually working on a comprehensive guide about how to start a low carb diet, which I will post soon. I will also start offering meal plans on my website from 2021. Please sign up to my newsletter if you haven't yet and I can keep you posted
Suzi
Thanks for this Katrin. Now, as a fellow Londoner, I beg you to start some kind of Keto snack company. I find it so difficult when wandering around London to pick up something that is low-carb while on the run. And while I always carry nuts and cheese with me, it would be so brilliant to be able to pick up a low-carb muffin or something! I have a dream of exactly how a Keto snack company could run, I just don't want to do it myself!
Katrin
That sounds like a great idea... to find the time, to find the time 🙂
Taryn
This is so helpful! It can be daunting to try to eat out while sugar free.
Sinless Sweets
Hi!
It's very difficult to watch what you eat when you go to a restaurant as it depends on what they have available. These tips are great! It really does help to be prepared beforehand. While there are a lot of wonderful options in our part of the world (Dubai, U.A.E ), you still need to watch for those little 'surprises'. Thanks for sharing!
Regards,
S.M.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
These are some great tips, it can be difficult to eat out on a sugar-free diet but this advice definitely helps! Thanks for sharing!
Kim | Low Carb Maven
Great advice. Without advance planning, we would have caved long ago. We, too, look at menus in advance and come back home to a low carb dessert so we don't feel deprived. You hit the nail on the head calling out popular coffee spots. Starbucks is popular here in the U.S. Recently, I ordered a lower carb cappuccino and was mistakenly given the wrong drink. It was so sweet I almost spit it out. I was shocked. So, 20 teaspoons of sugar doesn't seem like a stretch to me. Very informative article. Thanks!
Katrin
Thank you Kim. It is quite incredible how much sugar drinks can contain. Once you start eating sugar free, your palate really adjusts. I am not surprised you almost spat out that drink!
Tasha
Solid tips! I love that you can still enjoy dining out while making healthful choices. A good reminder for those of us who've embraced a low carb lifestyle.
Sarah
Awesome tips here - thanks for sharing!
Katrin
thank you Sarah!
Stacey
What an informative article. I have to be so careful when I go out to eat, trying avoid gluten as it nakes me very ill and sugary high carb foods.
Katrin
Glad you liked it, Stacey. When you have to be careful with what you eat you need to be prepared!
Ruth
Hi Katrin,
Your advices are welcome. You' re right, enjoying fully going out with friends without feeling bad later, all this depends on some simple preparations. I´ll follow your advice next time I'll eat out or have an invitation for dinner. By taking in account some elementary thoughts it seems to be quite easy to maintain a sugar free diet at any social event.
Thanks so much for your splendid ideas.
Katrin
Hello Ruth, you are very welcome! Have a great day
Maki
Great article! I have recently gone out and have swapped steak and chips for steak and cabbage! I've found that as you have said, restaurants can be very accommodating. Xx
Katrin
Thanks Maki! Steak and cabbage, that's sugar free for the advanced! Very impressed 🙂
Georgina Bomer
Really great advice here - I've tried having a snack before going out for dinner to help me avoid the bread basket and it is very helpful!
Katrin
Thanks Georgina, that bread basket can look very tempting indeed! I always try to stay very sensible with the booze until food has arrived. I am a bit of a lightweight when it comes to drinking, so can only keep my wits together with a decent amount of food in the stomach!